Neil Finn and Roundhead Studios just played host to a 10-night livestreamed musical extravaganza to help Make Us Feel Good About Life. Here are reviews from those who were in the room for the second week.
Night six: Dave Dobbyn with Lawrence Arabia
The first time Dave Dobbyn ever attempted an online livestream was in 1995 – long before YouTube or broadband or wifi, believe it or not before even Xtra – and it literally broke the internet for the hundreds or possibly thousands of New Zealanders who attempted to log on to surf the net that night. Three full decades on I am happy to report that technology has finally caught up to and maybe even surpassed his pioneering vision, with not so much as an ethernet cable to be seen in Roundhead’s downstairs studio labyrinth.
Dobbyn and band took the stage at the gentlemanly hour of 8.30-ish, kicking off with ‘Kingdom Come’ off 2000’s Hopetown before a pair of songs from his 1995 classic Twist, ‘It Dawned on Me’ and ‘Naked Flame’ – the former with guest cello and euphonium players, the latter with a guest vocalist, both with Neil Finn (aka “Mr Generous”, as Dobbyn later introduced him) noodling away to provide squally, vibes-based guitar textures just like on the record. Truly spine-tingling stuff, and that was before we even got to the emotional one-two closer of ‘Beside You’ and ‘Welcome Home’.
The evening began with a solo set from Lawrence Arabia, perched at Neil Finn’s piano for a stripped-back version of Reduction Agents album opener ‘Cold Glass Tube’ before debuting a suite of new songs, including the instantly memorable toxic masculinity-inspired ‘Hanging with the Boys’, the chorus of which has since been added to the repertoire of songs I sing to my dogs. The final song of the set, another new one, was my favourite of the lot and maybe even the whole night – I really hope I get to hear it again one day.
My main takeaway from seeing music performed in an actual music studio was “holy shit it sounds amazing in here”. The half-time set from slacker idol Tom Lark, shredding in more ways than one out in the other studio, served to underline this by sounding more like a regular subterranean indie gig – still good stuff, but I would love to have heard what such a consummate guitar tonesman could do in the big studio. Next Infinity Sessions, maybe? / Calum Henderson
Night seven: Bic Runga with Chaii
We’re really getting spoiled, I thought as Bic Runga, one of New Zealand’s most decorated musicians, began the second Friday night of Infinity Sessions – a global star playing Tiny Desk style right before our eyes. Opening with hits like ‘Get Some Sleep’, the crowd was admiring, reverent and sang softly yet attentively along from the very first note.
“I was meant to have bass player Cass Mitchell with me tonight,” Runga said, “but she’s gotten quite sick so Neil Finn stepped up and learned all these songs this morning.” Finn, our host and another world famous musician, then joined her on stage for ‘Something Good’. “I played this song to you, Neil, you helped me figure this one out,” Runga recalled before telling a quick story: when ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’ was in the Top 40, she wrote out all the words by hand. “That song just captured my imagination and showed me you could be a musician in this country,” she said.
A peak moment came when the pair played ‘Listening for the Weather’ with Runga on vocals, harmonica and keys. It was nostalgic, heartfelt, beautiful – a lovely expression of the melodic, multi-instrumental folk rock style Runga is so deeply loved for. She also treated us to a few new ones from her upcoming album. “It’s called escape from planet earth because you can in your mind,” she said. “It’s really fucking good,” Finn said. Runga closed with two all-time hits: ‘Drive’ and ‘Sway’. Everyone loved it.
Earlier, Chaii and her full band also rocked the opening slot for this gig. They played jazzy remixes of hit Chaii songs which shone and were literally ‘Drippin’ in Gold’, with her rhythmic rapping overtop flute, sax, keys, electric guitar and drums. Go and see Chaii live ASAP. / Liv Sisson
Night eight: Tiny Ruins with Jazmine Mary
Jazmine Rose Phillips aka Jazmine Mary and their band opened this gig with a brooding, captivating set. Phillip’s lyrics are emotionally wide ranging, haunting, raw and I loved the mixture of folk twangs, orchestral swells and their performance art approach. They wore a bright pink metallic boiler suit and stared straight down the live stream camera multiple times. “I’m not here to entertain you,” they said, I’m here to connect with myself and these people [the band], because when we’re connected we treat each other nicer, kinder and that makes for a kinder world.”
Headlining act Tiny Ruins opened and closed their set in gentle protest. They opened with ‘Sounds Like’, which frontwoman Hollie Fullbrook said is a protest song. It was rhythmic, and uplifting – “When will we comprehend what we’re all in here for?” Fullbrook sang. Next they played one of their hits, ‘Me at the Museum, You in the Wintergardens’ and told us they were missing Cass Mitchell, their (and Bic Runga’s) bass player, who was still out sick. “We miss you Cass,” they said to the live stream. “The band chat is going to be full of criticism after this,” they joked. Even so, there was at least one super fan in the crowd having a spiritual experience, singing every word, eyes often closed, often misty, completely moved by the haunting, dreamy beauty of the music.
Fullbrook played ‘Dorothy Bay’ solo, just her voice and acoustic guitar. How calming, how reassuring, I thought during it, to be in a group all enjoying the same thing for a second, with no threat of distraction. It took me back to campfire songs from childhood. Tiny Ruins finished with ‘The Crab/Waterbaby’ – “It’s a song about a crab, a real crab, that I met,” Fullbrook said. It was poetic, almost medicinal in the way the music lifted and lingered, with a deep stringed undercurrent. I have been listening to it on repeat since. / Liv Sisson
Night nine: Troy Kingi with Bret McKenzie
Originally meant to be the final stop for this year’s MUFGAL express, Troy Kingi, Bret McKenzie and Joe Kaptein treated a packed Roundhead Studio crowd to a two-and-a-half hour journey across genres. Best known as one half of musical comedy duo Flight of the Conchords, McKenzie was accompanied by his eight-piece band The State Highway Wonders. Their set covered conspiracy theorists, love ballads, and the most recent American election. It was as equally intriguing as it was refined.
The evening, however, belonged to Troy Kingi and The Night Lords. A cover of ‘Like a Drug’ by Queens of The Stone Age set the desert rock tone for what was to follow, nodding to Leatherman and the Mojave Green, Kingi’s latest release in his endeavour to release 10 albums in 10 genres in 10 years. From there, Kingi jumped back to his debut album, before taking the crowd on a journey through his discography.
Despite only having two rehearsals, Kingi and The Night Lords effortlessly traversed a range of genres from 70s funk and 80s synth to 90s desert rock. The set list seamlessly blended the best of Kingi’s deep cuts with some of his more well-known hits, such as ‘All Your Ships Have Sailed’ and ‘Grandma’s Rocket Poem’, with a couple of exclusive previews of the next record thrown into the mix. For Kingi fans, the entire experience was an intimate delight that finished with a seemingly endless climatic rock riff that perfectly captured the energy of the evening. / Liam Rātana
Night ten: Tami Neilson with Ebony Lamb
After mingling in the “lounge,” we were directed to the studio for Ebony Lamb’s final New Zealand performance before her move to Japan. Acknowledging her band back in Pōneke, Ebony’s solo act was captivating: poetic songs, her voice delicate yet powerful, with just the right touch of witty banter between numbers. Between performances, Neil Finn jammed on his synthesiser, performing a rendition of Crowded House’s ‘Chocolate Cake’ (a song I found intriguing as a child listening on the radio). Both artists referenced the challenging times, with Finn repeating his and the series’ intentions to spread “little ripples of joy”.
Then it was Tami Neilson. Postponed from last week, you wouldn’t have guessed that she had just recovered from the ‘flu. A highlight was her rendition of ‘Three Cigarettes in an Ashtray’, prefaced with a story of how she had been invited to perform for a PBS Great Performances Special dedicated to Patsy Cline at the Ryman Auditorium, a huge deal for her.
This was Neilson’s first time playing songs from her new album Neon Cowgirl in New Zealand. We were treated to guest appearances by Kaylee Bell, and Finn himself, for the title track. Nearing the end of the set, they realised they would have to cut a few songs, but thankfully kept in the theme song she wrote for the SpongeBob movie Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie.
Although I was unfamiliar with many of her songs, the intimate setting turned my appreciation to full-blown fan status. The atmosphere was intimate and energetic, with a lot of swaying, bopping and smiling from the crowd. As the final session of the season, we were assured this wasn’t an end, but a beginning. I certainly hope so; I left feeling pretty bloody good about life for a Tuesday! / Gemma Spring
