“I’ve been really excited to see how The Local Scene gigs have been taking off,” says event organizer AJ Crawshaw. “With the first one in March selling 200 tickets I thought I’d got lucky but then the next gig in May of this year topped that, selling 240 tickets. What’s great is it shows there is an appetite for local quality original music. It’s the sound of Kāpiti. It’s our songwriters playing our songs for our people.”

The third Local Scene gig is being held on the 1^st of September at The Social at Kāpiti Lights from 5pm til late. Promising another strong lineup, starting with lighter acoustic acts and finishing with heavy rock. There will be some returning acts from the last two gigs but also some new talent on display. This time Including Pale Lady the 2017 winners of the National Battle of the band’s competition, with guitarist Jack Taylor being a local.

“At its heart, The Local Scene is about creating an opportunity for our local songwriters to get paid and be heard, for a local bar to get filled and for the local people of Kāpiti to get a great show which represents Kāpiti’s voice.” It’s a curated event featuring eight of Kāpiti’s best songwriters and their bands.

Gary Weatherhead from Island Audio, a local sound engineer, is again behind this event and will be running the desk and bringing along his awesome lighting rig. 

At $10 a ticket, you get 7 hours of live, quality, original local music. This is great value for Kāpiti’s music lovers. 

If you’re interested in getting tickets, go along to the facebook event here: https://www.facebook.com/events/261892431292740/

Here is a list of the acts performing:

Neroli

Jazz trained vocalists and multi-instrumentalists Sarah Radford and Hannah Goodin comprise Neroli. The Jazz influence sings through on their pop tracks and makes for a haunting and beautiful sound. facebook.com/Nerolisounds/

Jess Deacon

After her debut performance at The Local Scene in May Jess changed her path completely; leaving her job and touring the South Island during which she played seven gigs in two weeks. She is now back at uni studying Jazz Performance at the New Zealand School of Music and playing gigs as much as she can. Extremely talented, her sound brings together her love of folk and jazz music, with emotive songs and plenty of stories to tell.

facebook.com/jessdeaconmusic

Charlotte Kerrigan performing with Bluesette

The marvellous Charlotte Kerrigan. She writes piano-based, lyric-driven bluesy soul songs. Singer-songwriter Charlotte Kerrigan’s debut EP ‘Metaphor’ entered in at #1 on the NZ Top 40 Heatseekers albums and #7 in NZ Albums Top 40. She has been gigging locally for years and has a real presence on the Kapiti Coast. Not to be missed.

charlottekerrigan.com

Grumblewood

Grumblewood is a progressive quartet that hails from Wellington and the Kāpiti Coast. Influenced by the electric folk and progressive rock movements of the 70s, their music blends elements of baroque, jazz, and traditional folk music into a vintage rock setting. With flamboyant flute-work, creative fret-work, and complex grooves, they craft melodious tales that sound quite unlike what’s usually heard on New Zealand stages.

“Saw these guys knock it out of the park last weekend. Great sound, tight performance, really fun to watch and listen to. Would be great to see them again.” – Neil Beales (Wellington Musician)

facebook.com/grumblewood

IRN Blues

Irn Blues are a fully Kāpiti-based band with an international flavour. The two songwriters Marc and Steve come from the west of Scotland, hence the name. With a mix of hard-edged blues, rock and hint of heavy metal Irn Blues appeal to the slightly heavier music market. Influences of the band members range from Lenny Kravitz to Lemmy Kilminster. This diversity is reflected in their sound. From the funkier Rescue Me to the grungy twelve-bar blues of Em in Blue.

facebook.com/irnblues 

The AJ Crawshaw Band

AJ Crawshaw is an Indie rock and folk songwriter. He has released two EPs to date, both to rave reviews and strong sales with a bit of indie radio airplay. This time around he will be bringing his full band, who take the music to the next level, with soaring guitar solos and tidy band hits.

“AJ’s talent on both sides of the mixing desk is evident throughout this 5-track EP, a collection of perfectly written and executed alt-pop and folk therapies helping the artist to restore his faith in hope. Each song is meticulously arranged into a tight, tidy space, free from clutter. Whether he’s lamenting a regrettable association or embracing an opportunity to let something go, an honesty shines through. Each ounce of sonic energy has been placed gently into its own space. Each track is a sharp cathartic knife slicing through the thick, splintered twine of disappointment, or as AJ describes it, “…an EP about losing and winning and restoring hope.” – NZ Musician (“Phoenix Burning” Band EP released 2015) ajcrawshaw.com

Really?

The local rock band you may not have heard of but really should’ve. Comprised of virtuoso talent across the board. Individually these musicians have been making sounds for years and together they are really, really good.

facebook.com/ReallyNZ

Pale Lady

Founded in late 2016, Pale Lady consists of four rock fanatics who found themselves in the same music degree. Since then, it has been non-stop writing and gigging to bring something new to Rock n Roll. Their music is diverse, with influences both from old school classics and modern rock. Pale Lady’s sound is characterised by the layered elements and high energy. At a show you can expect to hear catchy vocal melodies, heavy riffs and guitar solos a plenty. Since winning the 2017 National Battle Of The Bands, the band has been working towards upcoming releases. The put on a show not to be missed. www.pale-lady.com