Band in tune with the animals

BY: LISA HONEYBONE

It's not every day a successful band gets to hang out with a pregnant giraffe.

But it's all in a day's work for the boys of Midnight Youth in the lead-up to their performance for the ZooMusic summer concert series.

The boys who hail from the North Shore were ushered into the Pridelands enclosure to get up close with Rukiya who is due next month.

The say they were getting to know the animals at the zoo so they won't get annoyed with them when they play on February 19.

"We're apologising now for the noise we're going to make," says lead vocalist Jeremy Redmore.

Midnight Youth formed in 2006 and since then they have hit the ground running.

Their debut album The Brave Don't Run entered the New Zealand album chart at number two and it has now reached platinum status.

The group praise the music department at Rangitoto College and say going there is definitely a contributing factor to the music they make.

They believe there is a healthy rivalry between high schools such as Rangitoto College and Takapuna Grammar which helps build a strong base of quality musicians coming out of the North Shore.

They say they've had an amazing lifestyle growing up near the beaches.

"We've been lucky it's given us a more relaxed outlook on life."

The musicians say they have played in some pretty unusual places from a quarry to an empty swimming pool so performing at the zoo isn't the strangest
thing they've heard of.

The ZooMusic series kicked off on January 29 and has seen performances from the likes of Opshop and The Black Seeds raising money for selected endangered species.

Midnight Youth's performance is supporting a conservation project to be selected by the audience on the night.

Auckland Zoo senior media and communications co-ordinator Jane Healy says they keep the noise under a certain level so the animals don't get upset during the concerts.

Midnight Youth have a busy few months ahead with various gigs throughout the country.

They will also be releasing their album in Australia and "hopefully winning over some Aussies", they say.

The North Shore Time has two double passes to give away to Midnight Youth's ZooMusic performance. Send your entry on the back of an envelope to North Shore Times, ZooMusic Giveaway, PO Box 33-235, Takapuna, with your full name, address and daytime phone number by February 16. One entry per person.

- © Fairfax NZ News