Seventh heaven

DUKE MULE

TIKI TAANE: Coming to Summer Seven

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Rock'n'roll explosions threaten the Trafalgar Centre on Saturday night, as Nelson's Summer Seven gig ignites. Alice Cowdrey caught up with two of the artists playing.

Jimmy Christmas describes his band Luger Boa as a "hissing, spluttering, roaring rock'n'roll machine", and this weekend it will be cranked up in Nelson for the first time.

Luger Boa are playing at the Trafalgar Centre as part of the Summer Seven concert, and Christmas is promising that the machine will be perfectly oiled on the night.

"We are going to the usual Luger Boa ensemble, which is high-energy rock'n'roll. It will be pretty crazy, as usual.

"I can never really predict exactly what's going to happen, because we don't know ourselves, but I am sure it will sound great and hopefully look quite interesting."

The Auckland band will join Tiki Taane, the Upbeats, Rhombus in Dub, Optimus Gryme and Wicked Draw for the gig, which organisers Dave White and Selena Coombes, of Nelson's Phat Club, hope will attract a 2000-strong crowd. It follows on from last month's Summer Six event at Saxton Oval.

Luger Boa have been together for about a year and were formed by Christmas, the former vocalist and guitarist with garage rockers the D4.

Despite the band's relatively short history, last year was extremely busy, including a national tour with Head Like a Hole and another lap of the country during the Rock Legal Tender Tour with Shihad, the Living End and Airbourne.

Luger Boa also opened for American rockers Kings of Leon, and things haven't slowed down this summer. On New Year's Eve, they headlined at a "fantastic" rock festival in Taranaki called Detonate.

"It involved lots of rock'n'roll and explosions. The new year for me began standing on top of a speaker stack while the whole hillside behind me exploded into fire," Christmas recalls.

The chatty singer says those gigs, plus plenty of time on the airwaves, have quickly generated a decent following and a solid profile for the band. He's feeling pretty good about their place in the "healthy" Kiwi rock scene.

"That whole last year, we were just getting the band a profile – we are working hard to be the best live rock'n'roll act in New Zealand.

"You have to believe in what you are doing and be good at what you are doing, while thinking about the show and working hard."

Christmas says it's also about having respect for all the other people who toil away behind the scenes to make gigs work.

The band's next mission is to release a new album, with pre-production work about to get under way. Christmas describes it as a "vibey party record", while the band's new drummer, former Nelsonian Joe McElhinney, calls it "upbeat and bubbling with summer".

Rhombus in Dub also have plans to release a new album this year, and although it's still a while off, the group – a collaboration between long-time Rhombus producers Thomas Voyce, Simon Rycroft and Koa Williams – will play some new tracks at Summer Seven.

Last year was a bumper year for the Wellington-based beats/dub/electronica outfit, with sold-out shows in Australia and Japan. They will bring their more "dancy" set to Nelson, and special guest MC Antsman will bring more energy to the performance.

Williams says they will perform new versions of old tracks, which they haven't yet played live, as well as about three new tracks from the album.

"It will still be a kick-arse Rhombus show, with all of the hits people know," althought it will also be more "clubby", he says.

Williams says an EP will be released in March, and will include a tune featuring the "godfather of British hip-hop", MC Rodney P, created two years ago while he was touring New Zealand. A remix of the track Scorching Bay, from the Rhombus album Future Reference, featuring vocalist Lisa Tomlins, will also be included. A "second volume" EP will be released in July, followed by the album at the end of the year.

"The idea for Rhombus in Dub is that we have actually been collaborating with overseas vocalists when they have been touring through here, and the idea for the Rhombus in Dub album is to release these tracks," Williams says.

Summer Seven is being held between 6pm and midnight. It's an all-ages gig, but will have an R18 licensed bar.

Tickets are $25 from Everyman Records, Nelson, and Cyberworld Cafe, Motueka. If the event is not sold out beforehand, door sales will be $40.

- © Fairfax NZ News