Returning to NZ for the second time in four months, Perth’s cruisey indie rock four-piece Spacey Jane will be playing three shows next week, giving Kiwi fans in our main cities a chance to party with them before heading off to the northern hemisphere. [NZM has ticket giveaways for the WGT and AKL gigs.] The handpicked local support acts are Rockquest-luminary newcomers Arlo Mac (in Welly) and Park Rd (City of Cranes) – NZM posed each the same questions.

To be in to WIN a double pass for one of the shows read your way to the bottom of the article!

How did your band find each other?

Arlo Mac: We are a group of Year 12 and Year 13 high school students. We all met through music at school. We got together as a band in April last year.

Park Rd: We got together as a band a couple of years ago, but we’ve known each other for years. We went to a Steiner School so it was small and everyone knew each other.

How did the opportunity to play alongside Spacey Jane come your way?

AM: After winning Smokefree Rockquest in September 2019 our Ease My Mind single gained a following in NZ and Australia. Australian promoter, LiveNation contacted us to ask if we would open for Spacey Jane at Meow in Wellington. 

PR: We were picked up through our involvement with Smokefree Rockquest. They connected us and Spacey Jane liked our sound so asked us to support them.

Any tips you’d give to other bands who are sort of new to all of this, who would love to play support slots?

AM: Try and get as much original music out there as possible. Be unique. Our greatest opportunity came by entering and then winning SFRQ. This gave us the opportunity to record and distribute our first single.

PR: This is quite new to us too. Play as many shows as you can and go to as many shows as you can. Connect with the people there and on social media.

What do international promoters ask from you in advance to the gig?

AM: The LN team asked for information related to how the day will run and what needs to be supplied. Stage plot, tech riders, hospitality riders etc..

Why do you think you’ve been chosen as a good fit support act for Spacey Jane?

AM: We play a similar genre of music. We are all young, up and coming musicians with a lilt towards indie rock. 

PR: Similar genre but at the same time, quite a contrast. We have a good fan base in Auckland who will come along and enjoy both bands.

What’s the best description you’ve heard (or come up with) to describe your own music?

AM:  ‘A hot and steamy plate of indie magic’.  ‘…took their audience on a journey, melding genres, styles, and time signatures together with ease.’ ‘…eclectic and modern sonic deliveries.’ ‘…carefully balancing pop accessibility with that rock noise we all crave every once in a while.’ 

PR: Uplifting summertime vibes with sizzling guitar solos, sweet harmonies, hot rhythm section. We play high energy live shows which get people dancing and singing along.

What other Kiwi or Aussie acts do you feel most closely aligned with musically? Irrespective of that, are you fans of Spacey Jane? 

AM:  That’s a difficult question about the acts because being closely aligned denotes the product and not the journey. We are influenced by a lot of great Kiwi and Aussie bands, for example, The Shamblés, Shag Rock, Great Gable, Kora, Mako Road, and we love Spacey Jane! Their textural density makes them a standout.

PR: Yes, we are fans of Spacey Jane, especially like Feeding the Family and Head Cold. We are most closely aligned with Lime Cordiale, Shag Rock and Sticky Fingers from Australia. Bands from NZ we’re aligned with include The Shamblés, Marlin’s Dreaming, Daily J plus some old-schoolers like Voom and The Phoenix Foundation.

This one aside, what’s been the band’s biggest success so far? 

AM: Winning Smokefree Rockquest was a highlight for all of us. We were so happy to get into the finals, and to win the whole event felt amazing! 

PR: Cracking over 300,000 streams on Spotify for one of our songs was a good one, and having listeners in places like Latvia and Guatamala was pretty cool.

What are your thoughts on playing support for an international band?

AM: It’s a real privilege and we feel very humbled to have been asked. We are really looking forward to meeting the band and are looking forward to an awesome night at Meow. 

PR: Epic. We are stoked.

Any plans to head across the ditch in the near future yourselves? 

AM: No plans but lots of aspirations!! 

PR: Yes we are really keen to go over, and hoping to get support for a band over there to start. Most of our listeners on Spotify are from Australia so we are confident we will have a good experience over there.

Spacey Jane March tour dates:

March 10, Auckland, The Tuning Fork (with Park Rd)
March 11, Wellington, Meow (with Arlo Mac)
March 12, Christchurch, Mono 

Tickets are available here

We’ve got double passes for the Auckland and Wellington gigs up for grabs:

• Head over to our Instagram or Facebook
• Make sure you follow/like us on there
• Find the post linking to this article
• Comment with the gig you’d like to go to (WGT & AKL only) and tag the friend you’d like to take along!
• Winners will be drawn & notified this Friday, March 6.