My Baby
2nd February 2023
The Cabana, Napier, New Zealand.
Review by Rob Harbers. Photography by Pat Dunphy.
After a fairly indifferent start to what’s supposed to have been summertime, the heat came to Napier’s iconic Cabana, brought by the culturally mixed combo of My Baby. On a sultry Hawkes Bay evening, this powerhouse trio raised the temperature even more, with their eclectic mix of influences keeping an enthusiastic audience on their feet the whole night-not a small achievement on a Thursday night!
The cultural background of this band is somewhat reminiscent of my own, being a mix of Aotearoa and The Netherlands. In my case the blending is a result of being first generation Kiwi, born to Dutch immigrants, whereas the band’s amalgam is the product of its membership being two thirds NL and one third NZ. Kind of fitting really, given that “New Zealand” is a bastardisation of the name “Nieuwe Zeeland” initially given to these islands by a Dutch explorer – this cross-fertilisation goes deep!
As much as there is a cultural melange to this outfit, it’s not a patch on the musical one. Combining a heavy dose of blues inflected guitar with some hugely rhythmic underpinnings, they mix in elements of Moroccan Gnawa, African desert blues, Indian ragas, 70s funk and EDM, and then top off with some psychedelic guitar just to keep you guessing! The result of this is a hugely infectious sound that never fails either to entertain or to keep the audience on its feet, played by a super-tight trio deeply in touch with each other. In the native language of 2/3 of the band, het was inderdaad heel leuk!
The band is composed of Cato Van Dijck on bass, viola and lead vocals, her brother Joost on drums and BVs, and Daniel Johnston providing masterful guitar. Their interplay is truly something to be witnessed, with most songs being extended jams-in this context, something that plays for as little as 5 minutes is positively Ramones-like! And yet all played with a frenetic energy that kept its audience enraptured throughout.
As may be evident to those paying close attention, I’m struggling to find words to adequately describe this experience, with its myriad elements and influences. Also, the day job is calling! So here’s the essentials:
- Serious chops
- Tighter than something that’s very tight indeed!
- Eclectic influences – the musical equivalent of Auckland weather (if you don’t like it now, just wait 10 minutes and it’ll change!)
- Infectious energy
- A truly original sound
- If you at all can, don’t fuck about – run, don’t walk to see them!
Were you there at The Cabana for this great genre-bending performance? Or have you seen My Baby perform live somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Note: Ambient Light was provided passes to review and photograph this concert. As always, this has not influenced the review in any way and the opinions expressed are those of Ambient Light’s only.
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