Six60
1st April 2017
Town Hall, Auckland, New Zealand
Review by Bridget Herlihy. Photography by Brad Holland.
In the years since Six60 released their debut EP in 2009, the Dunedin five-piece have undoubtedly become one of New Zealand’s most adored acts, renowned for their energetic live shows and a dedicated fan base. Returning from an Australian tour, and on the eve of the band’s forthcoming seven date tour of the US in May, including a show at West Hollywood hotspot The Roxy, Auckland was treated to a sold-out evening of Six60 at their pure, unadulterated best at the majestic Auckland Town Hall.
Opening the evening’s proceedings was pop/jazz/hip-hop fusion band Drax Project. Having emerged from humble beginnings as a two-piece in Wellington’s busking scene, (consisting of a saxophone and drums – hence the moniker), Drax Project have gone from strength-to-strength over the last couple of years.
Since the release of their self-titled debut EP in 2014, and their follow up EP T/W/OO in 2016, they gave earned a reputation as a must-see live act, and this set was no exception. Having just returned from an Australian tour playing support for Six60, Drax Project were in fine form.
By the time I had negotiated the nightmare that is parking in Auckland’s central city, I walked into the Town Hall just on time to hear Drax Project playing an impressive cover of Ginuwine’s ‘Pony’; the sultry swagger of which is difficult to emulate, yet Drax Project seemed to do it almost effortlessly. The vocalist – Shaan Singh, who also serves as the band’s saxophonist, has a soulful voice well beyond his years, leaping in and out of falsetto with apparent ease. The set consisted of almost as many covers as original tracks, yet they have the enviable ability to firmly stamp their own sound all over these covers; and they do it extremely well. Standouts included ‘draxified’ versions of Disclosure’s ‘Latch’, Missy Elliot’s ‘Sock It To Me’ and Justin Timberlake’s ‘Cry Me A River’, which segued into an impressive sax and drum break, much to the delight of the young ladies front of stage. Original Drax tunes ‘Cold’ and ‘So Lost’ were highlights; with Singh exercising his falsetto with a moody ballad. This foursome certainly have swagger, and are ones to keep an eye, and an ear, out for. No doubt they are destined for great things.
Second opening act NZ hip-hop royalty DJ Sirvere, along with MC Bigg Romez, received an excited welcome and kept the temperature within the Town Hall rising with a half-hour set of masterfully mixed blend of r&b and hip-hop classics both old and new from the likes of TLC, Soul II Soul, Rihanna, C&C Music Factory and Montell Jordan that got even the most hard seat-dwellers in the upper levels dancing as they took an aural trip down memory lane. A snippet of ‘ABC’ from the Jackson Five was met with screams of elation from the rapidly growing crowd, which was promptly followed by a mass sing-along to the late and great Amy Winehouse’s ‘Valerie’. The crowd’s enthusiasm only got more intense with Savage’s ‘Swing’ and Scribes ‘Not Many’; testament to the crowd’s adoration for homegrown hip-hop. Anticipation for the headliners was palpable by the time Sirvere exited the stage, and after a few moments the house lights came back on and Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ began to play through the PA, prompting another mass sing-along. And with the closing bars, Six60 walked onstage as the crowd’s excitement reached fever pitch, and the floorboards began to flex under the weight of hundreds of eager fans.
The entire band, consisting of vocalist Matiu Walters, lead guitarist Ji Fraser, bassist Chris Mac, Marlon Gerbes on synths, and drummer Eli Paewai appeared genuinely humbled by the frenzied reception they received, and smiles remained firmly planted on their faces for the duration of the performance as they delivered a set of their signature eclectic sound which superbly mixes elements of rock, sounl, r&b and drum and bass.
The Town Hall provided an intimate setting; the band surround with fans as the seating behind the stage under the shadow of the hall’s grand organ had been opened up as the VIP section, with Walters referring to those who had paid for VIP tickets as the ‘choir’. And sing they did.
Starting off with the band’s second single ‘Special’, Walter’s silky smooth vocals filled the venue with ease, although were at times almost drowned out by the sheer volume of the audience faithfully singing along to every word. Six60 favourite ‘Don’t Forget Your Roots’, a reminder to not forget where you came from, was joyfully received, and ‘So High’ from the band’s second album Six60(2) was met with screams of elation. ‘Die For’ featured a masterful drum and bass solos from Paetai and Mac, with Mac bursting into the opening riff of ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’. ‘Stay Together’ saw Walters letting the crowd take over vocal duties for most of the second verse, followed by ballad ‘Exhale’ which slowed things down a bit and gave the crowd a chance to breathe. ‘Marks on the Wall’ unleashed a ball of energy in Mac, who appeared to be channeling Flea and Kurt Cobain before putting down his bass and jumping on the drums; musical multi-tasking at its best.
Unexpectedly, Matiu announced a brief intermission to “reset the stage”, which gave the crowd a chance to rehydrate and escape the sauna-like main hall for a few minutes.
After what seemed liked an eternity, a stool and acoustic guitar were placed centre of stage, indicating a shift to the more mellow segment of the evening’s performance. The band reemerged clad in suits, with Walters reaffirming that because it was a special night, they thought they should dress up accordingly. And indeed, they wore the suits very well. The band began playing two tracks that aren’t often played live, the beautiful ballad ‘Last Ones Left’, which saw Walters and Fraser stage a sing-off, much to the delight of the audience. This was followed by crowd-pleaser ‘Green Bottles’ and the stunning ‘Lost, which saw Walters at his soulful best. Walters then introduced what he considers to be the band’s “most underrated song “Someone To Be Around”. After the chorus Fraser approaches Walters to inform his that something was missing, before Walters laughs that he had “stuffed it up” by forgetting the second verse, before asking the crowd to sing it for him. An impressive cover of The Beatles’ ‘Don’t Let Me Down’ saw Fraser deliver an impressive guitar solo, although the crowd didn’t appear to be as engaged with the cover as much as the band’s own material. The opening riff to ‘Only To Be’ saw everyone on their feet again and the crowd re-engage, and Walters reiterated the message of their track and encouraged everyone to ‘let go of their bullshit” before launching into ‘White Lines’. Favourite ‘Forever’ raised the proverbial roof, although at times it seemed that the PA struggled to deal with the heavy, heavy bass of the track. ‘Purple’ once again prompted another mass sing-along. Drenched in the adoration of their fans, the band left the stage, and a Bob Marley track started playing from the PA. Many punters thought this signaled the end of the show, before Walters came running back on stage insisting that everybody wait, as there were another two tracks he wanted to play, and it was Ji’s fault that they had “forgotten”. Walters insisted that as he had written the song, he should take over vocal duties for ‘Finest Wine’, which he did commendably, and was duly rewarded with a wave of screams and applause. The final track of the evening was the beautiful ‘Mother’s Eyes’, which unsurprisingly brought about the loudest sing-along of the night; concluding the evening on a suitably mellow note.
Leaving their legion of dedicated fans hot, sweaty, and euphoric, Six60 delivered an uplifting, polished set; promising to “be back soon”. No doubt these boys will win over audiences on their forthcoming tour stateside; and quite deservedly so.
Were you there at the Town Hall for this classic Kiwi music gig? Or have you seen SIX60 somewhere else before? Tell us about it in the comments below!
Setlist:
- Special
- Don’t Forget Your Roots
- Find My Way
- So High
- Die For
- Fade To Grey
- Stay Together
- Exhale
- Marks On The Wall
- Last Ones Left
- Green Bottles
- Lost
- Someone To Be Around
- Don’t Let Me Down (The Beatles cover)
- Only To Be
- White Lines
- Forever
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