Thomas Oliver, Auckland NZ, 2017

Thomas Oliver

5th May 2017
The Tuning Fork, Auckland, New Zealand.

Review by Sarah Kidd. Photography by Mike Thornton.

Wellington based singer-songwriter Thomas Oliver may not be a name that you have heard before, however to those in the know he is instantly recognisable as one of the “world’s leading players of the Weissenborn lap steel guitar”. Tonight’s show is part of an eight date New Zealand tour in celebration of the release of his second album Floating In The Darkness. His first album, the purely instrumental Beneath the Weissenborn was a triumph of sound and debuted at a notable sixth in the NZ charts.

To welcome the audience tonight is one of Oliver’s band members, the quirky and very humorous Ed Zuccollo on keyboards. Creating beautiful collages of sound as his fingers dance across the keys, it is easy to see just how much Zuccollo enjoys his own experimentation. A couple of songs in and he stands and walks over to the centre microphone, his faded Batman t-shirt and mop of curly hair perched on top of his head adding to his character. Zuccollo is one of those people in life that when they smile they light up an entire room. He begins to introduce his next song, then deciding that the audience needs some “intermission” music while doing so he leans back towards his keyboard and pushes a button. All of a sudden 70’s style porn music begins to pour out, the audience obviously all thinking the same thing as they begin to giggle. Zuccollo begins to laugh as he takes delight in the audience’s reaction. He introduces the next song as having the working title of “Unshaven Existence”, discussing how he wondered what that really meant and decided that it may refer to a dog that has never had surgery…

The song is beautiful, with the sound of raindrops and a synth thread running through the verges. Many of the audience have taken a seat upon the carpeted floor, relaxing as they let the harmonies wash over them. Throughout his set Zuccollo introduces the audience to completely different tracks, each one a mini opus in their own right. There are the sounds of Pukeko’s, thunderstorms recorded at his mother’s house and lashings of reggae and dub step to tie it all together. But just to prove he is indeed multi-faceted, he even spits out a rhyme. Damn, the boy has skills. His last piece of the night is his most recent, Zuccollo explaining how he “just wanted to play with some sounds”. The song has almost space like tones to it and peaks like a wave before breaking and gently lapping away at the edges. Highly enjoyable, Ed Zuccollo’s music is the perfect background music for your next night in – check him out on Soundcloud today.

A quick turnover gives the audience time to grab a drink and settle in for what was sure to be a night of pure brilliance.

Thomas Oliver certainly has a strong following; arriving on stage he receives a huge amount of applause, something that he is visibly humbled by. Beginning his set tonight with ‘Budapest is Beautiful’ followed closely by ‘Losin’, Oliver’s sweet falsetto vocals are an instant hit with the bevy of ladies in the audience. Oliver is playing with a band tonight, with the only female member – Bella Trotter – providing some exceptional backing vocals that support and caress Oliver’s with the gentlest of touches. Ed Zuccollo is back on keyboards and along with Trotter and Oliver the trio makes a perfect little triangle of sound. Later on in the set they are joined by Johnny Lawrence on bass and the very capable Sam Notman on drums. While the first couple of songs of the set have been pleasant, it is ‘Tenderly’ that gives the audience who are not already familiar with Oliver’s work the chance to see what all the fuss is about.

Oliver has taken a seat and has a guitar placed across his lap. As the song builds and Oliver begins to let loose on the strings coaxing notes from it that fly skyward, swooping across the stage, it is like a change has come across him and he looks completely in his element. His vocals take on an added facet and become huskier with a blues bite to them; it’s the sort of music that stops you in your tracks and demands your attention. With over two million views on YouTube Oliver has built a fan base of considerable size. He has toured in Australia, Europe and even Vietnam. Many have likened him to the early work of Ben Harper with his skills on the slide. ‘Boy’ which is also a featured video on the Aston Road Sessions, is a beautifully poignant song about coming of age; Oliver taking the time to explain how he looked into different cultures and how they each acknowledged the coming of age for their young men. “You are all so delightfully attentive it’s hard to tell the vibe in here” Oliver laughs as he stands and looks at the crowd. “Are you doing alright tonight Auckland?” The crowd cheering as Oliver grins. Any audience enjoys being asked how they are, interaction being a huge part of the live music experience. However Oliver needs to work just a little bit more on his ‘shout outs’ as the same line can become a little repetitive over the course of a show.

Covers of the wonderfully heartwarming ‘Is This Love’ by the late great Bob Marley is mind-blowing; Oliver holding the end note for an astounding amount of time reminiscent of Jeff Buckley singing Hallelujah. While ‘Take me to the River’ by the Talking Heads has every member of the audience regardless of age grooving away to the guitar licks delivered quick and easy by Oliver. Once again we see him really let himself go, playing off the energy of Zuccollo. ‘Bad Talkin Man’ is a brilliant track with a great four line hook, one that Oliver gets the audience to sing back to him after he sings it first. Again all audiences love a bit of a warble but after the sixth of seventh time of having to sing the line back, a few members of the crowd had visibly grown weary of doing so. Just a few times round more than sufficient to get the audience invested in the track.

Before closing his set Oliver took the time to thank the audience and his band members for making both the night and the music possible. He also thanked his manager Cushla Aston for everything she has done for his career so far, a touching thing to hear for the often unsung heroes behind the artist. ‘Let it be this one’ finished the set on a high, Oliver and band linking arms at the front of the stage and taking a couple of well-deserved deep bows. The quality of New Zealand musicians shining brighter than the house lights on this wonderful night in May.

Please note: The images below were not shot on the same night as the review above, but were shot instead the following night of the tour at The Leigh Sawmill, Auckland. Thank you so much Mike for taking the time to head along to this intimate show and capturing these stunning images you see below!

Ed Zuccollo

Thomas Oliver

Were you there at The Tuning Fork (or out at the Leigh Sawmill) for this awesome display of beautiful Kiwi music? Or have you seen Thomas Oliver live somewhere else? Tell us about it in the comments below!