They are in Dunedin next Saturday, June 9 with a performance at The National, and will also play two shows in Oamaru.
Self-styled as "new folk", Letters I Wrote And Never Sent is a collection of sultry ballads and anguished phrasing weighed heavy with alternative country instrumentation. At times reminiscent of Americana songstress Lucinda Williams, Reid's songs call up images of desolate landscapes, heartbreak and, at times, hopes of rejuvenation. It seemed fitting that Reid's track Rise and Fall was included in Gerard Smythe's film When a City Falls documenting the Christchurch earthquakes.
Her evocative songwriting has also drawn much heartfelt praise, prompting The Eastern's Adam McGrath to compare her work to that of a traditional artisan.
"She sounds like a worker, one who cares for her craft and the path in which she intends to take it. Her songs shape and turn and lie carved in the air, they carry your ear and lift your eye to the back of the room, the corner of your heart and the world outside your window but sometimes that's not enough ...
If you're a listener then you can trust her, it helps to know she refuses to take it lightly and will work as hard as she wants you listen."
With her gorgeous smoky voice, and songwriting to match, catch Nadia Reid returning to her acoustic roots next Saturday.
Catch her
Nadia Reid and Flora Knight, Nationwide Tour
• Saturday, June 9: The National, Dunedin
• Sunday, June 10: Loan & Merc, Oamaru (day show), New Edinburgh Folk club, Dunedin
• Wednesday, June 13: Harbour St Theatrette, Oamaru
• Fresh from their second place at last weekend's Otago University Students' Association Battle of the Bands, shoegazers Astro Children play tonight at Glue Gallery.
Currently comprising Millie Lovelock (guitar, vocals) and Isaac Hickey (drums), the group has been playing together since 2010, but following the recent temporary loss of bassist Steph Patchett, the pair have been honing a new sound.
Built on swirling chords laden with effects, Lovelock's intermittent primal screams and Hickey's heavy timekeeping, the young duo strike the perfect balance between songwriting chops and guitar gimmickry. With no recorded music to date, live is your only chance to catch their "spaceship pop".
Ded Sparrows, Strang and the Strange, Ostrander Aardvark and Astro Children play at Glue Gallery, 26 Stafford St, tonight.
Gold coin entry.
• With their album Buzzy charting at No11 on the New Zealand album charts, Left or Right are gearing up "for the biggest gig of [their] lives", tonight at Sammy's. The hardworking trio has been supplying some of Dunedin's biggest events for a few years now, so head along and celebrate how "buzzy" they really are.
Left or Right plays with Alizarin Lizard, Julian Temple Band, Ink Mathematics, Olen, Jungle Fari and Too Tone. Door sales $20 from 8.30pm.
Buzzy will be available for purchase at the show on limited-edition 12-inch double orange vinyl, CD or cassette, and via download.
- By Sam Valentine
