The sounds and genres of Christchurch music have been constantly changing over the years, but the sentiment from those making it has not. Artists continue to push boundaries, play with passion and produce songs and albums that wow listeners, sometimes on DIY budgets. Matt Slaughter speaks to young Christchurch musicians keeping that sentiment alive today.
As Mousey takes the stage at St Asaph St venue Space Academy on a Saturday night, she holds the crowd in the palm of her hand.
She captivates the audience with every note she sings, showcasing heartfelt, folk songwriting with a danceable, indie-pop twist.
Mousey’s stage name was inspired by the words of David Bowie’s song Life On Mars.
The 25-year-old who lives in New Brighton has wowed Christchurch and New Zealand crowds since the release of her debut album Lemon Law in 2019.
The single from the album, the first song Mousey ever released, Extreme Highs, was nominated for the APRA Silver Scroll Award, New Zealand’s most prestigious songwriting award, in 2019.
The award was ultimately won by fellow Christchurch songwriter Aldous Harding, but Mousey told The Star the nomination was the confidence boost she needed.
She tried recording Lemon Law three times, with three different backing bands, before settling on a finished product, produced by Christchurch-based Ryan Fisherman.
“It [the Silver Scroll nomination] was a huge confidence boost because I was really thinking of quitting before we recorded with Ryan. I was just so over it, you know.”
Fisherman made her vision come to life and she has become one of the city’s most celebrated upcoming artists since Lemon Law’s release.
She is now recording her second album with her backing band, consisting of some of her favourite local musicians, including Emily Browning.
She is inspired by many other musicians, including her close friend, Pickle Darling (Lukas Mayo), a critically acclaimed songwriter in his own right.
Feary’s mother had no idea who British pop star Bryan Ferry was when she named her son.
But, coincidentally, he grew up to be musical, and is one of the main drivers of Christchurch’s alternative band scene.
As well as playing in a long list of Christchurch indie rock bands, including Wurld Series, Salad Boys, Kool Aid and The Dance Asthmatics, Feary is a co-founder and producer for Woolston music label Melted Ice Cream. He is also involved with Christchurch punk label Dust Up.
Feary said one thing that sets Melted Ice Cream apart from other music labels, is it has brought back cassettes as a platform to release music on.
“I ended up buying a cassette duplicator from a church studio that was closing down. It cost me $27, and from there, I realised that I could make cassettes and I found a supplier and away we went,” he said.
About 30 bands from Christchurch and other parts of New Zealand are on Melted Ice Cream’s label. Feary said it embodies the do it yourself mentality of older Christchurch labels like Flying Nun Records.
Said Feary: “The lack of the big New Zealand music industry [in Christchurch] means that the ambitions aren’t commercial, really. The sort of bands that we get here are DIY bands who are in it for having a good time and making the best music that they can.
“I think there’s also quite a big history in Christchurch of this sort of band. I would categorise The Bats as having the same sort of attitude, a DIY, unpretentious attitude.”
It’s not just bands shaping Christchurch’s musical landscape.
Scribe brought Christchurch hip hop to the world in the early 2000s, and And$um could be the next rapper to bring it to international audiences.
The 24-year-old Lyttelton resident openly admits when he first started rapping, the art did not come naturally to him.
He describes his sound as “alternative hip hop,” and only started making music about four years ago while he was a student at Canterbury University.
Since then, he has found his voice and his music has been listened to about 450,000 times online by listeners all over the world.
This is a long way from when he first started and would be “stoked to get 100 plays on a track.”
He has a mix of albums and EPs under his belt and said he has played “most of the spots” in Christchurch.
The album he released last year, And$um, Vol. 1, included his most listened to song to date, Dreaming, which is fast approaching 85,000 listens on Spotify.
And$um said what separates Christchurch’s music scene from others is its supportive nature.
Groups like The Caffeinated Collective, who he went to Shirley Boys’ High School with, inspired him to start rapping, and now he is offering advice to others starting out.
“I’ve had people message me and say, hey, this is my first ever track, what do you think?”
Corban Tupou is involved in another growing Christchurch musical movement.
He is part of DJ collectives and party curators Sounds of the Local and Two Minds, whose main focus is making people dance.
You might find Tupou DJing himself, or filming sets at night clubs like Flux Bar or Hide.
He wants to spread his love for a diverse range of electronic music genres, including drum and bass and house, and get people dancing.
Both Sounds of the Local and Two Minds, include DJs who developed their skills at Christchurch’s student flat parties.
Tupou felt the energy of the music being played at these parties was too good not to show off to wider audiences. He and his friends started throwing parties at nightclubs and posting some of their live DJ sets online to reach even more listeners.
“We’re just big fans of thumping, high energy, electronic music,” he said.
Tupou said DJing has taken off in Christchurch in the last few years because of how accessible and affordable basic equipment has become.
“It [DJing] is easy to pick up now more than ever. The barrier to entry is quite low, but the ceiling is quite high,” said Tupou.
Both Sounds of the Local and Two Minds are now followed by thousands of people across social media, after forming in 2019 and 2020 respectively.
Both projects are getting noticed by New Zealand festival organisers too, with Sounds of the Local DJs performing at festivals including Tora Bombora on the Wairarapa coast in January.
