Christchurch Folk Music Club

Hobnail 25th Anniversary “Boots and All” Tour

14th July 2019 In 2019 Hobnail celebrate 25 years of touring far, wide, and tirelessly throughout New Zealand. To mark the occasion they are embarking on a national tour and releasing a “Best Of” album showcasing tracks taken from their 7 studio albums, we were lucky to have their exuberant talent with us on 14th July for a powerful concert.. Sierra Leone, a cover of the Coconut Rough classic has been with me all week, Hamish’s vocal capabilities added his voice, supplemented with a full voice contrapuntal chorus that added fresh new sounds to a NZ standard. Jo, Caroline, Rob and Hamish all have vocals to add light to the night, the changes in texture between duality and multiplicity add variety that is complimented by the variances of instrumentation.
Many of Hobnail’s much loved tunes came to the fore over the night: String Things, Good Night, Haul Away, Westbound Train, Maria’s Last Words and an imaginative version of Ride On. The audience responded to the impeccable sounds, with raucous applause that showed the appreciation felt. The band themselves valued the time the audience had gifted them as the cricket final also featured that night. There was a slight smattering of empty seats in the second half yet those remaining continued to be treated by the originality of the band combined with world class musicality and texture. This concert was a tremendous celebration of the 25 years of success that has laid a very firm foundation for this quartet of troubadours, we look forward to another 25 years and many many more tuneful songs for our listening pleasure. It will not be a long wait until we can enjoy Hobnail melodies again, as a Saturday night dance is being planned for November. We will let you know. Judi Smitheram Secretary

More Reviews

An open letter from Dunedin

Okay Canterbury... Now you've done it. This was supposed to be raid, for heaven's sake! This was war. But when we crossed the border between Otago and Canterbury what met us? Nothing! Where were the barricades? There weren’t any. We stopped off...

read more

Compadres – James Keelahan & Oscar Lopez

At Al's Bar, 31/1/09 Reviewed by Gill Coe From the very first bars, you knew you were in for something special. The big Canadian with his beautiful baritone voice, paired with the sexy, bejewelled, Chilean with flying fingers and a delightful...

read more

Johnny Possum’s Goodtime Hootin’ Band

Sunday 6th May - Reviewed by Geoff Anders Johnny Possums Good Time Hootin' Band. What a name. Someone obviously has a sense of humour. Finding a good name for a new band isn't always easy so is sometimes rushed and regretted. This one works...

read more

Hera – at the Club – 17/9/06

Reviewed by Phillip Marshall Hera graced the stage with a quiet confidence and surety in her performance. Her extensive touring and recording was evident in the strong delivery of her songs. Hera’s Taylor 314CE cutaway guitar sounded bright and...

read more

Graham Wardrop and Rosa Shiels

10th June 2007, by Geoff Skinner For those who ventured out to attend this concert on one of the coldest nights of the year, they were more than well rewarded by Rosa and Graham ready to entertain, and obviously loving this reunion of musical...

read more

Emeralds And Greenstone

Concert In The Great Hall - 30 April, by Hamish Wilson. The ambitious project was the last in the "Jazz For Lunch" series , part of the Montana Jazz Festival 2006. The concept of this concert was to combine Maori and Celtic musical styles and...

read more

Enda Kenny – Here and There (CD)

Review by Dave Hart This man has long been held in the highest regard as one of the finest singer-songwriters of our time. Enda’s songs give a very real view of where he stands and how he sees the world and the events in it. The songs in this...

read more

Delgirl

Delgirl Review, Christchurch Folk Club, 12 October, 2008 The all-female Dunedin trio, Delgirl, played the Christchurch Folk Club on 12 October 2008 . This was the 29th performance of 29 on their two month New Zealand-wide tour. However, the...

read more

Dave Hart & James Bowen

Club concert - 21 May, by Tony Kiesanowski With the evening billed as an English double feature, James "Bar" Bowen began by introducing us to his view of some of the world's characters he has come across in his travels. Reminiscent of the in...

read more