Originally hailing from Whakatane, four musical brothers from the Kora family, Laughton, Francis, Stuart and Brad, began playing together as a band in the early 1990s under the name Auntie Beatrice, winning the national Rockquest high school band competition in 1991 and the East Coast region Battle Of The Bands three years running, earning a release on Tangata Records for their efforts.
In early 2002 Kora's core members Laughton and Francis recorded a four-song demo while on holiday in Queenstown, sharing songwriting duties with local muso Dan McGruer who also joined them on bass guitar and keyboards.
The Volume EP was released in 2004 and the band quickly developed a reputation as being one of the nation's finest live acts.
A debut LP followed in 2007, the eponymous "Kora" which went to number 1 in the New Zealand charts, spending a year in the top 40 and reaching double-platinum status. Live performances at festivals including the Big Day Out cemented their reputation as a live force in New Zealand and beyond. Quickly on its heels was a "Kora! Kora! Kora!" remix LP by Sheffield based post-punk electronic innovators Cabaret Voltaire.
The long-awaited 2012 follow up LP "Light Years" continued to show the band's ability to fuse a multitude of influence, from reggae to heavy metal to dirty south hip hop. This album went on to achieve platinum sales and to cement Kora as a top tier act in their home country.
In the years since, between live appearances, the band pursued a multitude of other projects, with rock radio favorite "Carolina" in 2016 showing an appetite for the band's unique material that remains as strong as ever.
Songwriting for new releases began in 2019, and new material has been received exceptionally well at recent shows. A fresh lineup based around long term members Fran Kora, Dan McGruer and Richie Allan has blossomed with the addition of some of the hottest musicians in the country in Darren Mathiassen (Trinity Roots, Hollie Smith, Shapeshifter) and Marika Hodgson (Hollie Smith, Troy Kingi, Alae) and Karlos Tunks (Troy Kingi, Modern Maori Quartet).
The 1st song of the new material "Secret Lover" garnered an amazing reaction on social media and live, as well as landing in New Zealand radio and sales charts. "Weekend", released in November 2020 followed up nicely, as an anthem for the working class to celebrate the end of mahi for the week.
Fresh recordings based on jamming as a band in early 2021 at Studio 11B in the Bay Of Plenty have yielded the first of many new works "L-Over", produced by Tiki Taane (Salmonella Dub, Tiki Taane, Six60, Shapeshifter). A return to the bands rock roots and a fusion of the multiple energies of influences of its members.
With a deep and undeniable groove created by some of the best in the business, mixed with soaring vocals and lyrics that reach into the heart of the listener, Kora look set to remain as one of the few acts that can make THAT magic happen on stage.
Belgian born Alix Perez has collaborated with the foremost names in dance and electronic music including; Noisia, Foreign Beggars, dBridge, EPROM and many more.
Alix’s high levels of creativity and discipline are the reason he is very much at the forefront of electronic music today. Every release sells out, is repressed and sells out again. He is a true artist and is a trailblazer in his own right.
COVID saw him move to New Zealand, where he sold out his first headlining shows in 30 seconds. Then he featured on a Summer Festival run including RNV, Northern Bass and Bay Dreams
We are pumped to have him at Tea Party 2021.
Hailing from Auckland, New Zealand, State of Mind are the duo of Stu Maxwell and Patrick Hawkins. Forming in 2005 they and have released 4 studio albums and 1 live album.
The list of labels worked with reads like a who's who of drum and bass. It includes Blackout, Eatbrain, BSE Recordings, Universal Records, Uprising, Shogun, Project 51, Viper, Subtitles, Eatbrain, FATE, Citrus, Bad Company, 31 Records, CIA and more. State of Mind are now signed exclusively to Black Sun Empire's flagship 'Blackout' label.
State of Mind are well known as the former hosts of the hugely popular 'Next Level' 95BFM drum n bass show, now in a podcast format.
Coromandel born but residing in Raglan since he was a kid, Muroki has always lived near the waves — a defining backdrop to this 19 year-old’s sound.
It’s a sound that caught the ear of Benee. She played the mesmeric ‘For Better Or Worse’ on Elton John’s radio show and he is the first signing to her new Olive Music label with single ‘Light Me Up’ due out imminently.
“I first heard Muroki’s music when I was on tour in Australia last year and I was listening to him every day at one point, ha!” she says. “I love his voice so muchhhh — it’s so smooth and soulful. Then I met him at 121 Festival in March. Muroki’s such a sweet and genuine guy, just the sort of artist I’d like to work with.”
Muroki plays music, surfs, skates and brews a good coffee for Raglan locals. Between lockdowns, he had a brutal stint planting trees through the Whāingaroa winter, making enough cash to allow him space and time to write music. And write music he did.
Even at his young age, Muroki is already a musician’s musician — brimming with talent and soul far beyond his years. He started learning guitar as an 8 year old, and with the guidance of his blind guitar teacher, he’s been on a unique journey with his craft ever since. His multifaceted silky and rhythmic grooves have strong ties to his surfing background, blending sounds from South America to Africa (Muroki’s of Kenyan descent himself) and back to the West.
But it’s really Muroki’s vocal ability that will have your undivided attention — his voice is a smooth and hypnotic instrument effortlessly caressing melodies to melt even the toughest of us. This is someone you don’t want to be late on. Muroki is set to take your heart.
Where electronic music is concerned, Zeisha has already earned her place as a mainstay in New Zealand’s burgeoning industry. Voted best female DJ in the country by DJANEMAG in 2018, 2019 and 2020, the multifaceted talent shows no sign of slowing down.
A DJ, producer, vocalist and songwriter, Zeisha discovered her eclectic sound through her exploration of Drum and Bass, Trap and Dubstep and found herself quickly rising in the ranks in the previously male-dominated scene.
The future looks bright for Zeisha; 2020 saw her complete a successful sold out first headline tour of New Zealand. Also having just completed the summer festival run, she's ready to put on a killer show!!
“What I really want is for people to see me and see a bit of themselves in me” says RIIKI. “I
want people to get to know me and my music, because I have so many stories to share and every song has a different narrative that I hope will hold some meaningful value to someone else.”
‘Associated with melodic tendencies that reach a sweet spot’ (Sniffers NZ claim) and a
refreshing blend of elegance meets edge, Raquel Abolins-Reid is indie-pop singer RIIKI.
Raised in New Zealand’s creative capital city and now aged 21, RIIKI is still young, but has so much to offer. Her most popular release ‘High Heights’ is a testimony to this as her wild creativity drew inspiration from encountering seagulls at the beach. Following her debut single ‘One Day’, ’High Heights’ is RIIKI’s second-ever release, co-produced by Simon Gooding (projects include P!nk, Dua Lipa and Migos) which stunned an appearance’s on various NZ charts and gained international attention. The track also made it on Apple Music’s A-list Pop and New Music Daily playlist’s, and featured on Spotify’s New Music Friday playlists in NZ/AU, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Norway and also became the cover of the popular Spotify playlist ‘Pop Edge’. Since then, RIIKI has grasped people’s attention with follow-up singles ‘Share Your Luv’ and her most recent release ‘Good Times’ which gained the #1 spot on the Hot NZ Singles Chart.
With a childhood centred around the performing arts, her vibrant persona on stage
detaches her from others within her genre. Now with a brand new shiny deal signed with
Global agency WME, RIIKI is ready to bring a new flare to live shows, starting with her very first debut headline show. RIIKI defines herself as an artist that paints her world in different shades of many different artistic platforms to reach the full potential of her creativity. She says “I’m not confined just to music and it isn’t just ‘music’, it is a full on creative project. I want to be able to express myself and messages through dance, art, production, lyrics, photography and video, intertwining and tangling them all up together in a lil ball, and then I can smash it all on to a canvas and create something awesome and hopefully meaningful to others.”
Her musical craft is infused by a diverse range of genres, stretching from alternative rock
and pop, to hip hop, jazz and electronic music. She says “Growing up I was determined to be the next Beyonće, boogie all over the stage and squish my two passions for dance and
singing together. It’s weird how when you go through life, you suddenly become exposed to new sounds and music that just changes your perception on everything”. With a large scaled range of influences such as Jeff Buckley, James Blake, Yellow Days, Sampha, Mermaidens, FKA twigs, Toro y moi, Steve Lacy, Jorja Smith and so many more, she combines her influences to blend her own unique sound. RIIKI produces every part of her music herself as her open diary, hoping to inspire and relate to others experiencing the same realms of young teen/adulthood. “I want to write to be there, relate, inspire and be a role model, the same way so many artist’s music and themselves did for me and still do.” Her interest for music began from a young age, when her family encouraged her to enter the local mall talent quest. “I’ve always been so entertained and inspired by the many forms of art there is in the world. I started dancing when I was five and always auditioned for main parts in my school productions. Being able to do all of that in such a powerful way that you can make people think differently or change the world or people’s lives has always been one of the biggest encouragements to try pursue within the arts”.
Launching herself in a time where the world is face to face with a global pandemic, RIIKI
readies to expand her current catalogue and open herself up for fans to take a proper step in to her world. “I know that what I am working on right now will really mean something to others and I can’t wait for people to feel what I feel”.
Indie pop artist BEXY has been surrounded by music since childhood thanks to her parents. She eventually taught herself guitar and piano, which lead to writing her own songs.
Bexy's sultry voice, mixed with vulnerable, real lyrics, combined with some seriously good production, you're bound to fall in love with her.
Renowned for their explosive and energetic sets; within the short space of a year, Lunar Intruder have become a staple name within the Ōtautahi music scene.
Comprised of Cam Buyers (Rhythm guitar and vocals), Matt Genet (Bass), Matt Earle (Lead guitar and backing vocals) and Tom Spillane (Drums), the Spacemen delve into a unique soundscape comprising of the indie-psychedelic rock niche.
Beginning with small student flats, the boys have worked their way to playing along-side some of Ōtautahi’s finest (including the likes of Mako Road, The Butlers, Dolphin Friendly, There’s a Tuesday, and The Raddlers), as well as having played at UCSA Festivals: Tea Party and Summer Stein.
Off the back of the roaring success of their latest release, Outerworlds, Lunar Intruder are ones to watch at Tea Party this year. Don’t forget the name.
Just Another June are a 4-piece indie band from Otautahi, New Zealand. The band consists of frontwoman Luna Cubillana and frontman Samuel Keelty, Amy Boden on drums, and Austin Standeven on bass. Their music blurs the lines between folk, pop, rock, melancholy, bliss, and bops. You have to see it to believe it. XO
Salt Rock is a funk-dub group based out of Christchurch, New Zealand. Made up of 7 pals coming together from different projects, Salt Rock is hitting the healthy NZ music scene with an original take on the nation's Roots and Reggae reputation. Months of preparation has helped Salt Rock settle into their own sound, providing reverb-soaked, groove-heavy and brass-kissed tunes. Bursting onto the scene in 2021 with their debut single 'Six Appeal' and selling out their debut headline show in CHCH, Salt Rock is the new thing to watch in the Aotearoa music industry.
A Christchurch based vocalist and DJ, PONZ is making waves in New Zealand Drum and Bass.
Since debuting into the scene with Pirapus on “Fragments” in late 2020, PONZ has been working with drum and bass artists all over New Zealand. PONZ released her debut single “Circles” in early 2021 and has since featured on singles with many artists including Sly Chaos, Ben Shaw, Hyvybe and HAZEY.
In the midst of song releases, PONZ got behind the decks for the first time in June 2021, and has since supported international artists Dimension and Camo & Krooked. Her unique combination of live vocals and DJing, as well as her friendly down to earth nature, are taking PONZ from one success to another. Most recently, PONZ has announced that she will be performing at new year festivals Bay Dreams and Rolling Meadows this summer.
this dog are a band of long time mates that collectively own 7 beyblades and 4 chess losses to children under the age of 5.
An alt rock 5 piece that combines catchy riffs, walls of fuzz and the world’s sexiest accent (as voted by bigseventravel.com ™ 2019.) They're inspired by grunge, mid-western emo and little bit of everything else.
this dog makes music that’s a bit different - but in all the nice ways.
Moody and groovy - Much like the rainforest dwelling lizard, the Gecho sound has adapted with the ever changing environment of a uni student, resulting in an eclectic & adhesive set of tunes that you'll find get stuck in your head.
Step 1 – Win TuneSoc Battle of the Bands,
Setp 2 – A spot a Tea Party
Step 3 – Takeover
SuperCub pairs stunning vocals with slick guitar work to create polished garage rock for all. Check them out on the Local stage.
BARTY is a local DJ out of Auckland, mixing neuro and jump up genres of drum & bass. Plays at the regular ‘Source’ promotion at the well-known ‘Hide’ nightclub, as well as university balls and events
DNA is a Local Drum and Bass DJ from Wellington, eclectic mixing style including Liquid, Neuro, Jump Up, and Dancefloor. Executive Committee Member running UC's DJ club 'SIMBA', played at Wellington O-Week events and UC Toga. Playing at Mono and inter-club festival 'Woodsoc', as well as regularly playing various other UC club events extracurricular events.
The local legend who serves up all the bangers! DJ Spinal's an absolute crowd fave.