Early Stages

The Nelson Youth Music Scene

The fact that our region nurtures and attracts creative talent is not news to anyone fortunate enough to live here. What might be surprising is how young some of our most promising local bands are, thanks to a thriving youth music culture generated by schools, regional councils and our incredible young performers themselves. Alistair Hughes finds out more.

Nelson recently hosted two music events: the Smokefree Rockquest regional final and Rock the City, an annual showcase for upcoming young bands. This year, the event was coordinated by Florence McNabb, an acclaimed eighteen-year-old local musician.

"I've had the privilege of performing at this event before, so I was already familiar with many of the people and performers," Florence explains. "Everyone involved enjoys participating in Rock the City, and I was both grateful and excited to bring together such a talented group for this show."

The Rock the City event was organised and delivered by Nelson City Council in collaboration with Florence, who was contracted through the Nelson Centre of Musical Arts (NCMA). Florence was hired by NCMA following her internship with them specifically to contribute to the organisation of Rock the City.

Unanimously declared a huge success by the bands involved, many of whom also went forward to the Smokefree Rockquest regional finals in late June. “I just wanted to see the Whakatū youth on the stage connecting with their peers in the audience and feeling that sense of community,” says Florence, “so I definitely feel that aim was achieved.” No stranger to the event herself, Florence performed with her band, Parallel Park, the year prior.

Parallel Park’s members, who originally met at Nelson Intermediate, have been playing together for seven years. Their first EP was released in 2022, followed up this February with the debut album, Growing Taller. They also dominated the Rockquest stage in 2023, taking out first place at the Nelson regional Smokefree Rockquest final.

Guitarist Kahu Sanson-Burnett, one of Parallel Park’s founding members, recalls his interest in performing came originally from his parents. “They started me playing guitar five minutes a day, and at first I was pretty reluctant but then reached the point where I started enjoying it and carried on in my own time.”

When he, Florence and another founding member, Ethan, won Bandquest two years running in Years 7 and 8, it seemed inevitable they would continue performing at high school. Like Florence, Kahu was very involved in sport, but music gradually became his focus. However, for now university and overseas travelling will see a pause in the band’s activities for a while. “I think we’ll just keep meeting up whenever we can, writing, recording and performing together. Being part of the Nelson music community has been amazing. I’ve made some lifelong friends.”

Year 10 student from Motueka High School, KC Penelomay, was the only soloist to perform at the Rock the City event. Playing guitar from the age of eight, an enthusiasm for English and reading, as well as involvement in dance and drama all contribute to her songwriting. KC draws on emotions invoked by her daily experiences.

“I would say language creativity and rhythm are my strengths and humour is also in the mix,” she says. “There is a special technique to writing to the rhythm of a song, and then finding the chords.”

“It is hard to say where my influences come from, no doubt the wide range of artists I appreciate all have an effect on me. I want to make music I would listen to, in many different styles.” KC released her first album, Inexorable, on Spotify in March, and will be working with a producer on her next EP.

Izzy and Tia, students from Nayland College, met up on a music class zoom call during Covid, and formed the band Tizzy, soon afterwards. “The year after that, we played at the Nelson Arts Festival for the first time,” says Tia. “That was our first performance. And then we started getting a bit more serious, and Ash joined us.”

Before then, they had been playing with Jude from Parallel Park, and Izzy confirms that this kind of collaboration isn’t unusual. “We kind of steal people from other bands. Eve, from Ruled by Venus, played violin on a song with us, and we’ve also played with Zach from Parallel Park and Oscar from Solace at Rock the City. It keeps it fresh.”

Like most people their age, (Izzy and Ash are 17, Tia is a year older), life can be busy and being part of a band requires commitment. “There are always challenges,” admits Ash. “But I feel for all of us, the joy of being able to make music and perform it live is definitely worth it.” The girls agree, “It’s what we enjoy most,” adds Tia. They are also unanimous in naming their performance of The Pot by LA rock band Tool, at Rock the City as their favourite experience so far. In-sync on and off stage, they plan to continue recording together in Wellington.

Vocalist for Garin College band Frog, Charlotte Grace is 16 and has already had a long association with performing arts. Charlotte comes from a musical family where performance arts have been a big part of her life. Charlotte explains that her college music class encouraged cooperation between students in forming bands for school performances. “I was eventually asked by our guitarist, Ziggy, if I would do Rockquest with him and two other boys. And that’s how the band was formed.”

Rock the City was only their second appearance together, but the band found it to be a tremendously positive experience. “It was a great opportunity for us to get comfortable on stage, and I thought it was going to be a whole lot more competitive than it actually was. But members from other bands came up to us and told us they loved our music. It’s all very supportive.”

Having only written two songs so far, the band are still figuring out their own sound, but draw inspiration from Paramore, Amy Winehouse, Radiohead, and Tool. They now hope to create more songs and release an EP. And for Charlotte, more has come out of the experience than simple enjoyment. “I was planning on actually leaving school, but I think joining the band and making music has really helped me out and given me motivation to stay.”

A US indie rock inspired sound was added to the Rock the City lineup by Nayland College’s Lobotomy Stare, a four-piece band with drums, bass, guitar and vocals. Year 12 band originator Rose Leighton is originally from California, and lists bands American Football, Neutral Milk Hotel and New Zealand indie-pop band The Beths as influences.

“I’ve always loved the Nelson music scene, everybody is really supportive of each other.” The spirit of collaboration between local youth bands continues, as Rose has also played bass for fellow group Tizzy on a couple of occasions. “It’s a common thing because we’re all friends. We get to know each other through
the music, and it creates community.”

JP from Shedheads comes from a different musical background than most, having grown up playing in a Marlborough brass band, “playing the cornet as a wee fella.” Jazz and school bands followed, until he found an opportunity to branch out even further.

At Nelson Intermediate, JP’s teacher encouraged him to improvise with bass guitar, which he found challenging at first but quickly grew to enjoy it. “Eventually I reached the point where I could play on the fly and make my own music.”

Shedhead’s drummer Shoei Ito originally comes from an orchestral background, playing the viola and violin, and along with guitarist Ryan Smith, they now describe themselves as a ‘funky, rocky three-piece, into lots of different musical genres’. “We perform gigs at pubs and are always trying to find every opportunity possible,” says JP. “If we could live by just playing all the time we definitely would.” He makes sure that the band’s parents are recognised for their support and help with ‘transport logistics’ too.

JP found the backstage experience of Rock the City as beneficial as playing. “It was an amazing opportunity to get to know all these other musicians who just want to perform together, and we’re planning future gigs.”

Tobin from Motueka High School’s The Imperfect Circles, says the band enjoys the live stage experience. “This year we experimented with performance in terms of just doing whatever we felt like. It’s such a crazy feeling to see the crowd respond to what you do on the stage, and so cool to play alongside all the talented youth bands of the region.” Their own talent certainly speaks for itself, as The Imperfect Circles took away the ZM Best song Award at Rockquest.

Solace founding member Oscar Walsh counts Rock the City as a great experience for a reason slightly different to that of some of the other bands. “People in the audience were singing along to original songs we had written,” says Oscar, still not quite able to believe it himself. “We played our song Rich Kid, which has only been performed three times now,” says vocalist Mia, “and they knew the lyrics and were singing it back to us!”

“It’s a really easy melody to learn because it’s quite simple with just a few chords,” says their pianist, Daniel. They are looking to release the song on an EP soon.

There are five band members in Solace, from Nelson and Garin Colleges. Their diverse age range means that their future together is in a little doubt as Oscar and Mia leave for university next year. “But for now we’re making the best of the time we’ve got,” she says.

That time has been put to great use so far, as Solace won first place at the Rockquest regional final. “Performing on the Smokefreerockquest stage is one of the most amazing feelings,” said Mia afterwards.

“The support we have all received over the years is so special, there is nothing quite like it.” The band are thrilled with the result and the chance to make it to the national finals. “Not only have we come out of the experience with a win, but also with a bunch of amazing new friends who we will be performing alongside again.”

Finesse from Nelson College and Nelson College for Girls were close behind in second place. “It’s really great for us,” says drummer Ned Rainey. “We’re now through to the video submission stages for national selection.” Incredibly, Finesse only formed this year, and had already won the Smokefree Tangata Beats regional final, (focused on music reflecting Māori and Pasifika cultural identity), in May.

Bass player Zac admits to being a little intimidated by the overall quality at the Rockquest final. “We joined the crowd afterwards and could see the amazing standard. I didn’t expect to come where we did after seeing all the other bands play.”

Finesse vocalist Alyahna puts it down to their difference in style, which she describes as R&B pop with a little bit of occasional funk. “I think it makes our performance memorable, and we even have a little dance break.”

The band have found that the vibrant Nelson youth music scene brings many benefits. “It gives you a chance to meet new people, get your sound out there, be creative and have fun collaborating,” says Zac.

Alyahna agrees, “Everybody recognises and respects each other, and enjoys sharing the same love of music.”

Rockquest event manager Danya Sanerivi was proud of all the contestants. “It’s fascinating to see the growth in these bands from the heats to the finals. They really step up their game, pouring everything they’ve got into their performances.”

Temporarily leaving the creative environment which she has done so much to foster, Rock the City organiser Florence McNabb is currently travelling in Europe. But her heart remains with the Nelson music scene. “I was so happy, and grateful to have worked alongside the best people. All the performers, VenueTech, the Theatre Royal, Nelson Youth Council and everyone else who made Rock the City run smoothly.” Florence laughs as she recalls being asked how she found all of this musical talent to perform. “Honestly that was the easiest part of the event, I just feel lucky to have been a part of it.”