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Sawmill Café favourites Hopetoun Brown are back in Leigh next month, this time bringing a seven-piece band for the finale to a national tour on Sunday, June 17.
The core band of Tim Stewart on trumpet, trombone, lead vocals and “stomping duties” and Nick Atkinson on bass clarinet, tenor sax and piano will be joined on stage by five special guests, all of whom perform on Hopetoun Brown’s recently-released album, Don’t Let Them Lock You Up.
Long-time collaborator Finn Scholes will be on trumpet, tuba, vibraphone and the Sawmill grand piano, with Isaac Chadderton bringing a wide range of percussion, plus Alistair Deverick on drums, and singers Steve Abel and Sophie Burbery on vocals.
Nick Atkinson says Leigh is the last stop on a 36-date tour from Kaitaia to Invercargill and all points in between.
“This Sawmill show promises to be a massive knees-up,” he says. “This will be a unique night of heavy parpin’ and stompin’ good times, with a truck-load of exotic instruments and a pile of extra drums and horns. Expect tubas, vibraphones, huge clarinets, two of the best trumpets anywhere, along with bongos, saxophones, trombones, drums of all shapes and sizes and a bouquet of the finest tonsils hollerin’.”
As well as releasing their third studio album and embarking on their tour of New Zealand, Hopetoun Brown has performed at a number of major music festivals this year, including Splore, the Waiheke Jazz festival and WOMAD, where they dedicated a song to Sawmill Café founder Grattan Guinness, who died in March. They appear regularly at the Sawmill, even arriving in town by sailing boat for their last appearance in January.
Tickets cost $25 from undertheradar.co.nz or on the door from 4pm on Sunday, June 17. The show starts at 4.30pm and families are welcome – children aged 12 or under get in free.
Ticket Giveaway
Mahurangi Matters has a free double pass to give away. To enter, email your name and phone number to reporter@localmatters.co.nz, with Hopetoun Brown in the subject line, by Wednesday, June 6
