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Whangaparāoa College bands made their mark at the recent North Shore Smokefreerockquest heats.
A total of 54 competitors took part and, out of 12 finalists, four are from the College.
Now the four bands head to the upcoming North Shore Smokefreerockquest Regional Final to compete against musicians from all across the country.
The annual music competition is almost a rite of passage for young teens and has been a Kiwi schooltime experience for more than 38 years.
It is designed to give younger, up-and-coming musicians the stage to showcase their talent and build their reputations. Each song has to be an original composition, showcasing both the creativity and the talent of the students.
In total, there are four drummers, two bass players, four guitarists and one singer representing Whangaparāoa in the final.
Performing arts and languages overseer, Shannon Enright, says they’ve had amazing support from Dan Waterson (drums) and Ross Hutchison (guitar) who are casual music teachers at the school.
“Holding an after school ‘rock school’ for a couple of hours after school once a week, and encouraging any students to come along and jam together has also encouraged learner relationships and is how many of the bands are formed,” Shannon says.
If any of the bands make it through to the Top 12 at the regional final, they will be invited to perform two songs. After watching the acts perform, the judges will select the winning two bands to move on to enter a video submission for national Top 35 semi-finalist selection.
Band 1: ‘The Living Room’ @living_room_band
This band has gone through many changes in its two years. It has a mix of students from Whangaparāoa College, Westlake Girls and Wentworth. Year 11s Nick and Lachie and Year 12 Lucas agree that their favourite song is their own ‘Lovers to Haters’ composition.
All three enjoy getting to use the high-quality equipment and take centrestage, fully equipped with proper devices to maximise their potential and sound. Nick and Lucas both enjoy “jumping around on stage”, with freedom of expression and performance in a place with so many others that are just like them.
Nick says his time in the spotlight brings him closer to his friends.
“It’s pretty much just playing with your mates.”
Working around their busy school schedules, the group tries to meet up three times a week for around two hours at a time.
Band 2: Chaotic Blaze @chaoticblazeband
A full Whangaparāoa College band, these year 9 students describe their style as “catchy, groovy and chaos’”. They started as a group of friends and began making music together for the fun of it. Zhane, Russel, Nathan and Charlie are looking forward to the competition, agreeing that their favourite part of the process is spending time with friends and seeing them perform. Their latest project is a youtube music video.
Band 3: The People @_thepeopleofficial_
The People formed from the school’s Rock Band. They try to meet up twice a week for around three hours at a time.
Although The People has only officially existed for three years, the members have been making music together for five. Year 11 Liam, Year 12 Caleb and Year 13 Jess, along with Sienna from Te Kura Correspondence make up the group
Their favourite song they’ve written is ‘Ghost in the Laundromat’
Liam enjoys performing with the band.
“You relate with other people and see your music really come together,” he says.
Band 4: Shallow dive @shallow.dive
This Whangaparāoa and Long Bay College band began in the beginning of 2024. They started off as primary school mates, until Whangaparāoa student, Isaac was asked if he would be interested in joining.
Isaac’s favourite of the band’s songs is ‘Lightless’.
The Rockquest finals will be held on June 7 at Auckland Girls Grammar. Tickets can be found on Ticketmaster.
