Gig Review: In The Shallows @ Paisley Stage, Napier – 08/08/2025

Concluding, or at least pausing (it’s complicated!), their winter tour, Poneke’s In The Shallows returned to Ahuriri’s coolest little venue, the amazing Paisley Stage.

Playing the supporting role were locals The Munros. This trio charmed many a heart with their touching set of original material. Songs that told many a tale, drawing on a wide range of characters, not the least of which was Timothy/Simeon/Alan, the unfortunate cat! Their as-yet undecidedly titled Socks/Boxes/Soxes, a song so good they named it thrice, commissioned from them by another performer but not taken up, was a slice of pop beauty indeed. Set closer Restless amped up the volume and the emotional intensity, with its bassline calling to mind Led Zeppelin’s Babe I’m Gonna Leave You, while guitarist Daniel Munro shredded his little heart out! The performance earned much praise from the main act also, and just might set them on the road to bigger things…

In The Shallows came on with an acapella intro, of Who Were You Before? (lyrical motif “Do you remember, who you were before, you were told who to be?”), a paean to the necessity of being yourself. After all, as Chris Cornell sang, it’s all that you can be! This kicked off what was described as the quieter part of the show, followed up by the beautiful harmonies of 60 Days. Closed Door took things back to the start, being off the first EP, but now revisited and beefed up for a full band rendition.

The break-up song, Not The One released on Valentine’s Day as a tribute to those not fortunate enough to be loved up on the day, featured suitably plaintive guitar lines from Ben Brunskill. The follow-up Are You The One, part 2 of what may yet become a trilogy, brought a more hopeful tone. This also signalled the end of the quieter part of the show, the pace picking up from here on in!

There You Are introduced a touch of the sing-along, the audience invited to contribute to the “La-la-las” at its core, while Let’s Not Start A War saw a switch around in instrumental duties, with lead singer Danni Davis swapping out her guitar for Shane Hamlin’s bass, and Shane occupying Arna Wrek’s keyboards. Versatile skills indeed!

Hold On, with a theme of holding on through the hard parts of life, was introduced with a spiel from Danni about how it came to be recorded in Te Rēo, and Danni discovering in the process that there are some similarities in vocal sounds between Te Rēo and her native Welsh! Let It Go introduced a reggae element to the rich stew already created, while Do You, the first single off the next album, was nothing more or less than pure pop perfection, reminiscent of prime era Goldenhorse.

Remember Me’s driving beat led in to the current single Not Normal Behaviour, which was the loudest things got, the band, particularly drummer Sam Holdom, clearly relishing the chance to rock out, and get right in to it! But this proved to be the penultimate treat, with the more mellow tones of I Can’t Reach You winding the pace back for a finish. One that left a happy audience in its wake, pleased to have caught a band on fire! Should certainly help get a buzz out for the new album when it comes out towards the end of the year.

The complications referred to earlier mean that this tour has a postscript, with a scheduled make-up gig at Tamaki Makaurau’s Tuning Fork on November 1st, so residents of the city can put any FOMO to rest (and they should, if they can!)

Photo Credit: Wellington Show @ Meow on 5 July 2025 – Shannon Williams for Muzic.NZ