Gig Review: These Four Walls @ Big Fan, Auckland – 20/06/2026

As I arrived 20 minutes before doors open at Big Fan for the only show These Four Walls are playing in Aotearoa on their current tour, there are already a large number of fans waiting outside, excited for the show. They’re not the only ones excited, as I chat to various band members inside who are amping to play to an almost sold out crowd.

WØMAN, who did indeed have a woman in the band as the lead singer amongst four males, had my attention from the start, as they came out and launched into their latest single Dogcunt, which is high energy to get the crowd going! Their second song Nice Guy brought major attitude from singer Sam Terry as she sung about a “nice guy” who “respects her rights but not her right to say no”, and the backup vocalists sung “he’s a nice guy, you needa watch your drink.” A relatable song as a woman, and one filled with so much angst yet catchy and making me want to sing along.

The next two songs, Navy Man (about a dude from Navy who tried to punch her in the face) and Mr Monopoly, are hardcore, fast, punchy, and so much fun! It’s been a while since I’ve seen a great punk band and WØMAN definitely did not disappoint. There are mean-as guitars with some extremely chunky riffs.

They performed a cover of 2 by local legends Deadbeat Boys, claiming that the DBB lads gave them custody of the song when they broke up and that they can do it better. OMG it is fucking brilliant! It feels like I am the only one singing along, but I didn’t care because I really enjoyed their version, and can almost agree that they do it better.

My favourite moment of the WØMAN set came during the song Minnie Pain, where Sam came into the crowd and lay down on the ground, singing/talking about female pay inequality, and female serial killers which went down a treat with the audience. There were also some strong male vocals in Be My Afters.

I love the lyrics and topics of WØMAN’s songs, combine those with the kickassery that is Sam and her singing, dancing, and on stage attitude and you have a recipe for a damn good punk group! Having only been playing gigs since August last year, this is an extremely tight performance from WØMAN and they are 100 percent a band to watch out for, and see live.

Cry Wolf was up next and I notice they have their logo projected onto the wall beside us which is a nice touch. They opened with hard-hitting Player One and the crowd had no choice but to pay attention. In The Fire had some great drums, and Take The Throne is heavy as heck.

It was time to have a wee ballad as singer Kevin Ashby tells us how their latest single Oceans is about his wife and dedicated to anyone in a long distance relationship.

Giving Kevin a break for a bit, guest singer Blair then got onstage to help sing a Linkin Park cover of Faint which got the crowd engaged and singing along. There were some great headbanging moments during Burn and it is a lot of fun to rock out to. Kevin asked the crowd to go wild, and a tiny snake pit happens which is insane, even though it’s small.

Having seen the Cry Wolf boys when they first performed live, they have improved monumentally, and despite Kev starting to lose his voice before the show had even started, he put on a valiant effort and a good set.

These Four Walls also have visuals on the wall beside us, but you cannot focus on them and the band, so they do not hold my attention. Starting with the loud and screamy Carousel, the crowd is already going crazy for These Four Walls and it will not stop.

The vibes on stage are so much fun during Into the Ocean, as bassist Elliot did jigs around the stage while he plays.

I love when bands play their classics and the guys played one of their oldest songs Sweet December, accompanied by screams from everyone. Singer Steve Gibb thanked us for 20 years of fans singing along and says it will never get old hearing people sing their songs back to them. It is a mutual feeling as it never gets old being in a crowd of fans all singing along to the songs!

If you’ve never heard Steve do an acoustic of any of their songs then you’re truly missing out. He has the voice of an angel that pierces your soul. Usually having one in the middle of their set this tour they picked Different Spaces, as it was most requested by fans. It is an emotional song about letting go of a friend and they released it as a demo on the EP Alternative Futures alongside album This is Not a Future. Elliot headed into the audience for this one, hanging out and catching up with friends and fans.

Bones, their latest single that was written with the help of fans, goes off with the crowd loving hearing it live for the first time. This was followed by another classic, Lay It Out, which involved the crowd singing along to “lay it out, lay it out for me”. The energy in the room was electric.

Elliot is still doing jigs, and during Chaos Steve is zooming round the stage like a pocket rocket. These guys are full of beans and loving life as they perform, often engaging with and enjoying performing with each other on stage.

White Lies and Bravery finish off the night as Steve thanks everyone for being there, and leaves the stage with drummer Brad Vickers. The crowd is chanting, they want more, and hilariously Elliot and guitarist Gray Vickers say they will play us another song by themselves. “Can you sing?” asks Elliot before Brad and Steve come back.

Marigold is the encore song and everyone is going feral as we enjoy one last song and try to make the moment last forever. These Four Walls have given us a set that provides the right amount of songs from each of their three studio albums meaning both old and new fans can have a great time.

Throughout the show the guys make quips about being old men and still doing what they love even though they will feel it tomorrow and the crowd agrees, most of us knowing we will feel it tomorrow too. But having no voice, neck and knee pain, and being out past bedtime is completely and utterly worth it to have experienced this epic show!

Photo Credit: Chris Zwaagdyk for Muzic.NZ
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