Gig Review: The Advocators @ The Local, Mangawhai – 29/08/2026

A last-minute change saw Merlia replace the advertised Napoleon Baby, but she was ready to roll at The Local in Mangawhai. Food came in hot from the kitchen, drinks were filled and refilled, and the evening could begin with some proper Northland live music.

Joined by Austyn Mills on guitar and Mathew Shepherd on bass, Merlia opened with Sicily, her debut single released in March 2026. It is a song about dreams and how we process what is going on inside our heads. Her vocals were smooth but eager to entertain, setting the night off on the right foot. Austyn’s guitar worked beautifully alongside her voice, played with the confidence of someone who knows how to read a room. For a small venue, that first round of applause rolled on much longer than expected.

A cover of Olivia Rodrigo’s Can’t Catch Me Now, from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, fit the act perfectly. Merlia easily carried the musical spirit of the film’s fictional performer, Lucy Gray Baird. Afterwards came an explanation that, because this was a last-minute fill-in, there was no drummer. Not that the crowd appeared to miss one. The combination of vocals, guitar and bass sounded warm and full.

Written alongside Austyn, Into the Clouds brought a gentle sway into the set. It is a song about not taking everything quite so seriously, which felt like sound advice for a Saturday night. Merlia’s voice shone through the deep and high notes, before Hear Me Out gave her another chance to show its reach. Confidence was building with every song, both on the stage and around the room.

Next came I Will Always Love You, performed as a tribute to the late Dolly Parton. A few eyebrows rose, perhaps because many people immediately think of Whitney Houston’s version. However, Dolly wrote and originally recorded the song, taking it to number one on the US country chart in 1974, then doing it again with a new recording in 1982. Houston’s enormous version followed in 1992 for The Bodyguard. Dolly did it first, and Merlia did it right. It was a fitting tribute, handled with care rather than pushed too hard for drama.

Magic Woman, Merlia’s second single, lifted the energy again. It is a fun song about a witchy woman and, delivered with a wink, there was a suggestion it might even be about her mum. By this point Merlia was properly cutting loose and dancing, and that energy proved infectious.

It also helped set up the final song, Take Me Home, which was more personal and deep. Beginning slowly, it built towards faster and stronger vocals, with Merlia’s dance moves once again spreading into the audience. A few giggles at the end released the tension and, just like that, she had The Local nicely warmed up.

The Advocators arrived as a full six-piece band, with Leroy Brown on vocals, guitar and banjo, Mark Bruce on guitar, Dan Stanhouse on banjo and guitar, Ben Michelsen on drums, Mathew Shepherd on bass and Austyn Mills moving over to piano. At the heart of the band are Leroy and Mark, two Northland musicians whose music crosses bluegrass country ballads with dirty blues and hostile gospel stomp rock. That is a fair warning of what was coming.

Little Creeks was a softer opening, but exactly the right setup. There was still a buzz left over from Merlia’s set, yet the bar slowly grew quiet. Glasses stopped clinking and eager ears turned towards the stage. One of the singles from the new album Beyond the Palisade, the song was pushed firmly into the small space, with its “oooh-oooh” refrain offering an easy hum-along before the band rolled smoothly into Crows.

Here, the crossover at the heart of The Advocators became clear. Leroy’s deep vocals and the wailing strings were held perfectly in place by well-timed drums. Those familiar with the previous album, Songs From An Endless Night, immediately recognised this grittier side of the band. It made tonight more than just an album-release show. There was already enough history in the back catalogue to fill the room.

Big Tide allowed the electric guitar and bass to find a near-perfect flow. Its quieter spaces gave Leroy’s voice all the room it needed, while Mark Bruce’s haunting guitar added extra weight. This song is a nice slow waltz and just screams for a venue where a daring couple shows how 1,2,3… dancing is done the classic way. Not tonight.

Broken followed so quickly that the audience barely had time to finish applauding. The instrument changes were sleek, with no awkward shuffle or dead air. The song carried a brooding but attractive beat, dark without becoming heavy, and catchy without cleaning away its rough edges.

After some band introductions, Dreams took us back to the first album. Originally released in December 2023, it was the first taste of Songs From An Endless Night, and the band looked genuinely happy to be playing it. The audience responded with plenty of noise at the end, but this was still an album-release tour, and the set soon returned to Beyond the Palisade.

Another Me had a bit of everything. Fast, conversational lyrics tumbled towards a slower, rolling chorus while the audience began clapping along. A few keen folks started dancing, and the night had reached the point where nobody needed persuading anymore.

That brought us to One Last Ride, easily one of the most-played songs on my playlist. A raw howl opened the track, followed by the roaring refrain of “Yes, I’m living, yes, I’m fine!!!” It echoed effortlessly around the room. Driven by a sinister banjo line, it carried the sort of dark and catchy energy that deserves to be played loudly to the masses this summer.

A cover of Townes Van Zandt’s Waitin’ Around to Die gave the dancing patrons a welcome breather. The Advocators also released their version on the previous album, and, in true Advocators style, it sounded scratched up, roughed around the edges and unmistakably theirs. Glasses began filling again and the room slipped into a more listening kind of blues.

The Molly Payton cover Devotion gave us a taste of what else the band might have tucked away. They gave it their own sleazy, dirty and greasy alternative-country spin. It felt less like a cover and more like a song that had wandered into a Northland shed and come out wearing somebody else’s boots.

Written about Leroy’s brother, After You began with a clear banjo before the rest of the band settled in. It showed that their wild country sound could be softened without losing its character. There was real emotion in Leroy’s vocals, followed by the suggestion that everyone should soothe it with a drink. Nobody seemed to object.

Hold On carried the set forward before the harmonica finally came out during Draw Me Near, giving the blues a back-country feel. It was played cleanly and with plenty of emotion. Pure, simple and perfectly suited to the cosy confines of The Local.

Ides of March proved to be a proper marching song. Yes, for anyone who thought dirty blues and alternative country could not produce one, you should probably get yourself along to a gig by The Advocators. It began cleanly before the bass arrived in the later sections. The lyrics brought Caesar, the Rubicon and the warning to “beware the Ides of March” into the world of muddy boots and country stomp. Ancient Rome has perhaps never sounded quite so greasy.

Before Elijah, there was a reminder to support local artists by buying their merchandise. The crowd reacted quickly, and the final two vinyl copies available on the night were sold on the spot. That is how it should be done. The song itself was raw, fast and a perfect collision of dark blues and country energy. Deep drums set the small dance floor on fire, while Leroy’s voice seemed to reach even further down.

The band closed the planned set, and it did not take long for the dancing crowd to ask for more. The polite “thank you for coming” was quickly replaced by instruments coming back to life after someone’s ‘Mum’ started the “encore” chant.

I Ain’t Changed kept the night moving at full speed. The verses felt almost like a conversation with the listener, rolling cleanly across the instruments. Vocals, harmonica and guitar chased one another through the song, earning a long round of applause before the final tune.

The crowd was asked to find a partner for a slow dance, and Picture of You became the perfect closer. The vocals were clear but raw, carrying all the rough warmth the song needed. The dancing slowed, the room drew closer and the intimate set came gently to an end.

The new album was proudly displayed on the back wall, and the set gave us plenty from Beyond the Palisade while saving room for the die-hard fans of Songs From An Endless Night. The band finished full of smiles, facing returning supporters and freshly converted fans.

Streaming can give you part of The Advocators’ story, but the best way to experience this band is in a small room, with glasses clinking, feet moving and those songs rattling the walls.

Photo Credit: Coen Cramer for Muzic.NZ
The Advocators Photo Gallery
Merlia Photo Gallery