MNZ Interview: The Sour

Tāmaki Makaurau-based four-piece The Sour are a band of wāhine bonded by a shared love of grunge, punk, and all things loud and heavy. Today, 1 May 2025, The Sour have released their debut EP Daughters.

Daughters captures the band’s love of heavy riffs, gritty hooks, and unapologetic attitude, while also celebrating friendship, whakapapa, and the power of wāhine making loud music together.

Muzic.NZ’s Ayla recently spoke to The Sour about their name, their music and their inspirations.

Kia ora, We’ll start with getting to know who The Sour is, so can you please tell me your name, role in the band, and what your favourite dinosaur is?

I’m Tam and I play the guitar and sing. Favourite dinosaur would have to be Triceratops – the staffy of the dinosaur world.

I’m Jessie, I play guitar and sing backing vocals. Favourite dinosaur would be the Microceratus – the cutest of them all (it’s that cute little critter from the latest Jurassic World for reference).

I’m Lani, Capricorn. I like the Quetzalcoatlus – it sounds like “Kettle-co-what-a-lis”.

The Sour is an interesting name, how did that name come about?

“The Sour” is a lyric from one of our songs, Red Flag. It’s an attempt to explain the “ick” feeling you get when a situation feels off or a person is behaving like a dick. It’s the face you pull when you bite into a lemon. 

Who are your musical inspirations?

Across the four of us, we’ve got pretty diverse tastes. Musical inspiration for the music we write as The Sour is unsurprisingly pretty 90’s, shoe-gazey fuzz guitar music, and music written and performed by women. Stuff like: Hole, The Breeders, Sonic Youth, Veruca Salt, Wet Leg, BoyGenius, Bikini Kill, Elastica, Smashing Pumpkins, PJ Harvey, Mannequin Pussy, Paramore, My Chemical Romance, Queens of the Stone Age.

Hex is a brilliant song that I think will become an anthem for some people, was it written about anyone in particular?

Thanks! The song is definitely about someone.. but it’s universally about dealing with people who don’t value you and underestimate your ability to stand up for yourself. We hope people can sing/scream along and feel a bit of cathartic release. 

As a teenager in the early 2000’s me and my bestie attempted to start a band, massively inspired by Lani smashing it in Elemeno P. What would you say to help inspire young wahine who want to become musicians?

We are probably a bit biased but we think you can’t understate the impact Lani has had on the music scene and more broadly women in music in NZ – we’re lucky to have her. 

Jessie: Some of the most fun we have is making music with our best friends. Music is a pretty magical thing to share with people and to express yourself, so if it calls to you, get out there and do it.

Tam: I’d encourage young women to support each other and take up space. Whether it’s a venue, a music shop or a practice space, you deserve to be there. 

Lani: I encourage young women to touch all the gear they can get their hands on. Don’t be afraid of blowing things up or making mistakes – it’s the best way to learn.

How do you think The Sour fits into the Aotearoa music ‘scene’? 

Great question. We’re currently trying to figure that out. There’s probably a shared perspective that we’re outliers – or that we have a sound that can probably fit anywhere. Generally, we’re hoping that a broad group of folks identify with something in our music; whether that’s our pop melodies, heavy fuzzy sound or sweet stacked harmonies.

What is your favourite song off the Daughters EP and why?

Tam: My personal favourite is Hex. The lyrics are pretty fun to deliver, and I really love a good slacker vibe.

Jessie: Your God & Mine. I love how catchy and punchy the chorus is. Always makes me dance when we are at practice. Plus the ladies said go hard on a solo so I do enjoy that too.

You don’t have any music videos yet, are there any plans for a music video in the future?

Yes absolutely, for our next single – watch this space. 

If you could start any rumour about the band or yourself, what would it be?

That we’re your favourite artist’s favourite artist. 

You can pick 3 bands/artists to play a dream gig with, who are they and where are you playing?

Tam: Yikes, this one is hard. I’ll go with NIN, REM and The Breeders at Western Springs.

Jessie: Queens of the Stone Age, My Chemical Romance & Paramore at Red Rocks. 

If you could suddenly play any instrument what would you choose?

Tam: Drums. I’ve always been obsessed with a good beat and the role the drums can play in defining a song.

Jessie: Also drums. I tried learning drums before guitar when I was 11 but absolutely sucked. My limbs just don’t work that way. I would love to smash a kit to my fav songs and properly communicate the beats in my brain.

You’re about to play shows in Wellington and Auckland in May. What is something you cannot live without when you go on tour?

Tam: Lorazepam (I hate flying) and good food. I plan my life around eating at good restaurants and bars and hanging out with my friends who also happen to be my bandmates.

Jessie: I live for the calm that a little cup of tea gives me & I often pack my favourite green tea – shoutout Chanui Organic Green. My Kobo, and snacks – always be prepared with snacks.

How do you pick your support acts on tour?

Cool humans that we admire. Ultimately, we want to have fun and being with good people is important.

Thanks so much for answering my questions and I can’t wait to see more of The Sour.