Gig Review: Bleeders @ Whammy, Auckland – 27/06/2026

NZ punk hardcore band The Bleeders released their debut album As Sweet as Sin 20 years ago and decades later, fans are treated to an anniversary tour and for me attending the final show in Auckland, a night of nostalgia, chaos and letting the inner bogan go feral. My kind of party.

What do you get when a blonde who didn’t read the venue name properly and a door guy who thought he was security for The Bleeders meet outside a bar? Well, you miss the first support band and I was gutted. Sorry Heavy Flow (and sorry to miss you Kylie – punk legend, it’s been a long time!) – I heard you were great. I’ll catch you next time!

After my “wrong door” Whammy arrival (I wasn’t the only one standing outside waiting for 20 mins, might I add. Great kōrero door guy, but alas, Punk Rock Cinderella was late to her ball), I hightailed it downstairs to Double Whammy, not leaving either of my high-top Converse on the stairs and entered just as The Boondocks started their Nirvana Breed cover, which no doubt, immediately turned any unfamiliar attendees into fans. Nailed it.

I’d been looking forward to watching The Boondocks live since interviewing them for Muzic.NZ during their tour a couple of months ago, so it was awesome to finally see them in action after hearing lots of talk around town about ‘the next big thing’. And what a way to introduce themselves.

You might be surprised that these two baby-faced guys (with the exception of drummer Brandon’s Tom Selleck moustache), hailing from Awhitu Peninsula, have only been together for a few years. They come across far more experienced. 

Sticks and Stones was a highlight – such a jam! Singer/Bassist Scotty called for a circle pit during Bear with Me, and the crowd happily accepted the assignment.

Musicianship was tight, their energy was effortless and honestly the surprisingly huge intensity of sound rivalled that of your typical 5-piece band. An impressive performance – these two belong on the big stage.

Hats off to the boys; it must be pretty nerve-wracking playing to an audience there to see a band from a different genre and era but they took it in their stride, played their hearts out, interacting with the crowd and showed everyone what a new generation of music has got to offer. A sterling set from the lads, and no doubt the first of many that I will witness in years to come. On ya, boys.

Next up were Courtnay and the Unholy Reverie, hailing from Taranaki, and my head-bopping started immediately.

Courtnay is an absolute vibe – one hell of a voice, with a scream that she unleashed occasionally like a hidden weapon. Her vocal range was impressive as she nailed every pitch and tone whilst keeping the crowd engaged with her commanding presence.

The backing vocals from bassist Keith added another layer, while in between his stomping around the stage with a lit-up guitar neck, reminiscent of a High Striker Hammer hit arcade game. 

I don’t know if they ever do private functions, but they’d be my go to – if you hired them for one, I’m fairly confident nobody would be sitting down and all eyes and ears would be on them.

Their upcoming single release Devil in the Detail (due out July) was probably my favourite – and honestly, the hardest thing about this set was trying to describe exactly what genre box they belong in; Officially described as swamp rock/rock fusion – there was a bit of everything – blues, rockabilly, hard rock, country & soul… basically a musical mish mash that just works. Every song felt different, the stage presence was on point, and you genuinely don’t know what’s coming next.

Backfoot was the ultimate closer and I found it hard to describe what was happening as I heard undertones of rap and punk, so it’s fair to say, this band covers all bases of an alt rock band. It was actually EPIC.

This is why I love live music – It’s not always about listening to something you’d necessarily put on your playlist at home; Sometimes it’s about standing there with your mouth agape and thinking “what the hell is going on?”, while absolutely loving it.

(Although a note to the drunk ‘Aunty’ falling all over one of our event photographers, elbowing her camera and generally causing chaos – sort your shit out. Event reviewing has its perks, but that’s not one of them). 

I digress.

Then came the moment everyone had been waiting for.

The Bleeders.

Ang, Ian, Gareth, Matt & Aaron took the stage for their 20-year anniversary tour.

Twenty years ago I was jumping around at Whammy in my high-tops and short black shorts, probably wearing an Ed Hardy T-shirt (questionable fashion choices were made). Twenty years later, I’m back in the same place for the same thing – albeit much older, slightly wiser (questionable) and wearing my Muzic NZ shirt instead.

They say ‘all that glitters is not gold’… well there was definitely no glitter and the only gold was on some of the old hardcore crew’s capped teeth and shining out from the stage lights, illuminating the black walls and the faces of those awaiting Westies in the sold-out crowd.

In attendance, some familiar faces from decades ago – now with a few more wrinkles, a few greyer hairs, most of us probably now more used to being in our Peter Alexander’s by the time the Bleeders started, but there we were – because if you’ve ever been a follower of the Bleeders, how could you miss out? 

I positioned myself in the front corner against the stage. No high heel spin kicks from me tonight (or this decade) – my knees hurt and I’m fairly sure a hip replacement would not be considered cool these days. But standing there, watching a band that soundtracked a huge chunk of my younger years still absolutely destroying a stage 20 years later was pretty special.

The band launched into Out of Time and instantly the room erupted. A homage to friends Brizz and Phili… well known in the old school hardcore scene, who, along with their baby girl, were tragically killed in a car accident in 2005, this song always hits hard if you know the meaning and emotion behind the lyrics. I sing along, with bittersweet force.

Nightmares – one of my personal favourites, changes pace and leads to a full-blown singalong ‘Come take me out of this nightmare’ – not so scary, as this song and tour feels like a long awaited dream. The crowd surged forward immediately. ‘Going crazy’ doesn’t really cover it.

Singer Angelo gave it everything. While the floor fan blew his black and red checkered shirt open like an image of Fabio from a Mills and Boon novel (you’ll have to be at least mid-40’s to get that one), illuminated by red flashing lights; holding onto the mic, he dove into the crowd wrapping the cord around the sweaty bodies that were heaving at the front in pure excitement; and at that moment, I feel a slight sense of FOMO as I’m merely bopping along in the corner, furiously taking notes as I go – I realise however, that the smile on my face hasn’t gone away all set, as I belt out the words to the song. 

The five members on stage had the same energy and presence they had 20 years ago. It felt like watching the band they were then – just with the confidence and experience that comes from over two decades of doing it.

S.O.S followed and brought full punk chaos. The pit was hectic, the energy coming off the stage was ridiculous, and nobody looked remotely ready to stop. By this point there were crowd surfers, photographers taking shelter from wayward legs flying through the air, and an older work colleague of Aarons was so proud of him and happy to see him play that he pushed past me and decided to get up on stage to give his boy a hug, almost tripping on the leads as he crossed the stage mid show.

All That Glitters reminded everyone exactly why it remains one of their biggest songs – there was not a static body in the room. By this time, the room had officially become a combination of sweat, heat, the smells of spilt beer, weed and other questionable smells that only exist in a night of complete success.

It’s Black was pure attitude – Angelo, down on one knee on top of the front monitors, leaning right into the faces of those in the crowd, screaming at them like every single person there had personally pissed him off.

Then someone did – Angelo had just introduced the next track Family, a song about unity before calling out a male audience member for being inappropriate towards a female in the crowd. Inappropriate how? I don’t know but it was a fitting moment. Side note – Ian’s backing vocals landed epically during this song (hard to miss standing right in front of him), as he moved around headbanging, flinging his long hair around his face.. 

A Bleeding Heart, She Screamed She Loved Me, and the last song of the evening, So Lonely, topped the night off for me nicely. A night where the music hit just right, the sound quality was perfect, the energy never dropped, and the audience had the time of their lives.

The Bleeders didn’t just play an anniversary show to reignite the passion for their music.. They reignited the love for an entire genre & era of punk rock and in turn reunited those from the past and introduced new followers to music that will live on forever.

Photo Credit: Leana Lowe for Muzic.NZ
Bleeders Gallery
The Boondocks Gallery
Courtnay and The Unholy Reverie Gallery
Heavy Flow Gallery