Dylan, Robbins and more heading to NZ

Bob Dylan will be heading our way shortly. Photo / Supplied

The benefits of Australia's Byron Bay blues festival keep on coming with Bob Dylan playing Vector Arena on April 30.

The 69-year-old songwriting legend was last here in August 2007 when he played Vector Arena and a more intimate show at the Civic Theatre. He returns off the back of his headlining performance at the blues festival across the Tasman, which has also seen B.B. King, Ben Harper, Elvis Costello, Grace Jones and a number of other acts sign up to play New Zealand's inaugural Grassroots Festival in Easter.

Tickets for Dylan go on sale February 7 at Ticketmaster.

Also playing a show in New Zealand following the Australian festival is Oscar winning actor Tim Robbins. He may be best known for his roles in The Shawshank Redemption and Mystic River but he's also a bit of a bluesman. And his musical prowess came through in 1992 film Bob Roberts when he played a folk-singing right-wing politician.

Robbins and his Rogues Gallery Band play the Powerstation on April 30 and will be playing songs of his debut album from last year.

Pre-sales on sale from Ticketmaster on Feb 1 (sign up at thepowerstation.net.nz) with general sales Feb 3.

And finally, also playing here off the back of the Byron Bay event is soul singer Mavis Staples, who is best known as one of the Staple Singers and an important voice in the civil rights movement during the 60s. She will be supported by The Blind Boys of Alabama, featuring Aaron Neville. They play three shows including Auckland's Civic Theatre on April 28. Pre-sale tickets on sales Feb 1 from the-edge.co.nz (sign up at muchmoremusic.co.nz) with general sales Feb 3.

Meanwhile, in other gig news, joining the Womad bill in New Plymouth on March 18-20 are German collective 17 Hippies, Colombian electronic fusion freaks Sidestepper, and New Zealand's Lawrence Arabia, Tiki Taane, and The Patea Maori Club, among others; Justin Townes Earle returns for a nationwide tour in March including shows at the Powerstation on March 26 and Leigh Sawmill on the 27th; and Kyuss play another show at the Powerstation on May 15 after the first one sold out.

-TimeOut