Tour news: Biffy Clyro, The Fabulous Beatle Boys

SCOT ROCK: Biffy Clyro are coming to New Zealand for the first time.

Three hairy, shirtless and heavily tattooed rockers from Scotland are coming to New Zealand for the first time.

Yep, we're talking about Biffy Clyro, and if you haven't heard of them, well, that's probably because they've never performed here before.

The trio - twins James and Ben Johnston, and singer Simon Neil - were slated to perform at Gisborne's Rhythm & Vines New Year's festival in 2009, but pulled out for medical reasons.

They'll be making up for it on September 2 at the Powerstation in Auckland.

With six albums behind them, including last year's double album Opposites, Biffy Clyro might be relatively new here but they are a very big deal in the UK, where the trio regularly headline major festivals like Reading, Leeds and Glastonbury, and win things like NME's Best British Band award for 2013.

Their earnest, melodic rock with occasional harder edges has earned them comparisons to the Foo Fighters (who this week hinted at their own New Zealand shows on Facebook), Queens of the Stone Age and Stereophonics, and their New Zealand tour is a rare chance to see them in intimate venues.

A pre-sale begins on June 4 through muchmoremusic.co.nz. Tickets go on full release from June 5 through TicketMaster.

Meanwhile, if you're trying to find a way to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Beatles' 1964 New Zealand tour, you could do worse than the Fabulous Beatle Boys.

The Australian-based Beatles tribute act will recreate John, Paul, George and Ringo's only New Zealand tour by playing the same venues, wearing the same outfits and performing the same setlist.

Some things will be different: as well as the original tour dates in Auckland and Dunedin, they'll be adding shows in Christchurch and Wellington; they're promising better sound and lighting; and they'll be playing more than just the 10 or 11 songs the Beatles featured on their original setlists, adding a greatest hits-style show after the main set.

The shows are scheduled for June 24 at Christchurch Casino, June 25 at Dunedin Town Hall, June 26 at Wellington's St James Theatre, and June 27 at Auckland's Town Hall.

Tickets are available through Ticketek, Ticket Direct and TicketMaster.

- TimeOut