Good vibes coming to Napier with L.A.B. in July

L.A.B band members (from left) Stu Kora, Miharo Gregory, Joel Shadbolt, Ara Adams-Tamatea and Brad Kora. Photo / Supplied

If you want to hear some good vibes soon the advice from L.A.B. guitarist and singer Joel Shadbolt is stick to the rules no matter what Covid-19 level we are at.

L.A.B. is part of a star-studded line-up featuring some of best live acts around, including Katchafire and Ardijah, who will be hitting the road this winter for Good Vibes 2020.

Good Vibes is set to play in Napier on July 25 at Pettigrew Arena, Napier.

"At this stage I can't see why it would be cancelled but in saying that everybody needs to follow the rules so we can all enjoy some good vibes," Shadbolt said.

"We love playing in Hawke's Bay. We have a great fan base there. One of our first shows was at The Crab Farm. We have also played at Black Barn and Church Road."

He describes the band's sounds as roots music, a combo of soul, reggae, blues, R&B and funk.

"There's also the influence of electronic and a bit of pop. Sometimes we really let our hair down and get into a bit of rock."

During the Covid-19 lockdown Shadbolt and the other band members, Brad Kora (drums), Stu Kora (keyboards, guitar), Ara Adams-Tametatea (bass), and Miharo Gregory (keyboards), have been part of a project with "a whole bunch of New Zealand singers for Covid-19".

"It's an amazing experience using technology from home."

He said when the lockdown was put in place L.A.B. was just about to head to Wellington to record an album.

"We have been optimising the time and our aim is to finish another album. We have been sending files back and forth. Plus we all have families so it's been very busy.

"I have missed playing with people. We always create our work in a group context so it has been hard to be alone. We are all so used to vibing off each other and bouncing around ideas. But we are lucky that we can stay active in the industry at a time like this."

L.A.B. was founded by Stu and Brad Kora, two of the brothers from the already massive Kiwi band, Kora.

After selling out their Auckland and Hamilton shows in under 10 minutes, L.A.B. is one of the big drawcards of this tour. Their current album, III, remains in the Top 20 chart and features the New Zealand No 1 single, In The Air, (five consecutive weeks at the top).

In The Air is also currently the No 1 single in the country, the first Kiwi act to take the No 1 spot since Lorde three years ago.

Other acts at Winter Good Vibes will be Hawaiian reggae artist Kolohe Kai, Che Fu, Three Houses Down with up-and-coming Kiwi sensations General Fiyah, Victor J. Sefo, and Lomez Brown.

Tickets from www.goodvibesfestival.co.nz