Chatterbox: Going bush with Dobbyn

Although Dave Dobbyn is an elder statesman of New Zealand music, he's still down with the kids. And he's also down with the bros of local music.

Dobbyn has invited Little Bushman, the new band fronted by Warren Maxwell, from Fat Freddy's Drop and formerly of TrinityRoots, to support him on his nationwide theatre tour, You Got Heart, in November and December.

Since being blown away by early mixes of Little Bushman's tracks, Dave has been a convert. Maxwell also appeared on Dobbyn's latest album, Available Light, and they will perform those songs together on the tour.

The Bushman sound combines jazz improvisation, soul and psychedelic rock and their influences include everything from Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin to jazz legend Art Blakey.

It should be quite a trip.

The Dobbyn dates are: Baycourt Theatre, Tauranga, November 8; Community Theatre, Hamilton, November 9 and 10; Municipal Theatre, Napier, November 11; Opera House, Wellington, November 12; Plaza Theatre, Putaruru, November 22; Great Lakes Centre, Taupo, November 23; Civic Centre, Te Kuiti, November 24; TSB Showplace, New Plymouth, November 25; Opera House, Wanganui, November 26; Forum North, Whangarei, December 2; Civic Centre, Auckland, December 3.

There are also five South Island dates.

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Gigs in the coming months include:

Alt-country veteran Howe Gelb (from bands Giant Sand, OP8 and the Band of Blacky Ranchette) plays the Kings Arms, Auckland, September 22 (with the Boxcar Guitars), and the Indigo Bar, Wellington, September 24 (with Sam Scott from Phoenix Foundation).

Aussie singer/songwriter Ben Lee tours New Zealand for the first in October in support of his fifth album, Awake Is the New Sleep. Lee plays the Kings Arms, Auckland, on October 6 and the Indigo Bar, Wellington, on October 7.

Breaks Co-Op, following a successful tour with Goldenhorse and being frontrunners at the Music Awards, play a special "fully seated" concert at the St James, Auckland, on October 7 with SJD.

Californian harpist and singer Joanna Newsom (supported by singer-songwriter Bill Callahan, aka Smog) plays the Maidment Theatre, Auckland, on October 16.

American singer and pianist Diamanda Galas - whose voice is as phenomenal as it is terrifying - performs a concert entitled Guilty, Guilty, Guilty at the Great Hall, in the Auckland Town Hall, on October 25.

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Be there on the big awards night

So, you want to go to the New Zealand Music Awards, brush up against P Money and get your Savage and Yulia albums signed? Here's two ways how.

Organisers of the event, which is usually an industry-only affair, have an extra 1000 tickets that sponsors and supporters of the awards can give away to music fans.

The College Herald - published by the Herald on Tuesdays - is running the Reporter for the Evening, in which students who submit an article about New Zealand music can win a chance to cover the event on the night. Okay, so you're working, but it's a way through the door.

As well, the Herald is giving away four VIP passes to the awards in its VIP Pass Promotion. The prize includes attendance at the pre-party with a limo ride to the red carpet. And Apple will chuck in an iPod Shuffle, too. So watch this space. And for more info, go to nzmusicawards.co.nz

Also, you can win free concert tickets to gigs by local bands just by voting for the People's Choice Award at the Music Awards.

To encourage as many as possible to vote for their favourite artist and band, there are 2000 tickets on offer to gigs by Katchafire, Die! Die! Die!, Shapeshifter, SJD, and Fly My Pretties at centres throughout the country.

The nominees are Shihad, Fat Freddy's Drop, the feelers, Savage and P Money.

Details on how to txt-vote are at vodafone.co.nz/nzmusic

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The write stuff

Coming up on Monday night are the Apra Silver Scrolls. Who will take out New Zealand's premier songwriting award? Will it be Dave Dobbyn - who has to be the favourite - with Welcome Home? Or will it be the young Hume brothers from Feilding, Evermore, with It's Too Late?

The other nominees are Pluto for Long White Cross, Geoffrey Maddock from Goldenhorse for Out of the Moon, and the Mint Chicks for Opium of the People.

Dobbyn has won the prize three times before, so come on Dave, let the young ones have a turn.