Roots music and moko hit Masterton

Wellington six-piece Aotearoa roots reggae band Vintage play King Street Live in Masterton on Friday a day after holding tattooing sessions at the venue.

Roots reggae beats and the inky rhythm of ta moko will merge at the upcoming debut of capital city band Vintage at King Street Live in Masterton.

Manager Benna Sevealii-Siolo said "big changes" were in the wind for the six-piece band, which will offer tattooing sessions at King Street Live on Thursday ahead of taking the stage at the venue on Friday night.

Mr Sevealii-Siolo said each tattoo will be costed on appraisal and Wiremu Barriball - designer, tattooist, lead vocalist and guitarist - will hold ta moko sessions from 10am to 7pm in a rare blending of art forms the band is aiming to make its "point of difference" for an upcoming support tour for the debut Vintage EP due for release next month.

Vintage boasts a lineage harking back to renowned Kiwi reggae bands and comprises Barriball, bassist Sefo Savali, keyboardists Lafaele Savali and Todd Parata, and vocalists Wini Baxter and Awerangi Thompson.

Mr Sevealii-Siolo said the band had been touring its brand of Aotearoa roots reggae for the past 18 months to help consolidate its profile before launching a bid for international audiences on the back of the EP release.

The Savali brothers, who started in music at church before Sefo graduated from the Wellington School of Music, had founded the band as a vehicle at first for RnB, soul, gospel and jazz.

Reggae only became a focus for Vintage after the brothers joined up with Barriball, a Maori artist in his own right, who today is the songwriting engine for the band with a performance pedigree that winds all the way back to the House of Shem, Native Sons, Hope Road, and David Grace and Injustice.

"There is no doubt his culture and the arts inspire his writing, but, by his own admission, his business feeds his family, his music feeds his passion," Mr Sevealii-Siolo said.

Vintage bubble organ specialist Parata, formerly of David Grace and Injustice, brought to the mix his experience, as had vocalist Baxter, who had sung for The Pink Floyd Experience, Touche, Bella Kalolo, Aaradhna among a host of other notable Kiwi acts.

Singer Thompson is the latest addition to the band and comes fresh from performing last year with NZ X-Factor contestants and all-girl trio Voltech.

Vintage had played alongside bands such as Katchafire, Common Kings, Swiss, Brownhill, Tomorrow People, Sons of Zion, L40, Deach, and Grove Roots as part of their tour across New Zealand, Mr Sevealii-Siolo said.

Pre-sale ticket buyers for Friday's show will enter a draw for a tattoo appointment. Anybody interested in ta moko can call Geneva on (021) 064-2246.

Pre-sale tickets are available for $15 at dashtickets.co.nz, at iSites in Masterton and Martinborough or at the Information Centre in Carterton. Door sales will be available at $20 each on the night.