The festival season is knocking on our door and there are several big ones on the calendar for the Waikato.
Although Summer Concert Tour organisers decided to skip their usual event in the Coromandel due to infrastructure uncertainties after Cyclone Gabrielle, there are not one, but three festivals happening on the peninsula.
Meanwhile, Hamilton, Taupō, Raglan and Karāpiro are also set to be abuzz.
Music festivals happening in the region include:
● December 27, 12pm at Owen Delany Park, Taupō
Launched in December of 2020, Le Currents is an Indie culture and arts festival.
The line-up for this year’s festival includes Australian alternative psychedelic rock band Ocean Alley, Australian-New Zealand band Coterie and Dave Dobbyn.
Originally, American ska-punk band Sublime with Rome was also set to play at the event but just announced their split and the postponement of all their New Zealand shows.
Tickets for the event and more information is available online via the Le Currents Festival’s website.
● December 29-31, 5.30pm at Coroglen Tavern, Coromandel
To celebrate the end of the year and to welcome 2024, the Coroglen Tavern has put together three shows across three days.
The line-up of the first day includes New Zealand drum and bass duos State of Mind, and the Upbeats.
December 30 will see New Zealand music legend Tiki Taane, Auckland reggae/surf-rock band Flaxxies, funk and groove band Black Comet, Auckland indie band Racing and rock band Dolphin Friendly take the stage.
The line-up of the final day includes groove band The Black Seeds and DJ set Flamingo Pier.
Tickets and more information online via the NYE23 website.
● January 5, 12pm at Williamson Park, Whangamata
After this year’s festival got cancelled due to the weather events at the beginning of the year, Beach Break has been rescheduled for 2024.
The lineup is the one from the canned event this year and will include Christchurch drum and bass act Shapeshifter, Australian alternative psychedelic rock band Ocean Alley and Dutch-New Zealand band My Baby.
The festival will be opened by groove band Masaya from Raglan and Auckland reggae/surf-rock band Flaxxies.
All tickets purchased for the 2023 festival remain valid.
Tickets are available online at ticketfairy. For more information visit the Beach Break website.
● January 6, 2pm at Coromandel Luxury Escapes, 875 Te Rerenga road, Matarangi
Nexgen Touring, the organisers of That Weekend Festival, will next year shake up the Coromandel instead of the South Waikato.
Local and international musical talent will play across two outdoor stages.
The line-up includes Australian-New Zealand band Coterie, Alchemist, and Set Mo. Sublime with Rome was also set to play at this event but now won’t be a part of the line-up after announcing their split.
Tickets sold in record time with less than 250 left (as of December 19). More information via the Coro Classic website.
● January 19-21, 8am at Wainui Reserve, Raglan
One of Aotearoa’s longest-running all-ages festivals is back and promises to have evened out hick-ups from this year’s festival.
The festival brings together live music, art and culture with a packed line-up, performance art, workshops and speakers.
International and local acts will play across three stages.
The line-up includes Australian-New Zealand band Coterie, Kiwi superstar Tiki Taane, pop singer Georgia Lines and Kenyan-New Zealand reggae musician Muroki.
More information via the Soundsplash website.
● January 26-29, 10am at Hartford Farm, 209 Whitehall Road, Karapiro
The annual Christian music festival is celebrating its 10th year and has a broad range of national and international musicians, opportunities for the creative arts and a few other surprises in store.
This year’s line-up includes a number of bands and singers from the US and Australia.
Local artists include Late 80s Mercedes and 2020 Waikato Smokefreerockquest winners Albert Street. Tauranga singer Georgia Lines is also set to play at the festival.
Tickets via iTicket. For more information visit the Festival One website.
● January 27, 10am at Taupō Amphitheatre, 78 Tongariro Street
The first stop for the annual Summer Concert Tour is the usually sold-out Taupō Amphitheatre.
Organisers Greenstone Entertainment confirmed Simple Minds as the headline act earlier this year.
Scottish rock band Texas, US rock band Collective Soul and Australian new wave band Pseudo Echo are also a part of the line-up.
Tickets are available online. For more information visit the Greenstone Entertainment website.
● January 28, 10am at Claudelands Oval, 800 Heaphy Terrace, Hamilton
The same line-up as the one for the Taupō Summer Concert Tour will play in Hamilton.
Originally, the tour was meant to come to Whitianga, but when the organisers set the dates earlier this year, they found there was too much uncertainty around the Coromandel road network following Cyclone Gabrielle.
Greenstone Entertainment chief executive Amanda Calvert said the move from Whitianga to Hamilton would be for one year only
Tickets are available via Ticketek. For more information visit the Greenstone Entertainment website.
Danielle Zollickhofer is a multimedia journalist based in Hamilton. She joined NZME in 2021 and is writing for the Waikato Herald.
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Traffic exiting SH16 via Rosebank and Pātiki road off-ramps is being turned around.