Tuesday 23 March.

It’s not very often when a swing band comes your way, where all the songs have their own sound and uniqueness… not to mention having some big name musicians as part of their extensive fan base, including Pete Wentz from Fall Out Boy and Nathan King ex. Zed fame. But anyone who has been in Hamilton over the last 10 years would probably have accidentally stumbled across Late 80’s Mercedes, from their early days at the Swing Bar, to School Balls and every barn, swing and hanger dance at Parachute the turn of the century.

The opportunity to see them in Auckland at Juice Bar was amazing, a small intimate show mainly put on for Industry Personal to introduce the sweet soul sound of 9 boys by way of Hamilton to the world of New Zealand Music. It had the same atmosphere you would find, when you see them in front of 10 thousand fans in an old air hanger at a Parachute Festival, high energy and smooth lyrics, really it could not have been better.  

They re-master classics like ‘Beat It’, ‘Superstition’ and ‘Brick House’ so compelling that they sound like something you would have never heard before and couple of original songs, ‘Down to the Disco’ and ‘Save my Soul’ that undeniably could have been written in the same era. What Late 80’s Mercedes do best is make every song new and likeable, even over done pop sensations like ‘Opps I Did It Again’ and ‘Genie In A Bottle’ sound like they could by classics. This maybe what Pete Wentz likes when he raves about the Late 80’s version of ‘This Ain’t A Scene’ on his Blog. They started off big with ‘All The Single Ladies’ and ‘Fireflys’ which if you like those two songs already you will love them more in banging swing style. 

Always a crowd favourite, the theme to the ‘Love Boat’ means couples get to show off their hot swing moves making it a great date gig too if you are looking to impress.

Slick vocals, and a single guitarist who can hold his own against a 4 piece brass section all with choreographed moves make this a band you should not miss, and lucky for you, you don’t have to be in Hamilton to see them. Join them on Facebook to find out when they are coming to a city near you!