Fire At Will & Ekko Park with Flirting With Disaster & Enercia @ Kings Arms, Auckland 26/10/14

A great night out thanks to BV Entertainment and crew who put on the event (completing a two show series in Mt Maunganui & Auckland).

What a good line-up of bands. After arriving and securing my vessel of Kings Arms finest ale I was at the front ready and eagerly awaiting my dose of some kick ass rock tunes. 4 excellent bands played and here’s how it unfolded:

First up was Enercia. This was actually my first time seeing these guys play, and it surely was a great way to open the evening. Enercia from Tauranga are a hard hitting rock band, and I was eagerly waiting to hear the band play live as I’d heard them playing various shows over the years but hadn’t yet made it to one. And the performance was excellent, the band had a great presence on stage, I enjoyed the set along with their new single Long Goodbye. Strong riffs, hard hitting grooves and good mixture of vocals smashed out by Luke and the team. A band I’d be keen to see again for sure.

Next up was Flirting With Disaster. Catchy tunes, with a raw punk feel. You can hear the Rancid, the Millencolin and punk influence with their songs and I love it. Have seen Flirting With Disaster play on several occasions and it’s always a fun set. A combination of new age rock with catchy punk riffs and hooks. I enjoy seeing the band perform, Chazz and Tony do a nice job reeling off melodic and raw vocal lines one after another, and in fact the whole band chimes in nicely with BV’s where needed also. We’re Anything But Sane is a killer track and although one of my favourites, they played a set full of mean tracks as usual. A versatile band and an epic set to watch. Get in.

I’ve been a regular Fire At Will gig goer since they formed and these guys always make sure they kick it up a notch for each show. At the Kings Arms this night, they gave yet another explosive performance.

Hanu kept up a strong presence and moved around the stage smashing out power vocal notes one after the other like a champion. He sings a great melody and holds a deathly scream when he wants to also. A man of talents. The guitar riffs throughout the set are pieced together nicely and, the tones sound great (Kevin, Josh and Will). Drummer Charlie did a great job smashing the bejesus out of the drums as he always does and the whole set by the group certainly did not disappoint.

I am really digging their new song Bloody Arcade that they also reeled off during the set. It’s got a great feel and the chorus smacks you in the face with an epic groove and melody, bloody good job lads. Go buy it on iTunes now. Do it.

And onto the evening’s final act. I saw Ekko Park back at Powerstation a while ago and they certainly impressed. This gig showcased the hard work these lads have been putting in over the year. Rock album of the year finalist at the VNZMA’s, headlining a tour in the UK/Ireland not long ago and it’s fair to say the Ekko Park lad’s are smashing it right now.

Joe (well versed frontman), powered through Ekko’s melodies and hooks that make up their set of catchy tunes, spurred on with the help of Joel (guitars and BV’s), and a super tight rhythm section directed by Nick and Callum. They played their hits including My Crime and Becoming the Enemy, these songs are rad, go give them a listen if ya haven’t! Again I was super impressed by this performance, Ekko Park are definitely a band to keep an eye on and I’ll be looking forward to their next show. A stellar performance was enjoyed and this was indeed an epic way to round off the evening. Ta very much! Also go check out their new song Always Something Never Nothing (new release 17 Nov).