By PJ (Phil) Taylor
A band generating excitement on a run up the Kiwi music charts is coming to Howick to show east Aucklanders what the deserved commotion is all about.
The Rvmes (pronounced Rooms) are grabbing attention after the launch of their first full-length 10-track album, Lifetime, in March, and it’s been steadily tracking alongside works by the big names in New Zealand music.
The energetic Auckland four-piece write catchy lyrics and licks and are pleased with the favourable reaction they’re getting, but it’s not going to their heads.
“The response has been awesome,” says Edwin Judd, singer and rhythm guitarist for The Rvmes. “We’re feeling the love for the album. It’s mean.
“Lifetime circles around the high and low points of life.”
After a recent upper-North Island album-release tour, the Indie pop-rockers are bound for Howick to play what will be a lively, upbeat concert in the historic Uxbridge Theatre on Friday, April 16.
“We’ve checked out the space, it’s beautiful, and we’re super excited for that one,” Judd says.
The Rvmes are completed by Miro Gibson on lead guitar, Brazilian Ronaldo Lima on fretless bass, and Logan Fox on drums. The beginning was very rock n’ roll – Judd met Fox at a poker game.
Two-and-a-half years later, working hard in rehearsals from the start, they’ve built up a top-class roster of material, being consistent producers of songs representing their mantra:
“Take every genre into consideration, basing the essence of our band on the interesting, worldly and diverse.”
That encompassing style includes influences of “soul and blues, Motown and pop, right through to Middle Eastern, European-inspired melodies”.
They also sound like a very tight, fresh, Indie pop-rock outfit, with a soulful Kiwi swagger.
There was a debut EP more than a year ago and other singles released by The Rvmes, but Lifetime takes them to another level, with its content and slick production.
It’s mixed by Gibson and mastered by Luke Finlay at Primal Mastering.
Judd says it took a year to deliver the songs for Lifetime, from initial song-writing and playing to recording and producing.
“That’s what we like, keeping it fresh and eclectic.
“We split everything 25 per cent. That’s the deal with us. Everyone has their creative input.
“We work really well together and write super-fast.”
They’re a band that will play “anywhere, anytime”, and the relationship with their live audience is reciprocal: They produce good energy and soak up the enthusiasm of fans at gigs, and the end result is everyone’s happy.
The Rvmes play at Uxbridge Arts and Culture in Howick on Friday, April 16, with singer-songwriter Jazo, aka Jasmine Pene, opening the show.
