Comprised of multi-instrumentalists Alex Farrell-Davey and Allister Meffan, drummer Jayden Lee and bassist Marika Hodgson, New Zealand band Alae are poised to bring their sophisticated brand of indie pop to you on Sat 19 Sept.
Coming together as a two piece in 2016, Alex and Allister delivered their folk-inspired sound throughout New Zealand. With solo gigs and nationwide support slots for Hollie Smith and a sold-out Auckland show with Boston’s Lake Street Dive, Alae made a strong impact in only a few short months.
The emotive duo then wrapped a stellar year with the addition of drummer Jayden Lee and bassist Marika Hodgson, performing as a full band with a fuller sound at the legendary NZ Rhythm & Vines Festival.
Capping off a stellar 2017, the band’s freshly released single “Too Strung Up” was premiered on November 9 by Rolling Stone Australia and launched straight into Spotify’s prestigious New Music Friday playlist in New Zealand, Australia and the United States where followers number over 2.3 million. Further high-profile international playlist additions across the platform helped expose “Too Strung Up” to over 1.4 million new listeners across the world, breaking NZ records for local independent artists on the Spotify service.
2018 proved to be another landmark year for Alae, as they a enjoyed a headline national tour and high profile support slots for John Butler Trio and Angus and Julia Stone. The band also released their debut album, Henry St.
In 2019, thanks to a songwriting pairing between Alae frontman Alex Farrell-Davey and acclaimed US-based producer Justin Gray during the APRA AMCOS Songhubs initiative in Auckland in March, the band were thrilled to announce their record deal with Los Angeles indie label Anti-Gravity Records foundered by Gray, and relationship with Warner Music Canada. The fruits of this new partnership will deliver a new EP in 2020 with the first two singles "Hit Me Where It Hurts" and "Summer Thing" gaining huge commercial airplay in New Zealand and over 40 US college radio station adds. The EP was recorded over two weeks in May, in Los Angeles with label co-head Gray whose previous credits include John Legend, Avril Lavigne and Amy Winehouse to name but a few.
Don’t miss Alae as the head out on their headline tour this September!
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