Gig Review: Dolphin Friendly - The Lifetime Tour
Dolphin Friendly playing at Hide post NZ lockdown, June 2020. L-R: TK, Sam, Big T and Boc
Dolphin Friendly. Get to know the name. Get to know the music, because these rockers are going to be a household name over the next few years and they are quickly making their mark in the Kiwi music scene. Dolphin Friendly consists of four members, all hailing from Christchurch, New Zealand -
Sam Mander (Mander): Lead vocals, guitar
Thomas Klever (TK): Guitar, vocals
Ben O’Carroll (Boc): Drums
Thomas McHutchison (Big T): Bass
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You would think that seeing the same band 18 times in one year that each of their shows would not be as exciting as the next, however, that is not the case when attending a Dolphin Friendly show. Each gig comes with a different vibe, a different crowd and the guys tend to make each and every show unique. How do they do it? I have absolutely no idea. They just do. How many of us can say that about one group of artists? Not many, that’s for sure.
July 2020: TK and Sam playing at Flux. My apologies to Boc, who you can just see in the background.
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The Lifetime tour has been going down across the country for the past couple of weekends, starting their new tour in Wellington and moving on to Auckland, hitting up Christchurch and then Queenstown.
I attended the Christchurch show and wanted to do a review/write up of the show and who Dolphin Friendly are.
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This tour is like no other of Dolphin Friendly’s that I have attended - the new music from their upcoming EP (coming September 2021) had everyone absolutely flawed - the vibes were unreal. You can just hear and effectively see how much Dolph have improved since their last EP release in 2019, Preashology. (Don’t get me wrong, I have a soft spot in my heart for that EP, however, this new one is going to be an absolute banger and will showcase even more of that rocking talent that they have going on!)
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The opener of the night was a new track Hero Skies which I personally feel will quickly become a fan favourite - a very good track. Dolphin Friendly’s most recent single, Killing Silence is a really important song. It fuels the world with hope that no matter what your skin colour is, if you are “different” to others, you are still a human being, just as important as anybody else in this world, the colour of your skin does not define you. This message is so important as we know that the racism issues worldwide are not going away any time soon, no matter how hard we try. The genuine care for other cultures really pulls through and makes you think twice about how to stop the hate and share the love.
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Dolphin Friendly always incorporate important messages into each and every one of their gigs, whether it’s about saving the planet (in 2019, they embarked on their Unfuck the Planet tour) or the ability to speak out about mental health issues, whether through their music, spoken words or both. The backdrop on the stage has a whole lot of their values and what they believe running the whole time.
Sam, Big T, Boc and TK aren’t just there to take your money and bugger off home, this is not and never has been, what they are about. These are four caring young blokes who give a lot to their audience time and time again, while remaining as passionate as possible about the music they are sharing with us.
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The genuine look of happiness from the band members and the audience goes to show that the work hard, play harder attitude that Dolph have adopted really comes out when they are on stage and everybody enjoys it. There was not a person in that room who looked like they weren’t having an absolutely banging time.
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While the band may not produce hardcore screamo music a majority of the time, when incorporated into live gigs, Sam’s voice certainly suits it when the time comes (not to mention, he can also rap, extraordinarily well, too!), not everybody can pull that off and that says something special about Dolph - all four of them will try new things to make their music authentic and not like the next up-and-coming band. They are all for tasting different sounds to ensure that they put out the projects that they are happy with. They don’t just sit around and go “okay, we created this song and while it isn’t the best, we are going to use it” and that shows. Their tremendous hard work comes across within every performance they do and every single/EP drop. They are always finding ways to spice it up a little, which makes them unique in the New Zealand pool of music.
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Tracks such as Preash Vibes always gets the crowd up on their feet, shouting the lyrics back to the band as they play and it gets everyone dancing. The song begins with a fresh mix of funky summer vibes on the guitar and the sound of someone enjoying a nice cold drink on a hot day, something we can all easily relate to (when it is not the middle of winter, of course). TK has his big guitar solo after the first round of the chorus in this song and always kills it, every single time. You will never not see TK with a huge smile on his face while playing and that, my friends, is pure happiness if you ever did see it.
“Cause when the moon rise, I’m thinkin’ bout you alright and baby when the sun shines, I wanna feel your preash vibes” What more could you really want in a song, honestly?
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The night continues on with more new tracks and old bangers, there was even a guest appearance from local rapper Big Sima who brings a lot of pizazz in the new track, Lifetime, which I believe will be dropping on our hot little ears in the not too far future, which is very exciting, so keep a look out for that.
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The time comes for Big T to get off the stage and come into the crowd with his bass, like the true rockstar that he is. Everyone eats it up and basks in the glory of being surrounded by the youngest member of the band, who really likes to interact with everybody in the room. At a Dolph gig, you will always have at least half the room shouting “take it off!” to which Big T always obliges and takes his shirt off. (Sometimes the gigs are Dolphin Friendly, other times they are not Kid Friendly if you know what I mean!)
Do you need a lift? The Dolph guys are always willing to let you jump on their shoulders! (Ft. CJ from Mako Road)
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The night is coming to a close however there are a few songs left. You and Me is next. This one is fast paced, but also slow paced at the same time. It tends to tell a story throughout the 7 minutes and 28 seconds of music. It certainly takes you to another place and in some ways, helps you get to a relaxing part of your brain, where you can really hone into the lyrics.
“What’s happening now, it’s falling down, spinning me round, seeing the ground” / “we’ll climb up on mountains and swim through the sea” / “and when you get upset, that pain is in me” are just some of my personal favourite lines from this wonderfully powerful song.
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When at a Dolph gig, keep an eye on the back of the stage for Boc, who is a powerhouse on those drums. He has a fair few outstanding drumming moments during the set which will blow your mind. It can be very hard to find that level of talent in music, however, Boc nails it on the head. In fact, all of them do.
Sam and Big T performing in Dunedin, July 2020.
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During the third to last song, Big T once again came into the crowd and told me I could pop on stage for a boogie. Initially, I said no, but then had a change of heart, so got up there and awkwardly danced, pretending nobody else was watching. Seeing what the guys see on that stage was really incredible - the packed out club, the vibes from everyone thoroughly enjoying themselves - singing, dancing and up on friends shoulders, watching these four down-to-earth lads do their thing. Boc even said at the end of the show that this was one of his favourite shows to play, which proves how outstanding the night truly was. This truly speaks volumes as Dolph have played multiple big festivals across New Zealand.
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To conclude: If you get the chance to see Dolphin Friendly live in concert, wherever you are in the world, you need to go and check them out - your only life regret would be not attending a Dolph gig once. Also, if you can, have a chat to the guys, too. You will never meet more humble and caring humans in the music industry than the Dolph guys.
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Interview hopefully coming soon!
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You can find Dolphin Friendly below -