Tahuna Breaks - Ten Years of Funk Fusion - Tahuna Breaks Newsletter Interview
Ten Years of Funk Fusion
Tahuna Break Interview
02/09/2014
Joel C Blood with Marty Greentree
Recently I had the privilege of talking with one of New Zealand's most sonically stylistic and genuine men of New Zealand music, Marty Greentree. Marty is the founder and frontman for long term kiwi funk fusion favorite, Tahuna Breaks. Tahuna have been smashing stages, album sales and most likely a few bedposts around the country for the last ten years. A decade in and the boys are celebrating by hosting a blow out show at the Powerstation later this month. I got the inside skinny from Tahuna Breaks Bossman, Marty Greentree.
Ten years is a long time to be around, congratulations!
Thanks, yeah feeling happy about hitting that milestone and feel satisfied and quite proud really and in the mood to celebrate for sure. The anniversary show we are putting on at the Powerstation in Auckland on Sept 27 is going to be something special and it is the most excited Ive ever been about a show. We are recording a live album and filming the night, Im not thinking past this one, it could be the last.
You have had many career highlights as a group over the last decade, but has there been a moment or event that the band has changed you as a person?
The first time people clapped after playing an original song changed me, the first time I got told me how shit we were changed me, the moment we made our first record changed me, the first time we sold out a venue changed me, the next time we returned to that venue and didn’t sell it out changed me, the moment someone told me how much one of our songs meant to them changed me, the first time we got a negative review changed me. For me being in this band you are either winning or losing with no middle ground, it brings the best and worst out of me, in terms of personal change from the experience the jurys still out, Im just hoping to a bit wiser when I call time on it
You are a talented singer songwriter with great gat skills in your own right. Have you ever thought of releasing a solo record? If so in what style would it be?
Thanks! Yes I do think about it and its been bugging me more and more the last couple of years, Stylistically it changes but if I was to do it tomorrow it would be quite raw heavier guitar record-funk -blues-rhythmic rock n soul- think jimi hendrix-dolly dagger with sly and the family stones ‘Thank you’, James Browns sex machine, wilson pickets engine number 9, a touch of the doobie brothers china grove with the staple singers(mavis) style backing vocals.
For a "big band" you have a relatively small number of musicians (6) in the band. What's the secret to getting such a huge sound on record?
….6 people fighting amongst themselves to make sure their instruments get turned up to 11!
What was it like working with Crazy P? How did that relationship get established?
In 2009 Crazy P remixed one of our tracks called We Funk The Party we really liked what they did with that so they were the only people we wanted to work with on our Shadowlight album, we asked them, sent some demos and they were keen. They were top guys and easy to work with, the only frustration was being on different sides of the world with the timezones.
Do you have any words of wisdom for up and coming electronic fusion artists?
Yeah nah yeah nah-not really the coolest rock n roll answer but just have a crack and back yourself play as many gigs as you can, don’t wait for the stars to align or for some tastemaker to champion you, or government funding to make a record or video, take a risk, do things on the fly and make mistakes as you go. NZ's a small place, the advantage of that is that it's easy to get around, so get a job and spend your own money on living the dream, things happen faster that way and at the very least you'll have a bloody good time and some cool photos on your phone to upoad to your social media of choice, which you will talk about at summer bbqs over a few drinks for years to come when you are fat and old.
Any chance you guys will be doing anymore awesome animated videos? If so what would the theme be this time?
Ha ha who knows, we've probably ruined enough childhood memories!
Where do you see Tahuna Breaks in another Ten years?
If we are lucky and still around- doing the summer winery tours!
Powerstation Show Link: http://www.powerstation.net.nz/shows/tahuna-breaks-sep-2014
About Tahuna Breaks
Combining aspects of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s Tahuna Breaks are influenced by artists as varied as James Brown to Daft Punk. Being unafraid to mix genres they have honed their live sound to encompass funk, disco, soul and roots focusing on addictive rhythms that get audiences moving.
The band has performed at The Big Day Out, Homegrown, Highlife NYE and many other major festivals in New Zealand and Australia, along with countless sell out national tours and one off performances.
Visit the muzic.net.nz Profile for Tahuna Breaks
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