22 September 2023 - 0 Comments

The Fuzzies are an alternative pop trio with more hooks than a chilli barb. Named after their big fuzzy tones, they are no slouches in the songwriting department either, as you can hear on their debut album Cupid.

Led alternately by the vocals and songwriting of Niki Maera (Mary) and Kelly Michael (Tabula Rasa (with Chris Heazelwood), Enshrine), with Andrew Maitai (Powertool Records, Joed Out) on drums, they mix warm fuzzies with darker undertones to create their own brand of classic indie-pop.

Cupid's cover is very special, as it captures a design created by the late Hamish Kilgour, who spent the first Covid lockdown with The Fuzzies at their venue/headquarters UFO, in the West Auckland suburb of New Lynn. Each day Hamish would create a new display somewhere in the building, which Niki would photograph. The band wanted to pay tribute to Hamish with their album, so they selected this image for the cover (and this is well before the Barbie movie came out!)

The Cupid album was recorded to analogue tape by Darren McShane at Earwig Studios, and the vinyl version – which plays at 45RPM – was one of the first to come from the brand new Stebbing record press.

The Fuzzies' album Cupid is out via Powertool Records on CD and vinyl today, Friday September 22nd.

Listen to Cupid on Bandcamp

Listen to Cupid on Spotify

The Fuzzies' next release shows:
(Further dates to be added)

Friday 22 September UFO, Auckland
with Celine and Superturtle

Friday 29 September Rolling Stone, Christchurch
with The New Things (from Wellington), HoiHoi and The Outsiders

Saturday 30 September Moons, Dunedin
with The New Things (from Wellington), Victor Billot, Hystera, and Chris Hesitation

Friday 13 October UFO, Auckland
with Your Face

Saturday 14 October The Jam Factory, Tauranga
with Creatures Of Comfort

Wednesday 25 October The Clare Inn, Auckland
with Greg Franco (US)

Saturday 28 October UFO, Auckland - Halloween Show

Tickets to all shows from Under The Radar

The Fuzzies would also like to share their new single Side Of My Own, about which Graham Reid says, "we're very much on the dirty boulevard downtown with this band, which previously covered the Velvet's All Tomorrows Parties...the less Kelly sounds like he cares, the better they are."

The Fuzzies Side Of My Own (sung by Kelly Michael)

The two songwriters, Niki Maera and Kelly Michael, each bring a completely different style and energy to the band's sound. You can hear the dichotomy when you listen to their previous single Cupid.

The Fuzzies Cupid (sung by Niki Maera)

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