Shihad, fresh from serving a hearty dose of The Meanest to huge audiences during their Australian tour in September, now announce their near traditional Summer tour through New Zealand. After the massive 2012 tours in New Zealand and Australia celebrating The Meanest it seemed appropriate that SHIHAD invite two of New Zealand's finest new (and newer) rock bands in I Am Giant and King Cannons to join them and pin the moniker, The Heavyweight Kings of Rock, on the tour. The Matakana show will be a convergence of musical generations and genres, with a 'super-sized' heavyweight bill that will include chart-toppers Six 60, and David Dallas.

There isn't much that hasn't been written about Shihad but both the NZ and Australian press brimmed with excitement in the wake of the Meanest tour. The Meanest album and tour was by no means intended to herald a break or even a hiatus for SHIHAD as plans are in place for a return to Europe in May to record their ninth album. The Meanest highlighted again the depth of the SHIHAD catalogue as a near two hour set and double disc still meant many favourites were left out. As such the band will shortly announce details for fan involvement in the development of their set for the Heavyweight Kings of Rock tour.

I Am Giant are now based in London, so a day at the beach will be just what these boys need. Already festival stalwarts despite only a few short years together, the band consist of Kiwis Sheldon Woolright (ex Blindspott) and Paul Matthews (ex Tadpole), along with Ed Martin (vocals) and Andrew Kerr (guitar). Since their inception the band have toured with legends such as Slash and are currently sponsored by Gibson guitars. Earlier this year they recorded a version of Slipknot's Duality. Meanwhile the IAG juggernaut continues, the last two year's they have clocked up a ton of miles with shows all over the world including UK, Europe, Australia, South East Asia, the US and NZ. Their debut album The Horrifying Truth was last year's biggest selling NZ rock album.

King Cannons cannot and will not be stopped. Already a Big Deal here both and in Australia, the band go from strength to strength, playing ever bigger venues to ever more rabid fans. Following their sell-out tour of NZ earlier this year, the band bring back their brash take on Clash-style social commentary and their own unique 'electrified soul and roll' that has won them the hearts and minds of so many.

More information:

http://www.muchmoremusic.co.nz/

http://www.shihad.com/

http://www.iamgiant.com/

http://www.kingcannons.com/