Brisbane’s premiere indie-pop exports, The Jungle Giants, are heading across the Tasman next week to bring their highly anticipated Experiencing Feelings of Joy tour to Aotearoa. Fresh off a wildly successful, sweat-soaked run of shows across Australia, the four-piece have added fuel to the fire today by unveiling an elite roster of homegrown Kiwi talent set to open each date on the tour.
The three-city trek kicks off in Wellington on Friday July 10 at Meow Nui, hits Auckland’s iconic Powerstation on Saturday July 11, and wraps up in Christchurch at the James Hay Theatre on Sunday July 12.
To ensure the energy remains unmatched from the moment doors open, indie-pop rising stars The Tullamarines will join the band as the main support across all three dates. Fresh from their viral triple j ‘Like A Version’ cover of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘The Chain’, the group brings their signature brand of “cosy-pop” to the bill.
The individual city line-ups boast an incredible range of local talent. In Wellington, fans will get to catch First Reserve, whose explosive, genre-bending hybrid of alt-rock, pop, and intimate indie-folk has earned them a passionate cult following across Te Whanganui-a-Tara.
Auckland crowds will see the capital-raised, Auckland-based force CRYSTAL take the stage. Blending electronica and alt-pop, the 95bFM favourite will treat crowds to a taste of her highly anticipated upcoming EP, featuring the standout single ‘Past Life’.
Finally, rising rock dynamos The Response will lock down the final night in Christchurch. Entering their definitive breakout chapter, the duo are coming equipped with serious stage presence and their current radio anthem ‘Where Do You Run To?’, which recently stormed its way to the top spot on New Zealand rock radio.
The tour marks the live celebration of The Jungle Giants’ fifth studio album, Experiencing Feelings of Joy. Anchored by the New Zealand Hot Chart-climbing hit ‘Lovesick’, the record sees frontman Sam Hales channeling heavy personal loss and creative burnout into dancefloor-ready, hopeful exuberance.
“I’d overextended and kind of cooked it, but I really found myself,” Hales reflects openly on the record’s creation. “That’s where the joy comes from—having this unwavering hope even after experiencing adversity. This record is what everything culminated in for me, because I’m so in love with it and I’m so addicted to music again.”
With the Australian leg already leaving a trail of packed-out venues in its wake, New Zealand crowds should act fast. A limited number of final tickets across all three dates are on sale now via the official ticketing links.