Tuesday, Oct. 13th: Karen Clarke + Steven Hall, Portable Panic +, Rachel Hird
When Dog and KC fire up, it’s groove on for sure.
Individually impressive and together formidable, these two road-seasoned heavyweight roots artists deliver a powerful, groove-laden blues sound. The music sits deep in the pocket — gritty, warm, pulsing — every note hand-tooled, every song bleeding. Guitars weave, spar, and lock into rhythms that won’t quit. Harmonies soar. The room leans in.
Their set travels from Basin Street to the back porches of Mississippi, up through Chicago, and lands right here in Aotearoa’s indie-blues scene. Expect a mix of acoustic and electric feels, upcycled standards and strong original material spanning slow-burn ballads, rootsy blues-rock vibes, and upbeat boogie ‘n swing. The good times will definitely roll.
Raw, cranking rhythm ’n’ blues and good-time grooves!
Steve “Dog” Hall
Wellington’s Steve “Dog” Hall is a blues guitarist with serious bite — a road-hardened player known for his searing tone, inventive slide work, and grinding rhythm drive.
A songwriter at heart, Hall brings fire and groove to every stage he steps on - and there’s been plenty.
Before turning full-tilt toward the blues, Steve spent 17 years in deep with NZ’s premier heavy metal outfit Confessor, earning his reputation across Australasia as a fearless, high-voltage performer — serving up heavy, groove-laden bass and searing electric guitar night after night.
He later shifted gears into roots and blues, lighting up stages with Swamp Dixie, the Frog and Dog duo, and as a key member of Wellington’s famed Caramello Blues Band, traversing genres with both acoustic and electric flair.
Karen Clarke Blues Woman
From wind-beaten stages in the lower North Island to late-night sessions deep in the Taranaki back blocks, Karen Clarke has been holding down the groove for decades. Now a rising force in Aotearoa‘s indie blues scene, her live show hits like a freight train — one woman, one guitar, and all the damn feelings.
This mama owns her own sound — a gritty, groove-driven mix of blues, RnB, alt-country with an occasional jazz dalliance. If you’re after clichéd boy-blues, keep walking.
Clarke’s got pipes. Her powerhouse honeyed vocal oozes warmth and soul, with textures that range from velvet to sass and gravel. Gutsy, driving rhythm guitar work anchors the show.
Live, she’s warm and dangerously disarming. A quiet storm — until the fire kicks in. Presence, power and stories that sting. You don’t just watch a Karen Clarke set — you feel her shift the room. She’s a gutsy one-woman boil up.
Portable Panic Plus
Jenny Kilpatrick and Tony Ricketts have been playing music together off and on for decades, stealing the name Portable Panic from their company. Teenage Jenny was introduced to the Wellington folk scene by her big brother, and when they met was known for singing British Trad, while Tony was an Auckland singer-songwriter with a penchant for old pop songs. His first group was Easy St. with Chris Price and Kerrin Worsfold before Chris moved to Wellington. Early this century he was part of a Celtic band called Tattie Jock. There have been three albums of his songs.
Jude has played or recorded with Mike Harding, Cath Woodman, Wayne Gillespie, Chris Priestley, The Overdogs and Damian Wilkins etc, as well as making a CD of fiddle tunes, including several she composed.
Jenny and Tony moved to Wellington, where Jenny sang and played bass with various line-ups while Tony went quiet for a while. Last year they decided to revive him, especially to give his songs old and new an airing. They teamed up with Jude (the PLUS!) and have been playing up and down the country, mostly Tony’s songs, along with a tune or two by Jude and a few covers.
Rachel Hird
Wellington singer-songwriter and pianist Rachel Hird brings songs from her recently released album ‘Through the Page’, and more. Inspiration is drawn from a family archive of letters, diaries, and lived memory, spanning the twentieth century, and songs feature events of a personal and historical nature that have shaped generations.
Uncomplicated arrangements, easy grooves and cool, catchy riffs create choruses to remember and harmonic depths are added by backing vocalist Brenda Shearer.
‘Hird doesn’t overstate or lean on dramatic arrangements to amplify the stories. Instead, she trusts the songs, and the listener, to discover meaning in the details’. muzicnz June 2026.
