Marlon Williams<\/p>\n
The Civic, T\u0101maki Makaurau Auckland<\/p>\n
Thursday, May 21st<\/p>\n
On the first night of his T\u0101 te Manawa tour of Aotearoa and Te Waipounamu, famously billed as his final performances<\/a> before a period of rest, Marlon Williams walked alone onto the stage at The Civic in T\u0101maki Makaurau. <\/span><\/p>\n Dressed in a tucked-in white tee, jeans, and boots, he exuded humility and gratitude as he stepped into the spotlight, waving to the audience with a shy smile. After taking a moment to compose himself, he sang \u201cE Mawehe Ana Au\u201d, the existentially-slanted a capella introduction to his most recent album, 2025\u2019s <\/span>Te Whare T\u012bwekaweka<\/span><\/i><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Over the next 45 minutes, the M\u0101ori singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor, who took the spirit of \u014chinehou Lyttelton to the world, serenaded the audience with his signature, sonorous voice.<\/span><\/p>\n Credit: Rosa Nevison<\/p>\n<\/div>\n What followed was a mixture of stripped-back versions of songs from his catalogue, arranged for guitar or piano. After effortlessly working through \u201cArahura\u201d, \u201cLonely Side of Her\u201d, \u00a0\u201cP\u0101naki\u201d, \u201cBeautiful Dress\u201d, \u201cLove Is a Terrible Thing\u201d, and \u201cK\u0101hore He Manu E\u201d, he brought the house lights up and took requests from the audience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Get your daily dose of everything happening in Australian\/New Zealand music and globally.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n With promotional duties for <\/span>Te Whare T\u012bwekaweka<\/span><\/i> well out of the way, he\u2019s having fun and taking risks. Not everything the audience asked for translated to a solo setting, so not all requests were honoured. Nevertheless, we got \u201cPrinces Walk\u201d and \u201cPromises\u201d (originally penned by Barry and Robin Gibb for Barbra Streisand) from 2022\u2019s <\/span>My Boy<\/span><\/i>, and a sublime version of the late Dr Hirini Melbourne\u2019s comet waiata \u201cRongomai\u201d, among other gems, before a brief intermission.<\/span><\/p>\n Credit: Rosa Nevison<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Following a costume change, Williams returned in a snappy suit. He was joined by his equally well-dressed backing band, The Yarra Benders: multi-instrumentalist Dave Khan, bassist Ben Woolley, and drummer Gus Agars. A<\/span><\/p>\n couple of songs into the second half, Dan Luscombe of The Drones, who seems to weave his way in and out of Williams world, made his way on stage to play keyboards and guitars. They\u2019re a rock-solid team with a studied fluency in the conventions of country, folk, and bluegrass, but they also know exactly how to expand Williams\u2019 original songs and loved covers into invigorating rock and roll shapes.<\/span><\/p>\n Credit: Rosa Nevison<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In the same spirit as the first half, Williams and his band smashed through fan favourites and deep cuts, before taking requests. <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cHello Miss Lonesome\u201d sounded suitably forlorn and haunted. In contrast, \u201cMe Uaua K\u0113\u201d, a song about frolicking around Banks Peninsula, felt positively pastoral. Song by song, Williams and The Yarra Benders built in intensity until the energy on stage peaked with \u201cI Didn\u2019t Make a Plan\u201d, from his breakout album, 2018\u2019s <\/span>Make Way for Love<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n Credit: Rosa Nevison<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Between the purity of his voice, the type you have to be born with, banter, and showmanship honed over a lifetime spent on stages around the world, not to mention a rare level of commitment to the craft, Williams and co. effortlessly carried the audience through the night. During the second request session, he sang \u201cBird on the Wire\u201d by the late Leonard Cohen while slow dancing with the woman who had requested it. It was an extraordinarily sweet moment that spoke volumes about his relationship with the audience.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n From there, Williams lifted the room with more classics and deep cuts before closing with an epic encore, culminating in a shimmering, lounge-leaning version of \u201cPortrait of a Man\u201d by the spellbinding Ohio singer-songwriter Screamin\u2019 Jay Hawkins. <\/span><\/p>\n Afterwards, as the theatre cleared, the mystical tones of the First Nations musician Keanu Nelson<\/a> drifted through the in-house sound system. It felt like an intentional choice: an artist at the height of his powers reaching out to an emerging talent from across the Tasman. Maybe we\u2019ll see them on stage together one day.<\/span><\/p>\n Find ticket information for Marlon Williams\u2019 remaining NZ tour dates here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\nLove Music?<\/h2>\n
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