By Stella Gardiner

Artist: Racing

Date / Venue: Friday August 14th, 2015 - Kings Arms, Auckland

So it was the epic Racing EP tour party, on a freezing cold night with torrential rain which I thought would keep people away from the Kings Arms... but it didn't.  A lot of people made the journey!

Husk were first up, taking to the stage around half ten.  They got off to a steady start with people gathering closer to the stage as they made their presence known.  More and more people were suddenly drawn back inside to see what the all fuss was about and soon a decent crowd was up against the stage.  Starting with'Out To Kill' and followed by 'Blood Red Eyes', the set was going great but was suddenly interrupted by a technical difficulties, which started when lead singer Ukiah J Brown's guitar cord got caught around a light.  This didn't phase the band or the punters as the bassist and drummer continued to keep us entertained with some spontaneous jamming as the stage lights dimmed.  Back on track to roaring applause from supportive crowd they knocked out a few more songs before finishing up around 11pm.

The stars of the show self-proclaimed hypnotic, groove-based rock and rollers Racing hit the stage around half eleven.  Special guests The Conjurers were bang on when they told us that with two dudes from fellow kiwi band The Checks it was bound to get raucous...By then revellers were all and truly in party mode crowing the stage in expectation.  Straight into it with the enigmatic Ed Knowles jumping about almost throwing himself into the crowd as he belted out the first few tracks.  Featuring tracks such as 'All Night Long'and 'Carnivalize', it continued as it started not once lagging in momentum until a pause for the slower track around the middle of the set. Then back to more up-beat tracks with lots of awesome guitar solos, big bass and more shouting down the mic. 

To me Racing sounded to me like a cross between Stone Roses, Primal Scream and Oasis with a bit of Doors and Led Zeppelin thrown in; all played to a back drop with projected visuals.  It featured lots of lights and disco ball which kind set an almost retro feel to the night. And smoke, smoke and more smoke!

A loud, energetic and entertaining night!