UNDERCURRENTS

21 August

Doors 7.00pm | 7.30–9.00pm

Cloisters Studio, Te Matatiki Toi Ora | The Arts Centre

Featuring Folina E. Vili, TJOPI and KOMMI

16+

Rukuhia mai rā.

Dive with us into the undercurrents of our Māori–Pacific music scene — the rich, dark depths of Moana sound, undeniable in their pull, draw and influence.

These innovative ringa puoro take us beneath the surface, into sounds that conjure conceptions of Rarohenga and Pulotu — places beyond the seen world, and the source of the waves.

Feel inspiration rise to meet you as three powerful local acts weave together soundwaves from beyond.

Folina E. Vili

Sāmoa (Falefā, Faleāpuna)

Folina E. Vili is a first-generation NZ-born Sāmoan afakasi creative with roots in the industrial estate of eastside Ōtautahi. Her music combines vintage keyboards, raw vocals and cracked sound, with songs that traverse time and unapologetically explore the uncomfortable and vulnerable heart space.

TJOPI

Primitive folk music.

Pohlen Newbery (Tūhoe, Ngāti Porou) and Tjalling de Vries (Tangata Tiriti) collaborate to create semi-industrial layers of field recordings, synth, sheet-metal feedback and looped samples. Together, these form a sinister soundscape for Popi’s toi kupu and reinterpreted waiata in both te reo Māori and English.

KOMMI

Kāti Taoka, Kāi Te Pahi, Kāti Moki, Kāti Ruahikihiki, Kāi Tūāhuriri, Manutahi, Ngāti Moeahu

Somewhere between the misty, salt-soaked hills of Ōketeupoko / Lyttelton and the old swamps where the taiao still screeches, KOMMI is making music that feels less like entertainment and more like necromancy.

Non-binary rap artist. Songwriter. Poet. Lecturer in Māori and Indigenous Studies and te reo Māori. Art collaborator. Swampwitch.

None of these titles quite fit, but together they sketch the outline of someone who refuses the tidy categories demanded by the modern world. Their work is rooted in the dialect of Kāi Tahu, carrying the cadence and worldview of their people, with strong whakapapa to Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Mutunga and Ngāti Tama.

This event forms part of Ihirangaranga: creation & connection, a multi-week programme presented by Te Whare Tapere from 13 August–5 September, celebrating Te Marama Puoro o Aotearoa | Māori Music Month.

Guided by the whakaaro of ihirangaranga, the programme explores sound as a source of connection — carrying memory, wellbeing and culture across generations.

Ngā mihi nui to the Farina Thompson Charitable Trust, proudly managed by Perpetual Guardian, for their generous support in making Ihirangaranga: creation & connection possible.