JUNK FEST 2025 (and other things alternative NZ music, with Lara Marie)
When JUNK FEST popped up last year I couldn’t believe my eyes. Not only was I immediately taken by the beautifully designed poster by the talented Patrick Hickley of Soft Bait fame, but the lineup for this Tāmaki Makaurau minifest was utterly insane. A passionate advocate of independent and alternative local music with fantastic taste to match, organiser Lara Marie pulled together a lineup stacked with heavy hitters from across the country, including Awning, Caru, Cold Ceiling, Dale Kerrigan, Elliot & Vincent, Feshh, Grecco Romank, KMTP, Power Nap, Ringlets, Salt Water Criminals, Soft Bait, and Tooms. Phew! I couldn’t wait. But when the day rolled around the universe decided to spite me, and my extremely ill self couldn’t have gotten out of bed if I’d tried.
Now, a year later, I was delighted to see the return of JUNK; an announcement that could finally soothe the intense FOMO I had from last year. The 2025 JUNK 2.0, taking place on Saturday 7 June across Double Whammy, Whammy and Public Bar in St Kevin’s Arcade in Auckland, is a strong follow up from the inaugural festival with Cabinet, Dropper, George Barney Roberts, Girls Factory, HŌHĀ, Office Dog, Pearly*, Scrambline and Vera Ellen making the bill, alongside some repeat offenders of Ringlets and Salt Water Criminals, and two Australian acts–Twine and The Empty Threats. When Lara and I finally met in person at the Taite’s a few months ago and ended up gabbing away for an hour about all things NZ music, I thought it only right to get the full scoop about JUNK FEST and her take on the alternative NZ music scene.
WHAT DO YOU DO & HOW DID JUNK FEST COME ABOUT?
So I manage two bands specifically–Vera Ellen and Ringlets–but there are lots of other bands that I deal with and offer help to or try and support in little ways that I can [...] Ultimately I want to be seen as someone who's keen to help and happy to support alternative music. JUNK stemmed from me putting on shows in high school, taking a break, and working within the wider music industry. I really loved it, and from that I decided that I wanted to get back into doing my own shows. I hadn't done them since high school which was a bit scary. The first show back I did was JUNK 2024.
THAT’S A BIG UNDERTAKING FOR YOUR FIRST ONE BACK. WHY JUNK? WHY A MINIFEST LIKE THIS?
Well, I guess I wanted to come in with a bang, right? I was recognizing that a lot of older people were not going out to shows as much. They weren't seeing what was happening on the ground. I saw a lot of potential, and I saw fans. Also what I was finding is that a lot of these “old heads”, as I like to call them, were relying on me as a young person to tell them what was cool. Give the power to that person instead. I just want the baton to be handed over so that then I can hand it to someone else. I got to the point where I thought that I clearly have the skills to be getting hired by all these people who do what I want to do, or some iteration of it, and I had this realization that the only thing stopping me from going out on my own was my own risk-aversion.
YOU’VE CLEARLY HIT A SPECIFIC NICHE OF MUSIC–WHY THESE BANDS?
When I did gigs in high school it was very much the same genre alignment. So it's definitely my taste and what I was raised on has informed that. My Mum and I are very much Flying Nun and Propeller Records fans, all of that classic alternative 80s stuff from New Zealand. And when I think about New Zealand music, that's the legacy I think about. I really want to platform new alternative music because I feel like the legacy has changed. I guess that's what I'm trying to do. It's fueled by this ‘build it and they'll come’ mentality. I want to prove that there's value in this, so people start to listen.
FOR BOTH YEARS YOU HAVE BUILT A LINEUP FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY. FOR A SMALL FESTIVAL BASED IN AUCKLAND, WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO YOU?
It's so hard out here to find your spot. And if Auckland alternative bands feel isolated, I just think about all the other communities and amazing music scenes that also feel that same way. So bringing everyone together for something like this is really awesome. Even just for one day, it just creates a sense of community. The results I saw from JUNK were exactly what I wanted. I saw bigger bands pulling artists from my lineup to open for them. Or bands who played and met at JUNK went on and played some shows together. If you make that connection then we see more travel up and down and then we'll see way more shows in the long run.
13 BANDS, $35-50. INSANE VALUE FOR MONEY. WHY AND HOW?
It's just dumb, honestly, and that's what people have said to me. But I wholeheartedly believe in keeping it accessible. I price tickets low so people can come and have an accessible way to see 13 bands. If they find one band they really love and then spend $30 on their headline show that’s my job done. That’s all I want. To spread the love a little bit. Because it’s supposed to be, I guess, a gateway drug. Because it’s valuable and important and I think we’re already as a society suffering terribly because we don't have any physical, in person connections anymore.
THIS YEAR SEES THE INCLUSION OF TWO BANDS FROM AUSTRALIA–TWINE AND THE EMPTY THREATS. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THIS DECISION?
I really believe in the talent that's happening there at the moment. There's such a great crossover with Australia and New Zealand, and also it's the most viable option. I love Twine and The Empty Threats, I saw them both at Camp A Low Hum. Twine are one of the best bands I've ever seen, and The Empty Threats, I cannot wait to have them back. When I watched them play at Camp, they were easily one of my favorite acts. They were so powerful; their performance is really intense. It's just so punk, it's awesome. I wanted to bring them back for that reason, but also to take a risk like that, I wanted to make a slightly more considered choice. I thought it made sense for me to build on an existing audience, no matter how small that might be, rather than try and start an audience from scratch.
OUTSIDE OF THE BANDS YOU MANAGE AND THE JUNK LINEUP, WHO ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT AT THE MOMENT?
I love Velveteen from Christchurch. Their new album is fucking awesome. I love Dale Kerrigan. I really like Jude Kelly’s new EP. Awning, who played JUNK last year, I believe are releasing new music this year, which I’m very excited about. There are some great bands on the bFM Fancy New Band lineup which I’m excited about: Lipstick Cherry, CCTV, Lucian Rice. Grecco Romank are fucking awesome, I’m so excited about their new album it’s going to be amazing. There’s a young band I really like called Buzz. Marsha are great. I’ve been listening to one of their new singles, I really like it. True Mets, I’m excited about them. They’ve never played before but it is members of various other bands that have existed which are all great so I’m assuming this side project will be too. They’re playing the JUNK side show in Wellington. I would love to shout out one of the bands on the JUNKFEST lineup, Cabinet, who are young people making hardcore emo music. There’s heaps. I need to make a playlist of everyone that I like.
And she did. You can find the JUNK 2025 playlist here.
HOW CAN THE PEOPLE SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC REALISTICALLY?
Buying tickets early. I know that it’s really hard to budget but buying tickets early is fucking mean. That’s what makes stuff viable. There’s no financial support for me to run this. It’s one bank account of one person with one job. When people buy tickets early it makes me feel less nervous that I’m going to lose all my savings on an event for other people. If you like a band, don’t be scared to say you’re a fan. It’s cool to try. Trying pays off. Buy merch. If you’re coming to JUNK, the ticket prices are so cheap that you should buy some merch because that is the best way to directly support the artists.
FINAL NOTES: GET ON THE GROUND AND FIGURE IT OUT.
DIY shows changed my life. In this technologically driven society everything you like you’re essentially being told to like by some greater force and it’s exhausting. Go out and do something weird and you might see a band that you hate but that’s cool because that shows you what you like and don't like and will hopefully inform you better to move through the world. It’s important to be exposed to things you find freaky. I really believe that. I mean there are a couple freaky bands on my lineup, last year there were. Probably not freaky to you and me but they’re freaky to some people. But it’s good! Come and get freaky with it!
While chatting to Lara, what stood out to me is her intense advocacy and deep love for local, independent, alternative music. She is forthright about the shortcomings of the industry (a whole other piece I could have written) and is vocal about how these systems benefit the long-time commercial successes while leaving up and comers, especially with more niche sounds, with little room to thrive and few avenues to go for support (both financial and mentorship). “I ultimately want to just be seen as someone who's keen to help and happy to support alternative music,” is a telling quote, and very evident throughout this conversation and others we have had. JUNK 2.0 is going to be great. The lineup is undeniably good. I sure as heck will be there and I hope you will be too.
JUNK FEST is happening THIS Saturday 7 June!!
Tickets available here!
Instagram @junkmail_nz
All photos from JUNK 2024 courtesy of Max Corlett | @theundeadllama