Life Returns to the Wellington Music Scene With Eyegum Wednesdays

Words by Maia Ingoe (she/her)

“It feels fucking good to be back,” were the words I heard most on 20 April, the first Eyegum Free Wednesday since last September. Walking up the San Fran staircase felt like a renaissance of sorts, returning to the scenes of Wellington that drew me to the city in the first place. 

For most of 2022, the red alert level has kept live music away from stages—the 100-person limit and sit-down precautions weren’t favourable for gigs. From the moment alert level orange was announced, bands, venues, and organisers kicked back into full swing. The first Wednesday in orange, San Fran was once again the home of Eyegum Music Collective’s free event, showcasing different emerging and established local musicians every week. 

The Cuba Street venue has the comforts of a grungy refuge; posters line the bar-side wall and bench-seat tables give space to gather with friends before the music starts. Past that, doors open onto the infamous balcony, on a good night packed with patrons passing a dart or a vape. The floor in front of the stage is open, ready for the grooving feet of a crowd.

‘First night back’ is a phrase that rings oddly like school bells on the first day of term. On my night there I hear Eyegum Wednesdays described as a school and church, alluding to the dedicated community that fills up San Fran every Wednesday night.

The keyword of Eyegum Free Wednesdays is in the middle: It’s free. Anyone, broke student or not, can go there, hang out on the balcony, and experience new music. Eyegum Music Collective first started in 2013, coming together through the organisation of house gigs in Wellington flats. When too many of the regular flats were noise controlled, San Fran came to the rescue as the weekly home for Eyegum. San Fran hosts and sponsors the events, so that bands and organisers get paid. Abandoned Brewery supplies the $6 Eyegum Pilsner, the secret ingredient to a cheap night of good music. 

“With the first Eyegum happening, you can see normality on the horizon,” Ollie, Munkhouse’s vocalist and guitarist, told me. His dark hair is tucked under a black skipper’s hat, he wears round-rimmed glasses and a Whangamatā Beach Hop tee. The band talks to me from a couple of couches squeezed into the backstage space at San Fran, the sounds of crowds gathering and the opening act’s soundchecks echoing back at us. Our interview is framed by a neon green wall covered with signatures from bands who’ve performed here. The band are obviously fizzing with energy; this is the first gig they’ve had in months, with gigs through February cancelled in the red light setting.

Munkhouse, the headlining act of the night, is no newbie to Eyegum Wednesdays. The first time I’d been to Eyegum was to see Wellington duo Floral Shirt, where I stumbled upon Munkhouse. The band, originally from Auckland, had an irresistible sound that had me at the front of the crowd all night long.

The band’s members have been both performers and patrons of Eyegum Wednesdays, meeting some of their closest friends through the event. “The people we identify ourselves with we’ve met here. It’s the best place for that; out on the balcony, it’s like a sardine box. But you feel like you’re at home,” says Cedric, Munkhouse bassist—you’ll recognise him onstage as the one wearing a wizard’s hat. Chris, the guitarist, wears a red sash as a headband and sunglasses, 70’s style. “Every time it gets better and better. The drinks keep getting more expensive, but it’s the right price to pay for such a great community,” he says. 

The constantly changing nature of live music in the Covid-19 era has impacted them too—Munkhouse was offered tonight's show five days beforehand, meaning their keyboard player, Oliver, was unable to make it. Wellington band Kingfish were originally lined up to join them but were unable to play when a member became a household contact on Wednesday morning. Burnt Out Graduate filled the space, pulling a set together last minute.

“We’ve been in this weird musical purgatory,” says Kaito, the sax player. Gigs and recordings have been disrupted by last minute changes, isolations, and shit generally hitting the fan. The fact that San Fran survived at all is something to celebrate, with effort across the community to keep it afloat—even bands like Dartz holding fundraisers for the venue. Now, the dedicated Eyegum followers can return to what Ollie says is like church, but with beer and live music. “It’s a staple of Wellington music, and it’s consistent—well, without Covid right?” he adds. “They’re given us such great opportunities, I don’t know where we’d be in the Wellington music scene without it.”

“On the aspect of it being free, it’s super important to me, because when I first moved here, I didn’t have any fucking money or friends. So it’s just the one place I could go to reliably to meet people and hang out,” says Kenny Charlton, who, alongside Mia Bean, organises and MCs Eyegum Wednesdays. Kenny greets me with a mini high-five, touching pointer fingers together.

Mia wears a red oversized suit jacket, rolled up at the sleeves, eyes outlined with red and yellow geometric makeup. While the break in events gave her a much-needed mental health respite, Mia is stoked to be back. “I need an excuse to be hot at least once a week, and smash three beers, and yell with people,” she says, laughing.

Eyegum Wednesdays is a great platform for up-and-coming bands and for new people to explore the Wellington music scene. “We’ve booked a lot of bands for their first ever gigs,” Mia said. “We used to get a lot of bands from out of town,” Kenny added, “Because there’s always a guaranteed show.”

Coming along to San Fran on a Wednesday means meeting new people on the balcony, taking outfit pics in the full-length bathroom mirrors, jumping with the crowd to local bands, and discovering a new artist to mix up your Spotify playlists. “Being free makes it super easy to get into live, local music, experience it, and if it’s bad you can just leave. It exposes so many new people to the incredible music we have in Wellington,” Mia said. My first-timer friend seconds this: “Everyone seemed to be there for the love of music and community and not just to get wasted.” Reminders from the MCs to drink water at every break really sums up the friendly and like-minded vibe of the people at Eyegum.

A priority for Mia going forward is bringing more diversity into the line-up. “There are so many dude bands in Wellington—and no hate to the dude bands, but we can have a spread,” she told me. With both bands on stage on Wednesday being all guys, you can’t deny the logic.

As well as the weekly free Wednesdays, Eyegum Music hosts indie music festival Welcome to Nowhere, which in 2022 was cancelled due to the red-light change. A documentary following Eyegum Music Collective through the Wednesday events and the 2021 festival is due to come out later this year.

The return of international acts to Aotearoa stages is exciting, but so is the opportunity to explore the local music scene. With staples such as Eyegum Wednesdays, the Wellington music scene brews talent and community like a $6 Eyegum Pilsner. Bands that have been forming throughout the last six months of Covid-19 disruption are ready to play, and there’s nowhere better for freshers and long-haul locals alike to get their fix of new music than Eyegum Wednesdays at San Fran.