bReview: Dope Lemon
at Auckland Town Hall, Friday 8 August 2025
Written by Alex Fox
Photography by Isabella Rose Young
It's rare to find an artist who has managed to stamp their mark on the music industry under multiple monikers. It's even rarer to find such an artist from down under. When I realised that Dope Lemon was the recording name of Angus Stone, the Angus Stone known for such classics as 'Big Jet Plane,' which went platinum in my childhood home, alongside his sister Julia, I was intrigued. How do Stone's folk sensibilities hold up 15 years later? How has his sound evolved? And most cynically, and most importantly, has he still got it?
The answer to the latter is a definitive yes.
Of course, no good concert is complete without a great opener to match. Dope Lemon were joined by PAMELA as their opening act; compatriots of Stone, the Sydney-based indie pop duo performed entirely unreleased material. I would be lying if I said I didn't raise an eyebrow upon hearing that, but I would never have been able to guess. The two performed a range of equally nostalgic and fresh tracks, invoking the sounds of 2010s indietronica staples like the xx, and even Aotearoa's own Naked and Famous, but never straying too far into worship. Instead, the pair presented a gorgeous example of just how much fun you can have with two vocalists. Songs like Playing It Cool, the third of their set, had me fawning over their vocal interplay; Vocalist Sarah would lend angelic, dreamy vocals, while other vocalist and guitarist Josh would offer a low, grounded, and at times almost talking-esque counterpart. And perhaps most importantly, their final song carried one of my favourite artistic choices: some really loud guitar post-chorus in an otherwise quieter song. Add in some trusty, straightforward indie rock, and you've got a band that had me REALLY wishing some of their music wasn't unreleased and mysterious.
(PAMELA opening for Dope Lemon / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
(PAMELA opening for Dope Lemon / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
Dope Lemon's entrance set the scene perfectly. The members of the band, the main man excluded, took to the stage with little fuss and no shortage of fog. Immediately, it was clear that we were nowhere near done with remembering the 2010s. Not to suggest anything bad, but the last thing I expect to see in 2025 is men donning black suits and covered shoulder-length hair with black wide-brimmed fedoras.
Once the band had set the mood, however, and began playing their intro song, on came the man of the hour, Angus Stone. Something about Stone's demeanour, swaggering on stage with a beer in hand, and, of course, a black fedora, made it all make sense. If anything is to be said about Dope Lemon, it's that Stone has his aesthetic down pat. If there's only one group of people in the world who can get away with wearing those outfits, it's them.
(Dope Lemon at the Auckland Town Hall / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
Their first song introduced the country twang that would be a staple of a good part of the set, and announced that the band weren't afraid to get loud. A long, healthy drum break set up the next song, full of soaring guitar and thundering drums. Their third song of the set, John Belushi, might be my favourite of theirs. The band were joined for the first time by two people in large, oversized heads.
An enormous step back from the country rock-influenced grooves of the start of the set, the song, lovingly named after one half of the Blues Brothers, saw one of Stone's many guitar changes leave him with an acoustic. The song itself didn't find itself leaning into solos or breakdowns, instead letting simple guitar strums and an earworm of a melody sit and calm down the room. It felt like the Angus Stone I knew beforehand, performing with his sister, but not the one I knew leaving the concert.
The next few songs slowly brought the energy back, introduced new dancers with new heads, and saw some of the most fun I've ever seen a band have on stage. The emerging star was the harmonica, which would make many more appearances throughout the night, and was always performed with a level of gusto only commanded by a harmonica. Of course, the bright flashing lights also made a return. The eighth song of the night, Golden Wolf, saw the crowd moving at full force again, and a slightly disturbing but tonally appropriate shifting and morphing smiling flower commanded attention on the backdrop.
Other than to announce that the band was performing a cover (which they don't usually do - but "f**k it we're in Auckland"), neither Stone nor his band had spoken much. This seal was broken over halfway through the set.
"I feel so f*cking lucky to be alive," said Stone, hoisting his beer, before celebrating the fishing trip he was set to go on before he and his crew left Aotearoa, and shouting out the local fishing charter. I'm not sure if there's a better way to win over a Kiwi crowd. The track to follow, his ode to life and 'floating down the river,' Slinging Dimes, brought down the speed yet again. A soft, relaxing song, with a talk-singing cadence, had me and the rest of the crowd in a trance.
Then came another guitar change, but this time, Stone swapped out his guitar for a sitar - and what better instrument to land those hot, sunny vibes. It's almost a shame it didn't last for longer than one song, and now we have the only new song of the night. The green and blue lights caught me off guard, being so used to the warm orange lighting that dominated the rest of the show. The new track was my personal highlight of the night, with a funky bass line and the best keyboard part of the night. The area I labelled 'the jam zone' - that is, the left side of the seated second level of the town hall where every seated dancer seemed to congregate - was certainly enjoying itself.
(Dope Lemon at the Auckland Town Hall / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
The last song of the initial set was the rockiest of the bunch. It felt like the appropriate capping for the show, with hats raised high, the crowd going nuts, and of course, some fog on the stage. This was the moment the performance finally slowed down enough for band introductions, one song before they left the stage.
I'm not a fan of the modern-day encore. But other than the return once again of lights that made looking at the stage difficult, this was an encore done right. The band didn't waste much time, and there was no awkward lull in the cheering and stomping while the crowd began to question whether the band was just gone. Back on stage, they came, with Stone dancing out to the tune of Slice of Heaven, performed by the band. Crowd favourites occupied the final part of the night, and the final part of Dope Lemon's tour, and the entire crowd was on their feet. Each dancer with a different head was back on stage, with room for some other extremely charming new characters. Some bows and waves, and it was all over.
One thing is for certain - for that hour and a half, it wasn't a 12-degree winter night in Auckland. Every inch of the performance oozed with warmth, whether invoking a day by the pool, a walk through the desert, or a drive through Stone's more local Outback. Dope Lemon's catalogue is one made for summer.
It strikes me that 'Lemon' feels like an inappropriate fruit here; this performance was anything but sour. It feels too on the nose to label Stone and co's show as 'dope,' but it wouldn't be untrue.
(Crowd at the Auckland Town Hall / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
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