bReview: There's A Tuesday

bReview: There's A Tuesday 

at Double Whammy, Saturday 26 April 2025 

Words by Luke van Oorsow 

Photography by Nico Rose Penny 

On this particular Saturday night, Karangahape Road’s Double Whammy was once again filled with a sea of people as they eagerly waited to see Jenny Rockwell, Daffodils, and There’s A Tuesday perform.

While listening to There’s a Tuesday prior to seeing them live, I was taken away and captured by the relaxed, hazy vibe that the four-piece group had on their new album, Blush: an album saturated and drenched in Nat Hutton and Minnie Robberd’s soft harmonies, topped off by an equally ambient rhythm section provided by drummer Gus Murray, and bass riffs provided by Joel Becker to help give their songs that extra layer of feel-good, yet weirdly melancholic indie sound that is synonymous with the band. Originally a duo created by Nat and Minnie, with Joel and Gus joining later on in the band’s formation, There’s A Tuesday’s new album is an eclectic mix of softer singer-songwriter tracks with dreamy guitars and vocals, reminiscent of their older material from 2020, and slightly more upbeat tracks that still keep the same relaxed, distinctively calming tone, but in a way that seems reinvented and more refined.

If there’s one thing I have great amounts of appreciation for, it’s when two different forms of art become intermeshed, weaving in between one another and complementing each other as they go hand-in-hand so well. Before both bands got up on stage to perform, the night was kicked off by a series of spoken-word poems written and performed by Jenny Rockwell. Rockwell touched on a variety of topics through her poetry, such as the inner and societal struggles she has witnessed in her daily life, such as the treatment of women in society, domestic violence, and the issues she had faced growing up as a lesbian in Aotearoa from her book, Vultures. On a slightly lighter, yet adjacent note, she also performed a very heartwarming piece describing “queer joy”, a feeling that she experiences with her girlfriend and from within herself as she finally finds joy in her lesbian identity in spite of the insecurities and hardships she had to face. I was blown away by her storytelling abilities and ability to be so vivid with her poetry, internally visualising and seeing pictures of each event as she uttered each word and stanza with such emotion while her voice shook at times, each tremble and shake highlighting the harsh and discomforting realities alongside the more joyful and intensely euphoric ones witnessed through the lens of queer eyes. 

(Jenny Rockwell at Double Whammy / Photo: Nico Rose Penny) 

With Jenny Rockwell no longer taking centre stage, it was time for Daffodils to perform. 

As a former Springs kid (up the Mighty Eels), I got to see the band blossom and grow as they started out in my high school years with songs like Boys and Why Don’t You Hold Me being favourites of mine. It’s safe to say that the band has definitely not lost their charm that had drawn me to them in the first place, with their ethereal synths, simple but energetic drum beats, ambient guitars and basses, and that pseudo-gothic vocal tone reminiscent of 80s post-punk bands a la Joy Division and The Cure. 

Vocalist and guitarist Theo Salmon accompanied his voice with a variety of sounds provided by his series of guitars he had up on stage: one guitar being a silver guitar with the words “FUCK DAVID SEYMOUR” written on the side with an exclamation mark, and a blue guitar which looked a little like a mandolin. Through this mild change in timbre, he was able to provide a variety of different sounds that still complemented Louis Graham’s bass, Scottie’s rhythms and Jade Bryham’s keyboard, as all four members played harmoniously as they performed each one of their indie rock anthems with their own signature tinge of new-wave thrown into the mix. They’re a perfect blend of indie rock and 80s post-punk and new wave, and is the perfect band for anyone who wants that classic post-punk style with a more upbeat indie sound in exchange for the usual brooding nihilism and gloom of their former gothic influences.

(Daffodils at Double Whammy / Photo: Nico Rose Penny) 

There’s A Tuesday finally came out to perform after these solid supporting acts worked their magic on Double Whammy’s elevated stage floor. The atmosphere of the room was vibrant, yet calming, as everyone, including myself joyously swayed to the rhythms provided by Gus, with Minnie and Nat’s harmonies gently gliding off the walls and Joel’s bass giving a soft, but ambient vibration throughout their set. I especially enjoyed their song “Margo”, once again swaying and singing along to their easygoing melodies and being captured by the floating guitars as the band continued to perform throughout the night. Much like their albums and other recorded material, their setlist alternated between their more upbeat jams and softer singer-songwriter ballads, with the two slightly contrasting styles serving as the yin and yang between their combination of styles. 

(There's A Tuesday at Double Whammy / Photo: Nico Rose Penny) 

Despite There’s A Tuesday’s relatively ambient indie-pop sound, this nice blend of instrumentation and vocals almost felt cinematic in a way, finding myself feeling like I was in the ending scene of some niche coming-of-age film for a brief moment, like the band and the audience were being watched through a movie screen or television. I didn't exactly know why it felt like this, but I digress. The whole performance replayed in my head like a film as I climbed up the stairwell of St Kevin’s Arcade; my mind replaying every riff, rhythm and vocal harmony while I headed home from the venue. 

(There's A Tuesday at Double Whammy / Photo: Nico Rose Penny) 

Overall, I was very pleased with what I saw and heard. Jenny Rockwell kicked the night off with her deep, touching spoken-word performance, followed by Daffodils with their classic new-wave-inspired take on indie rock, and There’s A Tuesday’s ambient tunes circling around the eardrums of the crowd like a gentle breeze. While this may have been my first time seeing There’s A Tuesday live, this performance is the reason why there’s a very likely chance that I will see them again.

(There's A Tuesday at Double Whammy / Photo: Nico Rose Penny)