For New Zealand Month last year we asked a bunch of people what they thought made Wellington music unique as well as what their favourite albums by Wellington artists were.

This year we thought we would do something similar, but slightly different. This time we’re asking people for a favourite memory of making music in Wellington. It could involve a favourite gig, a funny story from the recording studio, a moment that led to the inspiration for a song, the fond recollection of a defunct venue, or the piece of music or lyric that they are most proud of creating.

Today we caught up with Producer/Artist Rhys Stannard, who records ‘Experimental, folk grunge psychedelica’ under the name Voe. He has also done some recording with Rhys Baker and Mermaidens, and recently curated the underground Wellington music compilation New Zealand Birds.

Happy Bar was myself and my friends first introduction to live music shows in Wellington. There was always a generous variety of music played there from Jazz to noise musicians and many of these shows were free or lacked a doorman so you could slip in if you were under-age. For many people, including myself, Happy was also somewhere you could play your first show. The fact that they allowed young and inexperienced musicians to play shows is definitely worthy of credit. It’s a testament to that place that the vibe never felt discriminatory or contrived. The setting felt more like a living room than a bar and served as a point of convergence for local artists who you’d often see throughout the crowd. I’d love to say the owners were a dream but they definitely used to hate me and my buddies because we as well as many others would come and watch our friends without buying beer and usually getting on the door if there was a door charge. Sadly, Happy eventually crumbled under the weight of its financial reality. No doubt the cheapo music public (myself included) is one of the main factors that led to its demise. I think this story is still relevant today because these “gateway bars” that allow young people to access and play music in a safe and comfortable environment are noticeably absent from our city today. The hard part will be creating one with a sustainable business model and errr…not involving the Church…

You can buy some of Rhys’ music on Bandcamp here.

Covers used with permission.