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 Nicole Andrews. Nicole is a self-taught pianist from Portland Oregon, now based in Wellington. Her 2015 album In The Shallows was one of our favourite albums from last year at the Library. This self-produced album was made with the support of Creative New Zealand, and features the work of several well known New Zealand musicians. Recorded and mixed by Lee Prebble at Surgery Studios, the Steinway Piano parts were recorded at The New Zealand School of Music. Nicole’s next gig is at Moon on the 19th of May, where she will be playing with Lucid Effect and Molly Devine, who is on tour from Dunedin. More details here.

One of my favourite Wellington music memories is jamming in my friend’s studio, which was up in the Munki Studios building before it was demolished. There were about five of us girls who play gigs together regularly, finally getting to hang out away from a venue setting and just being silly with the music. We rotated on the instruments but I sort of hogged the keys because my skills with other instruments is pretty limited these days. Especially if you give me a few wines, then suddenly I can only play piano. We wrote some pretty epic songs that night, but of course, did not record any of them, which is a rookie mistake. I believe one was called “Riding on my Elephant” and another “The Booty,” a pirate song, of course. It’s nice to just let loose with no expectation, no egos and no need to create something worth keeping. Sometimes it’s just about being silly, and hanging out with your music friends. But “Riding on My Elephant” was a seriously epic song. I think we have a hit on our hands.

You can buy Nicole’s music on Bandcamp here. Check out an interview with did with her here.

Cover used with permission.