Fresh Talent: Daisy Chain Halo

"Heavy, twisting, epic acoustic rock" are the exact words that Daisy Chain Halo use to describe themselves, and you'd better believe it! The trio of Carl Watkins (vocals and acoustic guitar), Corinna Watts (bass) and Ben Chapman (drums) began in Wellington three years ago as The Crimson Scene, but have since settled on Hamilton as home base. They are fresh back from a whirlwind tour of Melbourne, where they were received with open arms. "The Australians loved us," says Carl.

"They bought everything we had, they probably would have bought the shirts off our backs if we let them!" The trip was a prize the band earned by taking out first place in the 2001 Band Experiments, a competition run by Hamilton radio station UFM (now The Generator). "For Corinna and I, it was our first time out of the country, let alone playing concerts anywhere but NZ, so we were way excited about the whole thing before, during and after!"

The Halo have good reason to be excited - their first album will be due for release in December, much to the delight of Hamilton music fans.
"We've currently recorded five songs," explains Corinna. "We're in the mixing phase with what we've got down and are checking our options as to where we'll do the last few songs."

Hopefully they'll be able to capture some of the magic energy that seems to follow their live show around. It's an intense emotional experience that journeys from low, wistful melancholy through to soaring angst filled rock, predominantly fuelled by Carl's intimate vocal delivery. He's been described as 'a modern Robert Plant' and took out the award for 'Best Vocalist' at the 2001 The Generator Christmas Ham awards, where Corinna won 'Best Bassist', a title she also won at the final of the Lion Red Raw Battle Of The Bands. Crikey!

Not content to just sit back and wait for things to happen, Carl and Corinna have a history of organising outdoor music and human rights related events. They say the biggest and best to date has been last year's 9 Bands For No Bucks, held down by the lake at Innes Common. It's the region's only free original music festival and last year attracted people from all over the North Island.