Band committed to making music

Strangely Aroused playing at Vinyl Destination on August 6. Photo/file

Oiver Prendergast's mum is getting ready for an influx of musicians crashing at her Otumoetai home next month.

Oliver is the drummer of up-and-coming dub-inspired band Strangely Arousing who are on a tour promoting their first self-titled album.

He is the lone member of the Rotorua band with a big connection to Tauranga - his mum still lives here and he spent a few high years at Otumoetai College.

The young drummer was only 14 at the time. Strangely Arousing had already formed the previous year (as part of an NCEA assignment at Western Heights High School) ... but Oliver knew the band had something and headed back to Rotorua to pursue their dreams properly.

"We've been together a long time. The same line-up, the same goal from the start.

"We are not trying to make money and it's literally what we have loved doing all this time.

We think our music is quite special and unique."

The band were still committed and continued to play together when high school finished and most of them went off to university. But it turned out education was not on the cards - music was.

They quit university after a year in Auckland after deciding to concentrate on their band work.

Strangely Arousing originally won a Battle of the Bands competition at school in Rotorua as one of the younger bands of the competition. Since then, they've won Pacifica Beats in 2013, played at Raggamuffin and have played alongside respected Kiwi musicians such as Fat Freddy's Drop and Kora.

It's hard to pinpoint their genre, Oliver says. "It's really a fusion, there's jazz, there's reggae, funk, blues, rock and a huge element of dub."

Strangely Arousing's album is out on July 28.

the fine print
What: Strangely Arousing, with guests Knights of the Dub Table, Chiefs Collective, Brendon Thomas and the Vibes, and Summer Thieves
Where: Vinyl Destination
When: August 6
Tickets: Ticketspace