Review: Six60 put on a mighty final show in Hamilton

Six60 performed to a crowd of 25,000 on Saturday night at Claudelands Oval. Photos / Caitlan Johnston

On Saturday I and 24,999 others converged at Claudelands Oval to see Kiwi band Six60 – this was my second time seeing them live and it would be an understatement to say their performance blew me away.

I maintain the fact that I will continue to go to their summer concerts each year for as long as they keep doing Six60 Saturdays.

They were supported by AACACIA, Paige, Mitch James and Drax Project.

Lead singer of Drax Project Shaan Singh.

Six60 came on at 9pm and they performed for two hours, which is the longest show they have done – it's a testament to their physical and mental fitness.

It was also the last stop on their 2021 Six60 Saturday's tour and at the end of their set a roar of applause and cheers praised the boys as they gave each other a hug and as Matiu Walters, lead singer, proceeded to sing the chorus of their defining single Don't Forget Your Roots a cappella – I wasn't crying, you were.

My favourite songs of theirs that they performed on the night were The Greatest, Sundown – accompanied by Te Pou o Mangatāwhiri kapahaka group, and their latest single All She Wrote, which was released last Friday.

Bass guitarist of Six60 Chris Mac.

I spoke with the band's bass guitarist before the show and he said they had been so surprised at each of their concerts by how well the crowd knew their new song – and the Hamilton crowd didn't let them down.

A big smile was plastered across Matiu's face when in unison and loudly, everyone sang back to him ''that's all she wrote'' upon testing the crowd on the lyrics.

"They're really getting behind the chorus, they're singing along like they've heard it a million times," said Chris.

Lead singer of Six60 Matiu Walters.

It was the closing of their show that really blew their performance out of the water.

They had pretended to wrap up the show, saying what seemed to be their final goodbyes and thanks - but that wasn't the last we saw of them.

We got an encore and a mighty one it was.

Lead guitarist of Six60 Ji Fraser.

Lighting turned the stage red and members of Te Pou Mangatāwhiri kapahaka group started to flood the stage.

They performed two songs with Te Pou Mangatāwhiri, Sundown and Don't Forget Your Roots – performed in English and Te Reo Māori.

The collaboration with the kapahaka group is truly a spectacle, showcasing traditional Māori performance in a way like no other.

"It's been a real pleasure playing across our beautiful country Aotearoa to our beautiful people," said Matiu in his final goodbye to the crowd.