Hobnail Boots get fans stomping

Rob Joass (left), Jo Moir, Hamish Graham, Caroline Easther and Bonnie Riley are Hobnail Boots and set to create a floor-stomping stampede at the Riverside Bar tonight. Photo/File

With two world tours and three albums of original songs under their belts, there isn't much Wellington band Hobnail Boots don't know about keeping a crowd entertained.

And when they saunter on to the stage at the Riverside Bar in Wanganui tonight, the tempo is likely to rise from a gentle mosey to a floor-stomping stampede as they ply their trade.

The band's website profile chronicles the journey since forming in Wellington in 1995.

The profile describes how audiences from Ohakune to Ottawa have reacted rapturously to the Hobnail Boots blend of soaring song, furious fiddling, berserk banjo, fabulous folk, beautiful ballads and some twisted versions of pop classics.

In their 20 years together, this five-piece have risen to be one of the top live bands in the capital, and has found friends far and wide. Hobnail Boots have plied their trade in the United States, Canada, Britain and Europe. Add in three acclaimed records showcasing the songwriting talents of founding member Rob Joass, and the band is a musical force to be reckoned with.

After Hobnail Boots formed they quickly became a major attraction in Wellington's crowded bar scene.

Back home after world tours, Hobnail Boots - full of influences from the road, but also with fresh insight into the attractions of home - composed their latest record On With the Show. A collection of songs showcasing strong emotions and soaring melodies, the record and accompanying tour brought more fans into the Hobnail Boots fold.

Today from 8.30pm, the unique band will entertain until late at the Riverside Bar in Taupo Quay, with guest artist Wayne Mason also appearing. Mason is the musician who penned iconic Kiwi song Nature, which in 2001 was voted number one of the best 100 New Zealand songs ever.

Mason wrote Nature with The Fourmyula, a popular Kiwi group of the late 1960s/early 1970s. He later joined The Warratahs.