Biography
read full storyOriginating from Wellington, New Zealand, The Black Seeds have carved out their reputation through platinum selling albums, a masterful 8-piece live show, and a unique sound that fuses infectious grooves and melodies with undiluted roots music. With numerous European festival tours and releases behind them, and a successful 2009 North American release, their following continues to spread quickly around the globe. Led by the vocals of Barnaby Weir and Daniel Weetman, at its core The Black Seeds music is a boundary-crossing sound fusion of big-beat funk, dub, soul, and afro-beat, mixed with vintage roots-reggae. Described by Clash Magazine as ..'one of the best reggae acts on the planet'.., their legendary 8-piece live show brings the raw energy and good vibes wherever it goes. They now have countless sell-out New Zealand and Australasian tours behind them, and regularly perform at many of Europe's biggest festivals. Lyrically The Black Seeds music expresses messages on different levels. Personal triumphs and failures, the fear of love, death, apathy, and relationships, give a personal insight into the lives of the musicians. Ultimately though, their songs are always under-pinned with an underlying positivity and optimism. Headquarters is, and always has been, the Surgery Studio in Wellington – a city with a small, close-knit creative community, which in recent years has churned out the likes of Flight of the Conchord and Lord Of The Rings. A former Karate Dojo and condemned building, the band's sound engineer Lee Prebble took advantage of the cheap rent to set up the studio, which has since been responsible for producing some of New Zealand's finest albums of recent years (Trinity Roots, The Phoenix Foundation). The Surgery is the practice room, recording studio, and general hangout space for the band, with all four of their albums having been produced there '... as marvellous a work of modern reggae as you're likely to find in any corner of the world today'...... -Niceup.com. (U.S.A) 'There's no beating the old-fashioned lure of a band who have built up a mighty following through sweaty, hard-gigging performances… an immediate appeal to their fresh Pacific grooves… packed with funk, reggae, dub, and good time soul…'.. ....-The Metro, London. 'The Black Seeds bring harmony and good vibes whereever they go, moving from their New Zealand base to become one of the best live reggae bands on the planet.'...... -clashmusic.com, UK. 'charmed… soulful 70's styled reggae… single 'Make A Move' is one of the snackiest reggae pop tunes on planet earth.' ...... -Mojo Magazine, UK. 'a damn fine record… thoughtful, catchy songs rampant with horn lines and stomach shaking bass, not to mention Weir's excellent voice. Hard to turn off, easy to repeat.' ...... -Huffington Post - U.S.A 'The Black Seeds manage to play beyond the normal boundaries of reggae without compromising the music's heart. While "Rotten Apple" has all the thump of a vintage Parliament-Funkadelic jam, "Afrophone"'s punchy horns and get-on-the-good-foot rhythm recall James Brown and the J.B.s at their peak – and the Seeds manage to pull it all off while retaining their voice. They make the blend of sounds feel absolutely natural. This is not a reggae band dropping a novelty funk cover into the middle of a set, this is simply Black Seeds music.'.