Everclear – Tuning Fork, 23 January 2025: Review & Photo Gallery

24th January 2025

Everclear ignite the stage with 90’s nostalgia and a lesson in grit, glory, and Rock’n’roll survival.

It was a night of black t-shirts, tattoos, and pure nostalgia as a sold-out crowd packed into The Tuning Fork in Auckland, eagerly awaiting one of alternative rock’s most enduring acts.

Everclear, with a career spanning over three decades, has delivered 11 studio albums, four of which have gone gold or platinum, selling over six million records worldwide.

With hits like Santa Monica, Father of Mine, I Will Buy You a New Life, Wonderful, and Everything to Everyone, Art Alexakis and his bandmates have carved out a permanent place in the annals of Alt-Rock history.

But before the main event, Wellington’s all-female rock outfit, Sure Boy, took to the stage, receiving polite applause from a crowd largely unfamiliar with them.

That unfamiliarity, however, didn’t last long. From the first note, Sure Boy proved they were no mere opening act. Their sound a fresh, grinding mix of Pop-Rock, immediately turned heads, like the first whiff of a bold new coffee blend.

Front woman Beth Stewart, alongside guitarist Simone McCarthy, bassist Lily Fulton, and drummer Freyja Appleyard, delivered a striking performance that blended the musicality of The Jam with the raw energy of The Go-Go’s, while Stewart’s vocals evoked shades of Debbie Harry and Siouxsie Sioux.

By their third song, the audience was fully on board. No longer strangers, Sure Boy had won over the room.

Thanks for dancing with me, I love it, Beth told the crowd, feeding off their growing enthusiasm.

The set’s pinnacle arrived with Pepsi, a track that had the audience chanting Post Party Pepsi right back at Stewart on command, their voices echoing through the venue.

A moment of intrigue unfolded when, midway through the set, Everclear frontman Art Alexakis quietly slipped in stage-right, taking a seat to watch the band. A lifelong supporter of new music, Alexakis was clearly impressed, just like the rest of us. Sure Boy isn’t just a band to watch, they’re a band to bet on.

After a short intermission, punctuated by the sound system blaring Presidents of the USA’s Lump, anticipation built to fever pitch.

Everclear emerged from the moment the opening chords of So Much for the Afterglow rang out, the audience was transported straight back to the days of flannel shirts, MTV dominance, and teenage rebellion.

Alexakis, sporting his signature bleach-blonde hair (now peppered with wisdom) but tonight hidden under a baseball cap, wasted no time in reminding us why Everclear were more than just another 90s Rock outfit. His voice, raspy and road-worn yet still packed with bite, cut through the venue’s air like a well-aged whiskey burn.

Everything to Everyone and Father of Mine had the crowd bouncing in collective euphoria, while deeper cuts like Heroin Girl brought the band’s darker lyrical edge to the fore, a stark reminder of Everclear’s grittier roots.

The rhythm section, now composed of seasoned musicians who have kept the band’s touring machine alive, was tight and thunderous, giving each track a muscular backbone.

Guitarist Davey French shredded through solos with the kind of reckless abandon that reminded everyone this wasn’t just a nostalgia act, Everclear can still rip it up.

Positioned near the bar, about a third of the way back, it became clear that the Tuning Fork at full capacity isn’t the ideal venue for a band like Everclear. The long, narrow layout meant the sound didn’t travel well, leaving pockets of the audience disconnected from the energy on stage.

This lack of sonic punch made it difficult for the crowd to fully immerse themselves in the performance. More shuffling than outright rocking.

The show should have been at The Powerstation, just like their last visit to New Zealand in 2017, where they played to a packed house of over 900 fans. To now be performing in front of just over 300 felt like a letdown, a stark contrast to the electric atmosphere of their previous appearance.

Still, moments of magic emerged. AM Radio saw the audience finally break into full-throated singalongs, uniting the room.

Between songs, Alexakis quipped, you don’t wanna hear songs about castles from Iron Maiden, before teasing a Led Zeppelin riff. He then revealed he had contracted strep throat on the flight over, an admission that perhaps explained his vocal struggles.

Earlier in the night, I’d chatted with a group of six Everclear first-timers, all buzzing with excitement. When they asked if this was my first show, they were stunned to learn it was my 24th time seeing them. No, I’m not a super fan, just their tour promoter for years across New Zealand, Australia, and the UK.

A special moment arrived when Alexakis casually dropped a bombshell. We’re gonna make a new album, you’re the first to know, well, the first in Auckland. It was an offhand remark, but for longtime fans, a thrilling one.

Their last two studio albums both cracked the Top 10 in New Zealand. Black Is the New Black, released in 2015, peaked at number 9, while 2012’s Invisible Stars climbed to number 5, matching their chart-topping success from their Capitol Records heyday in 1997 with So Much for the Afterglow.

Between songs, Alexakis kept storytelling to a minimum due to vocal limitations, bassist Freddy Herrera more than made up for it.

In a rare shift, he took on much of the between-song banter, proving himself a charismatic and engaging presence. Warm, quick-witted, and effortlessly entertaining, he kept the audience locked in, ensuring that the show’s momentum never wavered.

A late-set jam on Summerland seemed impromptu, filling time rather than fuelling momentum. But for the hardcore fans it was a rare treat.

The night’s highlight, of course, came with the anthemic Santa Monica.

As soon as Alexakis hit that iconic opening riff, the venue erupted. Voices old and young screamed every word, arms were thrown around shoulders, and for a few minutes, it was 1995 all over again. The song’s sun-drenched melancholy and defiant optimism still hit like a gut punch, proving why it remains one of the defining tracks of the alternative Rock era.

But perhaps the most powerful thing about Everclear in 2025 isn’t just the music, it’s the sheer force of will that keeps them moving. In an era where so many bands fade into the ether, here’s one still fighting, still delivering, still proving that Rock’n’roll isn’t just about youth. It’s about endurance.

And if that’s not the spirit of Rock music, what is?

The show had its highs and lows, but Everclear remains a band with a devoted following. For one night in Auckland, their presence alone was enough to make it a night to remember.

Paul Marshall