• Howick and Pakuranga Times
Lunadon, who has changed his stage surname from Palmer since being based in the US, returns to New Zealand for the first time since he departed these shores following the retirement of The D4, one of this country’s finest rock bands of the past two decades.
The D4 were always Big Day Out favourites during their eight-year career that saw them sell 100,000 albums around the world and play all the popular northern hemisphere festivals, as well as those Downunder.
Lunadon flies in from New York City this week with his new band True Lovers, and plays two warm-up gigs before Friday’s Big Day Out – one at Newton’s King’s Arms on Thursday night’s Big Night In show bill. “I’m looking forward to playing back home and I’m not too concerned about what people say,” he says.
The first thing Lunadon mentions before talking about True Lovers to the Times, during a phone interview from New York, is his big news for ageing rockers – Lemmy Kilmister’s still got it.
“Motorhead? Yes, saw them recently. They’re still the loudest band,” says an impressed Lunadon, who’s used to high-decibel readings from his own groups.
True Lovers features another New York-based Kiwi, Ben Maitland formerly of Boxcar Guitar, who moved to the US about the same time as Lunadon did three years ago.
The rest of the five-piece is made up of Big Apple locals, one of whom has a New Zealand partner.
“You just have to get it in your head that you have to start again.”
True Lovers formed about 18 months ago and have already built up a good track record of gigs, which has seen them play with Aussie rockers Jet a few times in recent months.
The music has the same raw energy as The D4, says Lunadon, but with “more direction and maturity – it’s a groove guitar-based group playing sexually charged rock n’ roll”.
“Of course I want people to like it, but being in a band is just about pleasing yourself first of all.
“When you truly please yourself, then other people will see that and will get into it as well.
“I’d say come with no expectations, it’s always best.”
True Lovers are recording and their first album is due for release in March.
“I really believe it has its own sound and I’m really proud of it,” enthuses Lunadon. “It’s organic sounding and doesn’t sound like everything else out there.”
