A psychedelic Afro-Soul explosion in 12 parts, The Hot Grits cover the stylistic ground between deep Funk, Soul and Afrobeat. From Meters-style struts superfast deep funk assaults to churning Afrobeat Soul. This music is designed to hit you in your soul, your face and your dancing equipment. My Rites is the third single (and video) from The Hot Grits’ debut album ‘It’s Too Drunk To Be This Early‘.

The Hot Grits is putting the party back into political party with their new video for the bFM chart topping single ‘The Ballad of Joe Stalin’ from their debut album ‘It’s too Drunk to be this Early’. The video takes the form of a party political broadcast and the Grits look certain to breathe a bit of fresh air into what has so far been a rather dull election campaign.

While their policies are yet to be announced, an idea of their political agenda can be gleaned from the video as the ministerial portfolios of the band members are revealed. Just exactly what the Minister of Kittens is responsible for is anyone’s guess, let alone the Minister of Spring Break but it can be guaranteed if the Hot Grits come into power there will definitely be changes in how this country is run.

The video was shot on a Sunday afternoon outside the Beehive after a highly successful gig/political rally at the San Francisco Bathhouse in Wellington the night before. After being turned down twice for permission to film the video on parliament grounds the Grits tried to set up there anyway but were repelled by several rather large security guards, eventually filming just outside parliament under the watchful eye of security personnel and police. It would seem that the government is justifiably afraid of this popular new party and will do anything they can to stop them.

The music video for the Hot Grits song ‘Headlights’ won the Radio Active ‘Handle the Jandal’  award for best non-funded video recently in Wellington, despite holding the distinction of being the first video to be banned by TVNZ since 1987.

Radio Active 89FM’s Handle the Jandal is an annual competition for local Do-It-Yourself  music video. All videos must be completely self-funded and may only use New Zealand music. A record 122 entries were submitted for the awards this year, with fifteen being chosen for the finals.

The video for ‘Headlights’ was produced by The Downlow Concept and features children drinking milk and going out on the town, behaviour which TVNZ apparently took issue with. Unsurprisingly, the clip also won an award for Best Exploitative tactics.

‘Headlights’ is the Auckland based 11 piece afro-soul band’s first ever video. The song features on their debut album ‘It’s too Drunk to be this Early’, released on Monkey Records.

The Hot Grits have had their first music video release banned by TVNZ. The video was produced by the award winning local production house The Downlow Concept, and features a cast of four year old kids simulating an adult night out on the town. The kids are shown to be drinking milk, and dancing at both a house party and a nightclub where the intention was to demonstrate the child-like greed with which adults conduct themselves whilst on the road to excess. The TVNZ censor is reported to have said that it was inappropriate to show children drinking from a funnel and from shots, and that the general behavior of the children was unacceptable.

This is the first New Zealand made music video to be banned by TVNZ since the Skeptics 1988 clip ‘A.F.F.C.O’ which filmed the journey of sheep through an abattoir in graphic detail. It is interesting to note that TVNZ finds images of children drinking milk as offensive as watching sheep get their throats slit.

Headlights is the second single to be released from The Hot Grits debut album ‘It’s too Drunk to be this Early‘.

What do you get if you mix a pound of Fela Kuti’s Afrika 70, two cupfuls of The Meters, 250g of thinly sliced early James Brown and a level dessert spoon of psychedelic rock? -you get the heaving, convulsing powerhouse of soul music that is The Hot Grits.

For over five years, The Hot Grits have been electrifying club dancefloors and festival stages around New Zealand with an eclectic, take no prisoners approach to soul and afrobeat music. When THG hit their stride, no-one in the room is immune from the power and sheer soulfulness of their groove, and band and audience become one in a giant, convulsing testament to the power of good music. The overall Hot Grits sound is funky and deep, but always powerful and never too smooth.

The Hot Grits have steadily evolved into a powerhouse live outfit, capable of packing out venues and creating havoc on any dancefloor. Highlights have included playing to several thousand people at 95bfm’s Summer Series concerts in Albert Park, bringing the house down at the Wintergarden theatre during AK03 and AK05, and rocking festivals from Grey Lynn and Waiheke to the Coromandel and Nelson. Along the way, THG have shared bills with a diverse array of acts, including Pluto, Goldenhorse, City Newton Bombers, North Shore Pony Club, One Million Dollars, King Kapisi, Greg Johnson, The Sneaks and The Phoenix Foundation.

The current Hot Grits lineup consists of no fewer than eleven very talented musicians from such varied backgrounds as jazz, hardcore, metal, reggae, hip hop and big band. Alistair Deverick (The Shades) holds the whole operation together with his supple breakbeat drumming, abetted by the fat, soulful bass of Marlon Lobo. Nick Wood (Payola) and Trygve Wakenshaw round out the rhythm section on percussion, giving a thick rhythmic drive to the band’s powerhouse engine room. Martin Sutcliffe (The Defendants) keeps everything tight on guitar, and Nisha Madham’s keys bed everything down in a warm hammond glow. Shaun O’Kane adds fluid saxophone lines to the power trombone of James A’Hara and the deep baritone sax of Ben McNichol. Atop this veritable mountain of sound rides the Hot Grits’ two vocalists, Barnie Duncan and Elitia Clark. Barnie is an incendiary performer who can push a crowd (and himself) to the absolute limits of funkiness and Elitia provides both sensual soul and sheer power.

Lineup:
Barnie Duncan: Lead Vocals
Elitia Clark: Lead Vocals
Jim A’Hara: Trombone
Shaun O’Kane: Tenor Saxophone
Ben McNicoll: Baritone Saxophone
Nisha Madham: Keyboards
Martin Sutcliffe: Guitar
Marlon Lobo: Bass
Alistair Deverick : Drums
Nick Wood: Percussion
Trygve Wakenshaw: Percussion

Music Videos
Headlights
The Ballad of Joe Stalin

Interviews
The Hot Grits Interview on George FM 

 Live to Air
The Hot Grits live in the Red Bull Studio

Reviews

“New Zealand’s previous excursions into the funk-soul collective sound tend to result in something half-pie (One Million Dollars) or, pardon the pun, half-baked (Fat Freddy’s Drop). Where One Million Dollars was too poppy and soppy, Fat Freddy’s is too sedated — so let’s have something in the middle. Something that pushes the afro-beat variety of funk-soul; something that has grunt, but also has soul — and that something is The Hot Grits. It’s Too Drunk to Be this Early is a fantastic (and longawaited, for those following the band) slice of Fela Kuti-derived funk. The sharp horn blasts sit inside a bed of percussion (two conga players and a drummer) and Marlon Lobo’s fat, heavy bass guides the choppy guitars and keyboards on this good ship funk. With 11 members, The Hot Grits trade vocal styles, shifting between Barnie Duncan’s good-time party vibe and the after-hours soul of Elitia Clarke. And though Kuti and James Brown would seem the obvious references, you can also hear the subverted sound of early Talking Heads and the Brian Eno collaborations. “
★★★★★    Simon Sweetman, The Dominion Post

“You could be forgiven for looking a little vague when I mention The Hot Grits to you. Well it’s up to you to remedy this as soon as you can – get the album, catch them live, just do something dammit. This eleven piece (that’s right…. eleven) from Auckland have an ‘Afro Soul’ sound that is equal parts funk, soul and power. You’d expect the power when you have such a large band to call on and this is definitely to the fore on the first two singles, ‘The Ballad of Joe Stalin’ and ‘Headlights’. These tracks are notable for their driving rhythms, horns and fantastic vocals from Barnie Duncan, all layered over a psychedelic base. But just when you think they might be a one trick pony, the album is rounded off with Elitia Clark stealing the show on ‘Deep Threat’, this track is pure soul from start to finish. And not content to finish things off there, the band strip it back even further with ‘Syntax’, a smooth groove which provides the necessary chill-out before you hit play all over again. The Hot Grits have just dropped an absolutely stonking album, let’s just hope the world finds out about it.”
Bullet Mag

“With a line-up as long as your grandma’s Louise cake recipe, The Hot Grits amusingly-titled new album certainly is layered. Boasting no less than 11 accomplished musicians (one wonders how they all cram onto some of the stages they play on) the Grits’ James Brown-influenced fiunk and soul is infectious. Vocalists Barnie Duncan and Elitia Clark do an admirable job atop this pyramid of musicians, with the reliable drumming of Alistair Deverick providing the backbone for the guitar, bass, keys, trombone and sax ensemble. The Ballad of Joe Stalin, which has received a lot of play on bNet stations around the country, is a standout track as is Headlights with its punchy horns and suitably gritty vocals. Haven’t been out and boogied for a while? Then head out and catch the Hot Grits next time they’re in town, and pick up a copy of this excellent album while you’re at it.”
Shane Cowlishaw, NZ Musician

“The Hot Grits are a band you’d expect to see fronting a big summer festival. Their music is loud, it’s ‘funky’ and it demands that you forget your uber cool and get up and groove.”
Lucy von Sturmer, Salient

For over five years, The Hot Grits have been electrifying club dancefloors and festival stages around New Zealand with an eclectic, take no prisoners approach to soul and afrobeat music. When THG hit their stride, no-one in the room is immune from the power and sheer soulfulness of their groove, and band and audience become one in a giant, convulsing testament to the power of good music. The overall Hot Grits sound is funky and deep, but always powerful and never too smooth.

The Hot Grits have steadily evolved into a powerhouse live outfit, capable of packing out venues and creating havoc on any dancefloor. Highlights have included playing to several thousand people at 95bfm’s Summer Series concerts in Albert Park, bringing the house down at the Wintergarden theatre during AK03 and AK05, and rocking festivals from Grey Lynn and Waiheke to the Coromandel and Nelson. Along the way, THG have shared bills with a diverse array of acts, including Pluto, Goldenhorse, City Newton Bombers, North Shore Pony Club, One Million Dollars, King Kapisi, Greg Johnson, The Sneaks and The Phoenix Foundation.

Following successful single releases to student radio, October 2006 saw THG release the Championship Sounds EP. This release spawned several high-rotation singles on student radio nationwide, charted on George FM and contributed to THG placing among the top 50 most played acts on Wellington’s Radio Active for 2006.

The current Hot Grits lineup consists of no fewer than eleven very talented musicians from such varied backgrounds as jazz, hardcore, metal, reggae, hip hop and big band. Alistair Deverick (The Shades) holds the whole operation together with his supple breakbeat drumming, abetted by the fat, soulful bass of Marlon Lobo. Nick Wood (Payola)and Trygve Wakenshaw round out the rhythm section on percussion, giving a thick rhythmic drive to the band’s powerhouse engine room. Martin Sutcliffe (The Defendants) keeps everything tight  on guitar, and Nisha Madham’s keys bed everything down in a warm hammond glow. Shaun O’Kane adds fluid saxophone lines to the power trombone of James A’Hara and the deep baritone sax of Ben McNichol. Atop this veritable mountain of sound rides the Hot Grits’ two vocalists, Barnie Duncan and Elitia Clark. Barnie is an incendiary performer who can push a crowd (and himself) to the absolute limits of funkiness and Elitia provides both sensual soul and sheer power.

Future plans for The Hot Grits include the release of the full-length album ‘It’s Too Drunk To Be This Early’ on monkey Records for the first quarter of 2008, along with radio singles, videos and nationwide touring. As always, the aim remains simple: to bring great soul and afrobeat music to the people.

Lineup:
Barnie Duncan: Lead Vocals
Elitia Clark: Lead Vocals
Jim A’Hara: Trombone
Shaun O’Kane: Tenor Saxophone
Ben McNicoll: Baritone Saxophone
Nisha Madham: Keyboards
Martin Sutcliffe: Guitar
Marlon Lobo: Bass
Alistair Deverick : Drums
Nick Wood: Percussion
Trygve Wakenshaw: Percussion