Ōtepoti art-rockers IVY continue their winning streak with today’s release of their raw and haunting new single, ‘Loon’, which serves as a ‘love-hate’ letter to their hometown.
Listen to ‘Loon’ HERE
The compelling quintet have quickly become one of Dunedin’s stand-out acts with their dark, layered sound, emotional intensity, soaring choruses and experimental syncopation. And ‘Loon’ is no exception.
‘Loon’ represents the conflicting emotions of loving the place you are from, and yet still feeling isolated and trapped by it. The sense of ‘push and pull’ is captured by a powerful mix of distorted guitars, dreamy choruses and vulnerable verses.
“‘Loon’ reflects the tension between the comfort of familiar surroundings and the urge for something new. It’s a sense of sadness and frustration, mixed with restlessness and anger,” says the band, which is made up of Jesse Hanan (vocals, rhythm guitar), James Axton (lead guitar), Connor Cooper (bass), Ocean Temple Wilson (drums) and Louis Stevenson (violin).
“We all grew up in Dunedin and together, so we’ve had similar struggles. From sport to school and then through music. We have spent our time with each other enough to know our respective joys and struggles. There’s kind of a feeling like we’re all in this together, despite what we have to face - the adversity is communal.”
‘Loon’ is IVY’s first release of 2025, following last year’s ‘The Trees’ and ‘Real Love’. The new song makes way for some exciting news from the band, which fans can expect to hear in the coming weeks.