A-Ha Announce New Zealand Shows With Rick Astley + The Beths

Auckland guitar-pop champs The Beths are looking forward to getting thoroughly Rick-rolled this summer, as they'll be performing alongside perennial UK hitmaker Rick Astley in support of 80s pop titans a-ha in March 2020. All three hook-packed acts are teaming up for an all-age event at A Day On The Green at Auckland's Villa Maria Winery, and a-ha and Astley will co-headline an in-door show at Christchurch's Horncastle Arena. Formed in Oslo in the early 80s, a-ha are touring in celebration of the 35th anniversary of their debut album Hunting High And Low which they'll be playing in full for the occasion – featuring such timeless classics as 'Take On Me', 'The Sun Always Shines On TV' and the soaring title track. The Beths are returning home from their global travels this November to play a special run of summer headline shows, you can also catch them supporting a-ha with Rick Astley in Auckland next year...

a-ha + Rick Astley  
Thursday 5 March - Horncastle Arena, Christchurch (all ages)
Saturday 7 March - A Day On The Green, Villa Maria Winery, Auckland (all ages) w/ The Beths
Pre-sales available from 1.00pm, Monday 22nd July

Here's a-ha's iconic video for their 1995 hit 'Take On Me' from Hunting High And Low...

Watch the clip for Rick Astley's ubiquitous classic 'Never Gonna Give You Up'...

Check out the summery video for The Beths' 'Happy Unhappy' from Future Me Hates Me...

Press release:

Frontier Touring and Roundhouse Entertainment are excited to announce pop icons a-ha will tour New Zealand next March. This is the band’s first ever visit to the country and will also mark the return of a day on the green to New Zealand. They’ll be joined by very special guest Rick Astley at both New Zealand shows. New Zealand’s own guitar pop heroes The Beths will also join the lineup in Auckland

Since January 2008 a day on the green has presented concerts in New Zealand by Crowded House, Joe Cocker, Simply Red, The B-52s, The Proclaimers, John Mellencamp, Sheryl Crow, Diana Krall and Tom Jones, establishing itself as a major concert brand across the country. Since launching in Australia in 2001, a day on the green has become one of Australia’s most popular and premier outdoor concert events. After 470 shows and more than 3.5 million happy patrons, the a day on the green experience of good food, fine wine and great music in magnificent locations remains unrivalled.

Now a day on the green is excited to present a-ha! The Norwegian trio who dominated pop charts worldwide during the ’80s, are celebrating the 35th anniversary of their hugely influential debut album Hunting High And Low and will be performing the album in full as well as other favourites from across their career. Selling more than 11 million copies worldwide, it includes the unforgettable 'Take On Me' which peaked at number seven on the New Zealand charts – remaining in the chart for 18 weeks – as well as follow-up hits 'The Sun Always Shines On TV', 'Train Of Thought' and the title track 'Hunting High And Low'

a-ha – singer Morten Harket, keyboardist Mags Furuholmen and guitarist Paul Waaktaar-Savoy – have sold more than 55 million albums and remain one of the UK and Europe's most loved pop bands, regularly playing stadiums and festivals. However, they have not ventured to Australian shores since 1986 and not surprisingly they are also excited about making their long-awaited debut in New Zealand

“We have so many great memories of our Australian tour of 1986 and look forward to making new ones. And we can’t wait to play in New Zealand for the first time – we’ll be comparing your fjords with our Norwegian ones!” - Paul Waaktaar-Savoy

Joining a-ha to make this one poptastic event not to be missed is another superstar who dominated the ’80s, Rick Astley – also making his debut in New Zealand. With a treasure trove laden with shimmering pop hits, a-ha and Rick Astley are set to thrill fans with shows in Christchurch at Horncastle Arena on Thursday March 5 and a day on the green on Saturday March 7 at Villa Maria, Auckland.

a-ha have also scored global hits with the James Bond theme 'The Living Daylights' as well as 'Cry Wolf', 'I've Been Losing You 'and the 2005 Max Martin-collaboration 'Analogue', while their most recent release was an MTV Unplugged collection in 2017 featuring collaborations with Echo & The Bunnymen’s Ian McCulloch and Alison Moyet. NME recently declared Hunting High And Low as “one of the albums that have stood the test of time and still sounds great today” ‘Joyful comeback! When a-ha roll out their whoppers the atmosphere goes through the roof.’ - The Guardian

'The spine-tingling moment when we hear Morten's haunting high notes… ‘Hunting High And Low’ takes this surreal atmosphere up a notch and, as the audience sing along, it's an almost spiritual experience.’ - Manchester Evening News

‘Screams of instant recognition greeted the insistent drumming and hard-to-resist keyboards of ‘Take On Me’. With Harket hitting that high note like it’s 1985, it was worth the wait.’ - Jerusalem Post

‘[Hunting High And Low is] one of the albums that have stood the test of time and still sounds great today.’ - NME Still so unique decades on, the music video for a-ha’s ‘Take On Me’ won six MTV Awards, seven Billboard Music Awards, was nominated for Grammy and American Music Awards and is approaching one billion views on YouTube. The song has been covered by artists as diverse as Metallica, Madonna, Tori Amos, and most recently, Weezer, Jimmy Fallon and The Roots on The Tonight Show.

High-profile admirers like U2’s Adam Clayton, Morrissey, Robbie Williams, Pet Shop Boys and Kanye West have all professed themselves a-ha fans, as has Coldplay’s Chris Martin who named them as one of his early inspirations and “favourite bands of all time”. During 2008’s Viva La Vida tour, Coldplay covered ‘Hunting High And Low’ and were joined by Mags at the Oslo concert, with Chris introducing him as “the best keyboard player in the world”.

Rick Astley is also enjoying a major career resurgence. The British star has sold more than 40 million albums fuelled by hits like 'Never Gonna Give You Up', 'Whenever You Need Somebody', 'Together Forever', 'When I Fall in Love', 'She Wants To Dance With Me' and 'Cry For Help'.

In 2016 Rick’s album 50 was released to mark his milestone birthday and became his first UK number one since his 1987 debut album. The platinum selling album has to date sold more than 350,000 copies. Last year he followed it up with another wholly self-penned, performed and produced album, Beautiful Life, and continued his heavy touring schedule and has just completed a 38-date UK arena and stadium tour as special guest for Take That.In 2007, Rick became an internet phenomenon becoming the subject of a viral meme known as Rick-rolling, with ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ garnering millions of hits on YouTube, introducing him to a whole new audience.

Purveyors of high-energy guitar pop, New Zealand four-piece The Beths channel their friendship into high-energy guitar pop with a smart lyrical bite. 2018 was their breakout year, beginning with signing to Carpark Records and Dew Process, before releasing the internationally acclaimed debut album Future Me Hates Me, which was heralded as one of the stand-out music releases of that year. The band have toured relentlessly, getting audiences hooked on their ebullient sound. After selling out shows last year across Australia, New Zealand, North America, UK and Europe, the band are proving to be one of the most in-demand live acts on the planet.

With a career spanning four decades, secure your spot now for a-ha’s first ever New Zealand tour. Together with very special guest Rick Astley, they have created the pop soundtrack to countless lives, and this promises to be a highlight on the summer concert calendar.