The Veils bring their Fragile World to Auckland

The Veils ‘Fragile World’ tour made a stop at Auckland’s Powerstation last night, as part of the Strange Universe concert series, joined by Jazmine Mary. John Hastings went along to capture the night in words, while Mitchell Miller provided some amazing photos.

June 28, 2026

There’s something slightly otherworldly about a Veils show, a sense that Finn Andrews isn’t just performing songs so much as summoning them. One of music’s great melancholic storytellers, Andrews and band part way through a ten-gig tour home to launch the new deeply human LP Fragile World a deeply human LP.

Opening the night was Jazmine Mary, just back from and eight date Australian Tour. Resplendent with full band she delivered a set that leaned into atmosphere. Their avant-garde folk unfolded slowly, favouring tone and texture over conventional structure. There was an expressivenessto the performance — part fragility, part intent — which created an immersive opening. Mainly drawing from last years, I Want To Rock And Roll, with opening Memphis, Felt Fantastic and Back of the Bar among the highlights. She finished with her latest single the up tempo Drunk at The Gym, leaving an audience well primed. (Joshua looked perfectly comfortable with the grand piano btw)

The Veils wasted no time establishing tone, launching into the set with a sense of intensity and passion. Finn Andrews entered relaxed and in full command. Alongside him, the band operated with precision and fluidity, allowing the songs to evolve and resolve.

The setlist naturally leaned into Fragile World while melding in songs from Asphodels, ..And out of the Void Came Love, Total Depravity, Time Stays We Go and Nux Vomica to create a flowing concert experience. Andrews remains one a compelling frontman There is nothing casual in his delivery — every gesture considered, every vocal pushed to its limit. As the set unfolded, the balance between new and older material subtly shifted. Older songs providing moments of recognition and connection, but the newer material never felt secondary. If anything, the songs from Fragile World landed with greater force live — more physical, more direct, and at times quietly confrontational.

Fragile World dominated the early stretch. it carried an immediacy that made it feel personal, the live setting amplifying their rawness and emotional weight. The audience were welcomed in with Aurora, built on piano and space then gradually expanding into something luminous followed by the shimmering gospel tones and heartworn refrain of High Hopes before Lungs shifted the energy into a song embodied with physical sensibility, the sequence completed by the sparce late night piano balladry of Are You Awake Yet? The impact of these four personal, deep and atmospheric songs drew the audience into the spellbinding brilliance of the latest LP.

Leaving the grand piano behind him and strapping on a guitar Andrews led us into an increasing hard rocking and band driven run with the fan favourite, Swimming With The Crocodiles, a psychedelic and disturbing Birds, raw deep cut Not Yet then followed by the build and release of Here Comes the Dead The beautiful reflective Dream of Life and The Ladder delivered deep sentiment mid set. New Day with its repetitive motif was followed the country leaning centrepiece of both the LP and the show tonight – the breathtaking My Foolish Heart.

The back end of the evening treated us to, the mesmerising narrative arc of No Limit of Stars slinky blues of Low Lays The Devil and rousingly anguished delivery of Jesus for The Jugular, giving the band some room to delve into the deeper corners. The encore of an acoustic led The Widening Dark and a stripped-down interpretation of the disquieting Axolotl left the audience holding on for more. It was a closing stretch that had resisted any sense of neat resolution. Instead, the set dissolved on its own terms — somewhere between catharsis and unease. It felt entirely fitting.

Fragile World is a LP that puts Andrew’s vocals and songwriting at the forefront in a way that feels open, direct and pure on stage .The Veils transform that into something powerful and immediate. During the set there were passages of restraint where the arrangements stripped back to their barest form, giving Andrews’ voice space to carry the full emotional load. Then, almost without warning, the band would pivot — building into dense, surging crescendos that filled the Powerstation with a sweeping, immersive intensity.

And that made for a compelling night.

Review by John Hastings

Photography by Mitchell Miller