We are delighted to tell you that Del now has some of his very unique photographs available for sale (some as limited edition signed and numbered prints) via this website. Please click on the 'Photos' tab in the main site menu. 

Hot off the press!
Del’s 2022 calendar is now ready for shipping. Costing a very reasonable NZ$35 (plus P&P), this is a calendar which you’ll be delighted to look at for at least the next 12 months!

For more details click on the Photos tab on the main menu.

New Album - 'Changes Coming' OUT NOW!

The latest album from Del Thomas (released late 2017) is out now so do yourself a favour and get a copy as soon as you can cos it's a cracker!!

The band - Dougal Speir, Elliotte Fuimaono and Mo Phillips, supplemented by some wonderful vocals from Lynley Christoffersen and Jade Eru - have done an amazing job of turning Del's original rough demos into a stunning and varied album, with songs ranging from straightforward shuffling blues to Americana inspired material all the way to gospel anthems. 

His second album, 'Shifting Sands' was a bit rockier than the first, 'Driving Home Alone', and on 'Changes Coming' the sound is again a mix of heavier blues-rock (Close As You Were and Fault Line) but with several quieter acoustic songs balancing the sonic landscape.  

Del's songs always come from a mix of personal experience, observation of other people’s situations or ideas that might just come from an overheard comment in a conversation. In the case of Think of Yesterday, Del remembers standing waiting for a train to take him into work one morning. A lady walked past him and he caught the smell of the perfume she was wearing which, for some reason, reminded him of one of his first girlfriends when he was still at university. This was enough to bring the phrase 'think of yesterday' to his mind and, by the time he'd reached Wellington train station, he'd jotted down the lyrics to the song and had a melody in his head - which he then had to remember until he could pop out at lunchtime and find an acoustic guitar in one of the music stores in town! And so 'Think of Yesterday' was born and went on to be one of the more popular songs in Glass Onion's repertoire! 'Close As You Were' is a hard-hitting loud guitar and synth-driven song but, curiously, the lyrics were actually inspired by the birth of his son and how the emotional experience of becoming a father can be so different to that experienced by a mother. The juxtaposition of the lyrical content and musical approach takes this song so much further than you would ever expect of such a personal situation. It certainly isn't a typical baby lullaby!

Whatever the source of the initial idea for a song, all of Del's lyrics are always crafted in a way that most people can relate to and his way of creating catchy choruses and bluesy guitar hooks continues to be the main elements in his songwriting. 

Once again, Del and the band have succeeded in creating more cool radio-friendly songs with a touch of blues, country and Americana. Who wouldn't enjoy that mix??  

And, to prove the point, here's a link to an article in NZ Musician where Del gives some insight into where the inspiration for the songs on the album came from.

https://nzmusician.co.nz/features/del-thomas-theres-gonna-changes-comin/

And remember, 'Driving Home Alone' and 'Shifting Sands' are still available on Apple Music and Spotify.

Check back here regularily for updates on further gigs around the country.

*All live photos courtesy of Don Laing & Michelle McRae