Blacklistt is a rock band formed by four of the original members of the New Zealand-based group Blindspott, Damian Alexander, Marcus Powell, Gareth Fleming and Karl Vilisini.
History
In 2010, four original members of the band Blindspott reformed the group with new drummer Tristan Reilly and appeared at the 2011 Homegrown Music Festival, but the band subsequently entered a legal battle with former drummer Shelton Woolright over the use of the name. Eventually, the band opted to tour and release music under the name Blacklistt. The band performed tracks from the two Blindspott albums, as well as debuting single From the Blind Spot which had been receiving generous airplay at the time at the Homegrown festival. Alexander described the long legal battle as unfortunate, saying, "...it sucks actually. We're doing this for the love of the music and for our fans. I've had fans stop me in the street and ask when we'll start making music again." In the meantime, fans could download the group's single From the Blind Spot for free through a Vodafone promotion. The band eventually reached a stalemate with the legal process and decided to continue as Blacklistt. In late 2011 the band was announced as a headliner for the 2012 Homegrown festival, alongside other big-name New Zealand artists Shihad, P-Money and The Feelers. Blacklistt won the award for 'Best Rock Album' at The Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards in 2014.
Releases
Prior to the 18 February performance at Homegrown, the band premiered their music video for From the Blind Spot online and on music video channels. The song was released on iTunes on 22 February as part of the Songs For the South charity compilation album. On 1 May 2012, the band's second single, Worth Fighting For was released. The band went on their first national tour in May and June 2012. The band then played the Waihi BeachSummer Festival on 22 December. On 9 April 2013, the band released a new single and video. Titled Burn, the track debuted on the NZ singles chart in the number 7 position. The band released a new single titled Home on 9 August, which debuted at number 13 on the NZ singles chart. The band will release their debut, self-titled album on 13 September. The band will embark on a national tour of New Zealand in September/October to promote the release. Tristan Rielly stepped down from permanent drum duties in the band in 2013, however he remains with the group as a touring/session member and appears on all tracks on the album bar Home.
