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Gareth Thomas (he/him) is an esteemed musician and songwriter based in Te Henga (Bethells Beach, Auckland). Best known for his work writing, producing and performing in Goodshirt, Fazerdaze and his run of solo albums (2015’s Lady Alien, 2016’s Fizzy Milk), Thomas has provided Aotearoa with anthems that are woven into our nation’s cultural fabric. Applauded for being a master architect of indie pop simplicity, Gareth has collaborated with Bic Runga, Buzz Moller (Voom), Goldenhorse and Dave Yetton (Jean-Paul Sartre Experience, The Stereo Bus) as well as performing alongside The Flaming Lips, The Dandy Warhols and Sir Dave Dobbyn.

After a decade Gareth Thomas has returned to release ‘LET IT!’, the jubilant first single from his long awaited third solo album Bits (due for release in 2026). ‘LET IT!’ is accompanied by a dot matrix, brick game inspired music video (made with assistance from NZ On Air Music) that reminds the viewer there is more to life than the 9 to 5.

Catch Gareth perform LET IT! and songs from his legendary back catalogue in April when he performs in Oamaru (The Grain Store – April 17), Akaroa (Barry’s Bay House, April 18), Christchurch (The Shelter, April 19) and Auckland (Public Bar, April 30). Click here for ticketing information.

LET IT! sees Gareth Thomas return to his roots, experimenting with synths and drum machines in his spare time after work. Inspired by the melodic bass lines and LinnDrum sounds of Lou Reed’s 80s output, Thomas fired up a cheap Volca Sample drum machine and Moog synthesizer to create the track.

“LET IT! is a bedroom recording and it marks a return to how I wrote and recorded with Goodshirt,” shares Gareth. “The first album I ever bought with my own money was Lou Reed’s New Sensations and I wanted to explore a similar palette he was using. I was also enjoying the electronic sounds of Gorillaz, Sisters Underground and SILICON.”

‘LET IT!’ is an anthem about chucking it all in and walking away from your 9 to 5. “I wanted to write an anthem about quitting your day job” admits Gareth. “‘Your boss is a twit when he’s not being an idiot and he’s like that 5 days a week,’ was the first line I came up with after feeling pretty fed up at work. It was that line that kicked it all off.”

“LET IT! suggests ‘why don’t you let it all come undone, and see what you may find,’ and that’s basically what I’ve done over the last four years. I moved to the West Coast and reduced my hours, it’s been a really good move!”

‘LET IT!’ is accompanied by an animated music video made by Thomas, Sith Douang Kham Chanh and Thievery Studio (with assistance from NZ On Air Music) and harks back to the 2D brick game consoles (that were commonplace in the 90s) before exploding into a euphoric 3D landscape. “I wanted to make an animated video honouring the LCD pocket arcade games of my childhood. So I started by making a heap of animated LCD styled gifs in Photoshop – then my friend Sith Douang stitched them all together with his After Effects magic. The result is an imaginary LCD pocket arcade game where a Mario type character breaks free from his workplace.”

Reflecting on ‘LET IT!’ Gareth jokes “I absolutely love the track, though I’m a little concerned that I might offend the wrong boss! (Let’s just say the lyrics were written a long time before the song was recorded. It’s heaps of fun to play live – there are lots of sing along bits for the audience to get involved.”

Catch Gareth performing ‘LET IT!’ and songs from his legendary back catalogue in April when he performs in Oamaru (The Grain Store – April 17), Akaroa (Barry’s Bay House, April 18), Christchurch (The Shelter, April 19) and Auckland (Public Bar, April 30). Ticketing information can be found at gareththomastunes.com.

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