Things are going well for mellow indie rockers NO CIGAR, both at home and abroad. After quickly selling out tickets to their first UK show in London, they upgraded to Oslo Hackney; in less than an hour, they also sold out the much bigger venue.
In New Zealand, their debut album, Bienvenido, soared up the NZ Albums Chart to number two last week following the album’s vinyl release. Add in a nomination at the second annual Rolling Stone Aotearoa Awards, and it’s been a packed few weeks for NO CIGAR.
At the beginning of August, they also released their first single of 2023, “Make It Better”, a song that sounded easygoing on the surface but thoughtfully considered the fine line between love and fear in the lyrics.
“The song is about entering into a relationship with the fear you’re not going to be good for them, and describes the balance between the love and that fear,” the band explained at the time. “Sometimes we think we’re doing the right thing for the right reasons, only to find we’re doing more harm than good.”
The music video for “Make It Better”, premiering on Rolling Stone AU/NZ today, captures a young couple trying to make it through the anxiety and fear that comes with finding a partner.
You can watch the poignant clip, which is directed by James Moore, below.
Last month, NO CIGAR were revealed as one of the nominees for Best New Artist at the upcoming 2023 Panhead Rolling Stone Aotearoa Awards. The invite-only event, which has Panhead returning as the headline sponsor, will be a night of live music, celebrating the best in Kiwi music, taking place at St Matthew-in-the-City in Auckland on September 20th.
NO CIGAR will face strong competition from singer-songwriter Georgia Lines, rising pop star Luca George and more in the Best New Artist category. Following the Awards, they’ll head to the Northern Hemisphere for the aforementioned London show (more information here).
NO CIGAR’s “Make It Better” is out now.
