“How Love Bends is for those who choose to dance in the shadows” - Beat Magazine
“For ‘How Love Bends’ Reb Fountain and her band have dreamed a musical landscape that is both familiar and new, and signposted with warnings as well as words of comfort; an album for our times”. - Nick Bollinger
‘“‘How Love Bends’ is a significant step forward in her discography in New Zealand and positioning her for a place on the international stage.” - 13th Floor
"Reb Fountain and the team have produced another beautifully understated gem of an album with How Love Bends. I love the exploration of new and unusual analog tones and sounds, all wrapped up in the usual excellent songs. At Flying Nun, we are all super proud and stoked to be teaming up with Reb for this new album.” – Ben Howe, Flying Nun
Celebrated Aotearoa singer-songwriter Reb Fountain today unveils her highly anticipated new album How Love Bends, available now on all streaming platforms, vinyl including special edition packages, and CD.
Produced by Dave Khan and Simon Gooding, How Love Bends showcases Reb’s poetic depth and signature sound. Joined by longtime bandmates Dave Khan (guitar/keys), Karin Canzek (bass), and Earl Robertson (drums), the album dives into the transformative nature of love in all its forms—its tenderness, its power, its chaos. Building on the success of IRIS (2021) and her Taite Music Prize-winning Flying Nun debut Reb Fountain, this latest offering is haunting and magnetic; a dynamic dreamscape traversing love’s endless complexities.
Reb’s surrealist storytelling harnesses the sage wisdom of the dream, guiding listeners through limitless explorations of love, life, and loss within a landscape entirely of her making. Her love is the stuff of chaos and oceans, vulnerability and revolution; stirring the depths of the human condition and dancing with the richness of who we really are.
How Love Bends is a positive record. For Reb, Love is the tether that binds us all; love is a choice, a perspective, love is liberation. As love bends, so too has Reb’s music effortlessly evolved. In How Love Bends, Reb further reveals the expanse of her artistry; her palette is rich, complex, brazen and unapologetic.
“The way in which I perceive the world and myself changes over time to the degree to which I am prepared to allow it to change. That’s so fucking liberating.” Reb
Alongside the album release, Reb shares her powerful new single “He Commands You to Jump into the Sea” – an evocative, hypnotic track that captivates from the very first note. He Commands You to Jump into the Sea is such an arresting testimony that listeners will remember where they were the first time they heard it. In the spoken word tradition of Jack Kerouac, Patti Smith, Leonard Cohen, Kae Tempest, and Sleaford Mods, Reb mesmerizes with words incarnate; seamlessly fusing her noir folk style with an infectious, beat-driven dirge. The track compels and awakens, inviting listeners into a journey that disrupts the familiar and embraces the surreal, much like her live performances that entice audiences into slow-burning, transformative narratives.
Enhancing the release is an outstanding music video directed by Lola Fountain-Best, fittingly it is the 20th music video Lola has directed for Reb. Shot at Connells Bay on Waiheke Island, the video poses the question; He commands you to jump into the sea; do you follow? The brooding groove of 'He Commands You To Jump into the Sea’ paces the journey for our protagonists heading the call. Weaving through iconic landscapes and surrounded by substantial artworks by some of Aotearoa New Zealand’s finest sculptors, Reb Fountain leads us on this path as a seeker; daring to uncover the lure of the almighty. Reb's art is an invitation to explore and unravel the stories that we tell ourselves with the prospect of liberation on the horizon. How Love Bends is a compass for recalibration, where changing change is possible should we will love to prevail.
To celebrate the release of How Love Bends, Reb Fountain and her full band will embark on a twelve-date nationwide tour this April and May 2025. Fans will get their first glimpse of How Love Bends live, experiencing the raw emotion and compelling storytelling that define her captivating performances. Known for her powerful presence and deeply moving shows, Reb brings an intensity that leaves a lasting impact. This tour is the perfect chance to see her magic up close. Tickets are selling fast, and shows are already close to selling out!
REB FOUNTAIN - How Love Bends Album Release Tour
With special guest Pete Moriarity
April-May 2025
Tickets on sale now
THU 10 APR
Totara Street | Tauranga
flicket.co.nz
FRI 11 APR
Dome Cinema | Gisborne
moshtix.co.nz
SAT 12 APR
MTG Century Theatre | Napier
moshtix.co.nz
THU 17 APR
Last Place | Hamilton
moshtix.co.nz
SAT 19 APR
Leigh Sawmill | Leigh
moshtix.co.nz
FRI 25 APR – NEW 5pm SHOW
Grainstore Gallery | Oamaru
moshtix.co.nz
FRI 25 APR
Grainstore Gallery | Oamaru
SOLD OUT
SAT 26 APR
Errick’s | Dunedin
moshtix.co.nz
SUN 27 APR – NEW 5pm SHOW
Sherwood | Queenstown
moshtix.co.nz
SUN 27 APR
Sherwood | Queenstown
moshtix.co.nz
THU 1 MAY
The Church | Christchurch
flicket.co.nz
FRI 2 MAY
Opera House | Wellington
ticketmaster.co.nz
SAT 3 MAY
Town Hall | Auckland
ticketmaster.co.nz