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Emerging Aotearoa artist Nivaryn Dane strips it all back on The Rope, a raw, slow-burning alt-country ballad that leans into quiet storytelling, emotional weight and stillness.
Just 24, Dane carries an old-soul intensity that evokes the likes of Neil Young and Leonard Cohen, but with a distinctly local voice. The Rope is his latest offering, a track inspired by Marty Robbins’ classic They’re Hanging Me Tonight and shaped by a love of Hemingway, Cormac McCarthy, and the moral ambiguity of Clint Eastwood westerns.
There is nothing polished here and that is the point. Recorded at Wade River Studios by Visko Bryers and mixed by Reuben Rowentree, The Rope resists any urge to overproduce. Acoustic guitar, cracked vocals and empty space do the heavy lifting, letting the song breathe and the story land with quiet impact.
The result is stark, poetic and unflinching, a track that feels as much like a dusty short story as it does a piece of music. In a time where gloss often outweighs grit, Dane offers a welcome reminder that restraint can be just as powerful.
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