bReview: Home Brew

bReview: Home Brew
Sunday 31 May 2026 at the Auckland Town Hall
Photography by Nico Rose Penny
Written by Marlo Schorr-Kon

Kiwi hip-hop icons Home Brew delivered an unbelievably great show last Sunday. The band played to a sold-out crowd at the Auckland Town Hall as part of the Winter Concert Series, performing their classic 2008 EP, Last Week from front to back.

(Home Brew at the Auckland Town Hall / Photo: Nico Rose Penny)

(Home Brew at the Auckland Town Hall / Photo: Nico Rose Penny)

Upon arriving at the Auckland Town Hall, I had a good catch up with drummer Tom Broome, who was my drum teacher back in the day, before heading in to sit down. The first thing that stood out to me was the set design. The stage of the town hall had been made to look like the band's first rehearsal space. There were couches and carpets down, and a fridge full of beers. The band's name hung behind the stage, meticulously crafted out of egg cartons, and there were piles of egg cartons scattered around the stage.

(Home Brew at the Auckland Town Hall / Photo: Nico Rose Penny)

(Home Brew at the Auckland Town Hall / Photo: Nico Rose Penny)

The band took the stage and cranked into the first song, ‘Monday’, and the crowd went wild. Front man, Tom Scott, was full of energy and jumping around the stage, while Tom Broome held down a rock-solid beat on the drums, but not without the occasional tasteful, funky fill. Home Brew blasted through the Last Week EP front to back, before playing several fan faves, including ‘Plastic Magic’, ‘Alcoholic’ and ‘Bad Bad Whiskey’, the crowd screaming along to every word as if the songs were theirs.

The hot-boxed haze of smoke billowed up from the crowd, as people took tokes on their joints and boogied to their favorite Home Brew tunes. It was apparent, looking at the packed out crowd, that this was a night they would not soon forget.