Born in Hamilton, Monteith began playing music at 15, going on to feature prominently in the town's fertile late 80s and early 90s live scene, most notably in acts Joe 90 and Whisperscream.
Moving to Tairāwhiti at the turn of the millenium, Monteith later took the reins of Gisborne's character-filled music venue, Smash Palace, in 2015. Driven to turn the venue into a music community hub, Monteith's drive, ethics and sense of community touched many - regardless of whether the artists were local or passing through on tour.
“The thing about a place like Gisborne is that we have very little connection to the actual music industry because we’re just so isolated from it. We’re totally misunderstood and ignored really. For me personally it has been a highlight just being able to connect the local musos with the broader music industry. [...] One of the reasons I wanted to do that is there is just so much great music that’s been released over the years here in Gisborne that because of the disconnect with the industry never made it any further.”
Darryl Monteith (to Gareth Shute for AudioCulture)
Monteith on stage in Hamilton, c. 1990. Credit: Karen Ford for AudioCulture.
Smash Palace, Tairāwhiti. Credit: Rachel Reid for AudioCulture.
Always encouraging new musicians, Monteith's Smash Palace ran festivals (including ExNE – East by Northeast - a play on SXSW), supported local pub choirs, encouraged jam nights and never failed to inspire all artists who passed through while on tour.
"[T]he audience is always loaded with great musicians. What we’re finding is that there are these musical dynasties here – families who have multiple generations of musicians, so the latest crop are the great-grandkids of past musicians from the district.”
“When we took over Smash Palace, my mission was to develop it even more as a music venue than it already was. [...] You can really see the evolution of the bands getting better."
Monteith's legacy lives on via their unwavering and inspirational support of local music communities. Moe mai rā e Darryl.