If you haven’t come across the acclaimed Kiwi duo yet, Foley’s latest EP, Like An Actress offers the perfect intro to their signature sound of ‘80s synthy, feel-good indie pop.
Hailing from Auckland but now based in Sydney, the two-piece comprises vocalists, songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Ash Wallace and Gabe Everett.
Already, they have built a strong following on home turf, with over 108k monthly listeners on Spotify, a billboard spot in Times Square as part of Spotify’s EQUAL campaign, a sell-out showcase tour in LA and NY and performing shows with the likes of BENEE, Remi Wolf, and Tove Lo.
The band’s latest release comes a year since their second album That’s Life, Baby! which received widespread acclaim and has since been dubbed one of the best New Zealand releases of the decade so far.
Inspired by ‘90s and ‘00s romcoms and themes of love, loss, identity, and the complexity of relationships, the five-track EP also features singles Honey (#1 position on the Hot 20 Aotearoa Singles charts, #1 Most Added Song on NZ radio in November), Suckerpunch, and Cinematic.
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The latter was Foley’s last single and sets the tone for the rest of the record, which is a ‘when you’re driving in the car, with your hand out of the window and the is sun shining’ type of vibe, according to Everett.
The song has that nostalgic feel of a coming-of-age movie soundtrack (with a music video to match) which alludes to the real-life inspiration for the song, that is, falling in love in that hilarious rom-com kind of way, like in Bend It Like Beckham or Ten Things I Hate About You.
“It’s genuinely how I met my fiancé,” reveals Wallace. “It really did happen that way. It was bananas.
“We literally broke into a stadium the night we met. I’m not going to say which one and get in trouble but in that moment it was romantic but ridiculous. It was a Casablanca level of theatric. Like, life is like a movie right now.
“With the two of us in the band, through the history of Foley, through all our projects, it’s been one of us falling in love, while another is breaking up,” she adds. “This time, we are both in solid and happy relationships so it’s a bit of a new perspective for listeners.
“There are lots of things that have worked out well for us but we have also suffered loss and hardship. You can hear it in the catalogue. We’re having this semi-triumphant moment now but we’ve had our cynical times too.”
As Everett explains, the latest single release, Going Easy, perhaps reflects some of that reality.
“This is about our experiences,” he offers. “It’s a curveball to that ‘hand out of the window of a car, very chill and in some parts a big pop song. Thematically, it speaks to a relationship being too intense and trying to figure out what your line is.”
While their 2025 album was made on Waiheke Island while this time around, recording for the current EP was split across both Aotearoa and Australia.
“It’s been very full in the last year, with lots of inspiration and fun, new stuff to draw from,” Everett notes.
“The environment we recorded in has shaped the EP. We leant into that acoustic, organic, natural sound but it’s still got that Foley ‘pushing the pop sound’ envelope.”
“A lot of the songs were written with live piano, acoustic guitar and live drums which is a real change up for us,” he adds. “It really unlocked a new energy in the studio and the songs have a joy in them that I think you can really hear.”
Wallace met their longtime collaborator, producer Josh Naley, when they were both studying at university. Naley, who has worked with artists Navvy and Paige also creates his own music under the moniker Wells.
“Over time Josh has become part of Foley’s wider family,” Wallace explains. “For this EP, he was the cornerstone and provided that solid foundation as someone we trusted to keep us grounded in that Foley sound.”
After relocating to Sydney over a year and a half ago, the band has since gained a 'Best Group nomination at the 2025 Aotearoa Music Awards and also toured internationally in South Korea.
“It’s been a big year where we released an album at the start and by the end we had recorded out EP and were releasing songs for it,” Wallace continues. “It’s crazy that all happened in just twelve months.
“The South Korea tour was our first time playing to a non-native English-speaking audience. It felt like such an insane thing but our music was really connecting with people there. It was really incredible.”
It’s a long-established tradition for Kiwi music artists to head across the pond to Sydney and Wallace admits there were both ups and downs to that experience.
“Life is pretty scary for a bit as you’re figuring out where you fit in. We were really lucky as we had such a strong community among Aotearoa artists and creatives.
“Starting again from scratch is a pretty daunting process,” she continues. “Overall, it’s meant we’ve leaned on each other in our friendship.
“As a creative, you crave new ideas and perspectives. I found myself not being stretched in ways I wanted to be. Coming to Australia has been a natural version of expanding the universe around me.”
Everett adds how that has developed into the joys of being in a new location for them both.
“We were really excited to go, to experiment and see if we fit in and we’ve been finding artists similar to the type of pop we make,” he says. “It’s been really amazing here.”
“The Sydney music scene has been very welcoming with inviting circles who have been really generous with their time. We’re part of the gang now, this sort of genre of music in Australia that is dynamic and very interesting, so being part of that is great.
“The pop community here is really tied together by session players and the whole crew,” observes Wallace.
“There is a wider breadth of people working on projects, who move across the pop and indie scene as it ties everyone together, which helps influence it and provide that fluidity.”
It’s that kind of creation and movement that reflects how the band works and has creatively developed over time.
“We’ve really enjoyed writing as a band on this latest EP. Having organic instruments and recording it all at once. It’s been that feeling of the early days of making music, jamming with your band in high school. The process recently has felt really good.
“In our friendship we’ve talked about finding more joy, to relish good moments, as it’s easy to feel dark at the moment for valid reasons. So, in this next chapter, we’re determined to try and spread more joy and community, to feel part of something positive.”
Foley’s Like An Actress is out now.
This piece of content has been assisted by the Australian Government through Music Australia and Creative Australia, its arts funding and advisory body
