Last week, Tracey Donaldson from The Sound Drive sat down to chat with Wendy James, the unapologetic frontwoman of Transvision Vamp, who helped lead the punk-pop group to stardom in the late '80s and throughout the '90s.
Now, three decades after the band's last New Zealand tour in 1991, they’re back and will be performing on Kiwi soil in 2026 - James says it feels like the perfect time. As she tells Tracey, “the timing is absolutely right for Transvision Vamp to return”.
With Australian dates already selling out and New Zealand pre-sales soaring, the band is reuniting with original guitarist Dave Parsons and a lineup of seasoned musicians.
In her talk with Tracey, Wendy shared her excitement about revisiting songs like ‘Sister Moon’, reflecting on the emotion of relearning the music and the thrill of returning to stages that once hosted some of the wildest crowds of her career.
Listen to the full chat below
The New Zealand crowds in particular seemed to be some of the rowdiest, with Wendy remembering, “the crowds were absolutely bonkers. We used to have to have police cordons, you know, we would make the news.”
Thinking back to the band’s heyday, she recalls everything from go-kart racing on her last NZ tour, to the mania of late-80s fandom before social media, and to seeing Kurt Cobain in a Transvision Vamp shirt, which has now been dubbed “the Kurt shirt”.
We went to both islands for sure… I just remember us having an afternoon tearing around a go-kart track. It was like bumper cars on steroids.
She also opens up about brushing off sexist questions in her early years, her roots in London’s punk scene alongside The Clash, her creative years in New York, and her ongoing passion for making music.
You know, I was young. You don't take the blows. When you're young, you just roll with the punches. It didn't even occur to me that I wasn’t equal, that I wasn't good enough. I felt ‘I'm as good as anybody, and nobody can tell me what I can or can't do’.
Now, as she prepares to step back into the spotlight, Wendy says she’s ready to “own the stage, own the history, and deliver these songs as if no time has passed.”
With Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch shows lined up, New Zealand fans are in for something very special.
Find tour info and tickets HERE.
