Cairo Knife Fight (CKF) is a rock band originating from

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

, founded in 2007 by musical artist

Nick Gaffaney Nick Gaffaney is a professional drummer, songwriter and singer from New Zealand, and is best known for the band Cairo Knife Fight. Career Gaffaney began his career as a session and recording artist, having played drums for Dimmer, Goldenhorse, ...

, featuring a drum and guitar duo incorporating real-time layered loops.

History

Cairo Knife Fight (CKF) began as Nick Gaffaney's unnamed side project along with several other band members in 2004, namely

Aaron Tokona Aaron Arana Tokona (28 October 1975 – 20 June 2020) was a New Zealand guitarist and singer. Tokona was descended from Ngāi Te Rangi and Ngāti Maniapoto. This heritage played a significant role in his upbringing through his grandparents, who ...

(guitar and vocals), Ritchie Pickard (bass), Roslen Langton (vocals), Katie Tayor (vocals), and Nick (drums and vocals). Nick was a successful professional session and recording artist with several popular New Zealand musical groups when deciding to pursue an original project. In 2009, the initial multi-member line-up was narrowed down to a duo composed of electric guitar and drums, with Nick playing drums with his right hand, using a keyboard bass with his left hand and utilizing a loop station to make live vocal and rhythm loops, the guitar parts also being looped and layered live. CKF was a past participant at the annual

Smokefreerockquest Smokefreerockquest (SFRQ) is an annual music competition for intermediate and high school bands throughout New Zealand. The first Rockquest was held in 1988, and was organised by Christchurch radio station C93FM as a local event. The following ...

, where New Zealand bands and musicians can further their exposure and listed as a notable band at Kiwi Rock (bands of New Zealand). The duo gained notoriety when playing the Opera House in Wellington opening for UK act Gomez in late 2009. This performance brought the attention of

Them Crooked Vultures Them Crooked Vultures is an English-American alternative rock supergroup formed in Los Angeles in 2009 by Josh Homme (of Queens of the Stone Age and Kyuss) on lead vocals and guitar, John Paul Jones (of Led Zeppelin) on bass and keyboards, and ...

, who invited CKF to open for their New Zealand tour in early 2010. CKF release their self-titled EP in July of that year, the first single entitled 'This is Love' being included on the NZ Radio Hit Disk for mid 2010, and being rated as one of the songs of the year. The EP went on to be nominated in the 'Best Rock Album' category at the

New Zealand Music Awards The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant tha ...

in 2011. Later in 2010 a trip to New York City brought the attention of CMJ festival team members, and were invited to play a CMJ bill at the Bowery Electric with a tour of Australia being realized. 2011 began with a New Zealand tour with

Kiwi Kiwi most commonly refers to: * Kiwi (bird), a flightless bird native to New Zealand * Kiwi (nickname), a nickname for New Zealanders * Kiwifruit, an edible berry * Kiwi dollar or New Zealand dollar, a unit of currency Kiwi or KIWI may also ref ...

rock hall of famers

Shihad Shihad are a rock band formed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1988. The band consists of founders Tom Larkin (drums, backing vocals, samplers), Phil Knight (lead guitar, synthesiser, backing vocals) and Jon Toogood (lead vocals, rhythm guita ...

in January. Them Crooked Vultures front man

Josh Homme Joshua Michael Homme ( ; born May 17, 1973) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known as the founder, primary songwriter, and only continuous member of the rock band Queens of the Stone Age, which he for ...

again requested CKF to open for his

Queens of the Stone Age Queens of the Stone Age (commonly abbreviated QOTSA) is an American rock band formed in 1996 in Palm Desert, California. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme, who has been the only constant member throughout multiple line ...

New Zealand tour in February. In early 2011 a deadly earthquake occurred at Christchurch, NZ, Cairo Knife Fight's hometown. Absorbing the horrendous aftermath, the band took solace in recording the follow up EP 'II', released in August 2011 to 5 star reviews and a top 40 chart placing. The band was then to appear as special guests of the

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana (band), Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the Foo Fighters (album), epony ...

for an earthquake benefit concert in Auckland, NZ, ending the year by again joining the Foo Fighters onstage at

Western Springs Stadium Western Springs Stadium is a stadium in Auckland, New Zealand. Built within a natural amphitheatre, it is primarily used for rugby union matches during the winter and for speedway during the summer. It is also occasionally used for large c ...

in Auckland, New Zealand in front of 45,000 people for the band's Wasting Light tour, considered one of New Zealand's biggest ever stand-alone shows. In 2012 Cairo Knife Fight returned to the United States to perform at

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, ...

, being labeled as 'Bands to Watch in 2012' by Alt Press and made several 'Best of SXSW' lists at the Texas festival. After SXSW, the band returned to New Zealand to work on and record their debut full-length record "The Colossus", released by Warner Music in May 2015, produced by Justyn Pilbrow (

The Neighbourhood The Neighbourhood (sometimes rendered as "THE NBHD") is an American rock band formed in Newbury Park, California, in 2011. The band is composed of vocalist Jesse Rutherford, guitarists Jeremy Freedman and Zach Abels, and bassist Mikey Margot ...

and

King 810 King 810 (pronounced ''King eight one oh''; formerly known as, and often shortened to, simply King) is an American heavy metal band from Flint, Michigan, formed in 2007. The band currently consists of David Gunn and Eugene Gill, with touring ...

). In October 2013, Cairo Knife Fight featured on the soundtrack for the surf documentary ''Waverider'' by Gareth Davies and RedYeti Films, directed by

Karl Lear Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austrian ...

, winner of Best Picture (2013) in New Zealand and Best Picture (2014) in Hawaii. Guitarist Aaron Tokona left the band in 2014 and George Pajon joined the band in early 2015 after initially meeting Nick in New Zealand years earlier through engineer and record producer Neil Baldock. After releasing their debut record ''The Colossus'', the band relocated to Los Angeles in 2015 and performed tours of New Zealand and Australia opening for Shihad, and once again returning to perform at SXSW in Austin, Texas. That summer CKF toured Australia in support of ''The Colossus'' and opened for the Australian band

Karnivool Karnivool is an Australian progressive rock band formed in Perth in 1997. The group currently consists of Ian Kenny on vocals, Drew Goddard and Mark Hosking on guitar, Jon Stockman on bass, and Steve Judd on drums. Karnivool emerged from a band ...

, with a subsequent tour of NZ further supporting their debut release. CKF has toured and opened festivals for

and several other international acts. In 2015, ''The Colossus'' was nominated for a

New Zealand Music Award The Aotearoa Music Awards (previously called the New Zealand Music Awards), conferred annually by Recorded Music NZ, honour outstanding artistic and technical achievements in the recording industry. The awards are among the most significant tha ...

for Best Rock Album, and in 2016, the album was nominated for the

Taite Music Prize The Taite Music Prize is an annual New Zealand music award event. It features the same-named prize awarded for the best album from New Zealand. The prize is named after respected New Zealand music journalist and broadcaster Dylan Taite, who died ...

Band members

Current

– vocals, drums, synthesizer (2007–present) *

George Pajon George Pajon Jr. (born April 10, 1969) is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. Early life George Pajon Jr. "attended private St. Matthias Elementary School, a Catholic K-8 school, in Huntington Park. Growing up in conservative ...

– lead guitar, rhythm guitar (2015–present)

Nick Gaffaney

Nick Gaffaney currently plays in Los Angeles rock power trio Santa Barabara, and previously played drums with

Dimmer A dimmer is a device connected to a light fixture and used to lower the brightness of the light. By changing the voltage waveform applied to the lamp, it is possible to lower the intensity of the light output. Although variable-voltage devices ...

, Goldenhorse,

Hollie Smith Hollie Smith (born 17 November 1982) is a New Zealand soul singer-songwriter based in Auckland, New Zealand. Her four solo albums ''Long Player, Humour and the Misfortune of Others, Water or Gold,'' and ''Coming In From The Dark'' have all reach ...

and has recorded and performed with songwriters such as

Anika Moa Anika Rose Moa (born 21 May 1980) is a New Zealand recording artist and television presenter. Her debut album '' Thinking Room'', was released in September 2001, which reached number one on the New Zealand Albums Chart and provided two T ...

, Jan Hellriegel, Leila Adu and Godfrey de Grut; Hip Hop/Roots artists

Scribe A scribe is a person who serves as a professional copyist, especially one who made copies of manuscripts before the invention of automatic printing. The profession of the scribe, previously widespread across cultures, lost most of its promi ...

Fat Freddy's Drop Fat Freddy's Drop is a New Zealand seven-piece band from Wellington, whose musical style has been characterised as any combination of dub, reggae, soul, jazz, rhythm and blues, and techno. Originally a jam band formed in the late 1990s by mus ...

, Solaa,

King Kapisi Bill Rangi Urale is a New Zealand-Samoan hip-hop artist. Music career He was signed up as an artist with Festival Mushroom Records (NZ). In 2000 he released his critically acclaimed debut album ''Savage Thoughts'', followed by a second album, ...

, Nuvonesia, and

Sangha Sangha is a Sanskrit word used in many Indian languages, including Pali meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community"; Sangha is often used as a surname across these languages. It was historically used in a political context t ...

; Jazz musicians Mark de Clive-Lowe, Joel Haines, The New Loungehead and Jeff Henderson; and has worked on film soundtracks for The Truth about Demons and Fracture with composer Victoria Kelly. Nick won the 2013 APRA Professional Development Award.

George Pajon

George Pajon recorded and toured with

The Black Eyed Peas Black Eyed Peas (also known as The Black Eyed Peas) is an American musical group consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo. The group's line-up during the height of their popularity in the 2000s featured Fergie, who replaced Kim H ...

for 17 years, is a

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

, producer and session recording musician, and has writing and recording credits with Fergie,

Carlos Santana Carlos Humberto Santana Barragán (; born July 20, 1947) is an American guitarist who rose to fame in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band Santana, which pioneered a fusion of Rock and roll and Latin American jazz. Its sound feature ...

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-ear ...

Ricky Martin Enrique Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his discography spanning Latin pop, pop, dance, reggaeton ...

will.i.am William James Adams Jr. (born March 15, 1975), known professionally as will.i.am (pronounced "Will-I-am"), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the founding and lead member of the musical group Black Eyed Peas. ...

Macy Gray Natalie Renée McIntyre (born September 6, 1967), known by her stage name Macy Gray, is an American R&B and soul singer and actress. She is known for her distinctive raspy voice and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday. Gray ha ...

Candy Dulfer Candy Dulfer (born 19 September 1969) is a Dutch jazz and pop saxophonist. She is the daughter of jazz saxophonist Hans Dulfer. She began playing at age six and founded her band Funky Stuff when she was fourteen. Her debut album '' Saxuality'' ...

Los Lonely Boys Los Lonely Boys are an American musical group from San Angelo, Texas. They play a style of music they call "Texican Rock n' Roll," combining elements of rock and roll, Texas blues, brown-eyed soul, country, and Tejano. The band consists of t ...

Cheryl Cole Cheryl Ann Tweedy (born 30 June 1983) is an English singer and television personality. Born and raised in Newcastle upon Tyne, she rose to fame in late 2002 upon winning a place in Girls Aloud, a girl group created through ITV's '' Popstars ...

"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known for creating comedy songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specifi ...

Kelis Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perfor ...

Richard Cheese Richard Cheese & Lounge Against The Machine (or simply Richard Cheese) is a cover band and comedy act, performing popular songs in a lounge/swing style. Lounge singer Richard Cheese is a character created and portrayed by Los Angeles-based ac ...

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ...

Damian Marley Damian Robert Nesta "Jr. Gong" Marley (born 21 July 1978) is a Jamaican DJ, singer, lyricist and rapper. He is the recipient of four Grammy Awards. Early life, education and family Damian Marley is the youngest son of reggae musician Bob Marle ...

Sérgio Mendes Sérgio Santos Mendes (; born February 11, 1941) is a Brazilian musician. His career took off with worldwide hits by his group Brasil '66. He has over 55 releases and plays bossa nova heavily crossed with jazz and funk. He was nominated for ...

, J.Period,

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, Venus Brown,

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, Kidz Bop Kids,

Kim Dotcom Kim Dotcom (born Kim Schmitz; 21 January 1974), also known as Kimble and Kim Tim Jim Vestor, is a German- Finnish Internet entrepreneur and political activist who resides in Glenorchy, New Zealand. He first rose to fame in Germany in the 1990 ...

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and various other artists. George has won several

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

s for songwriting and music performance. George Pajon joined Cairo Knife Fight in early 2015,

Former

* Aaron Tokona – guitar, vocals (2007–2014) * Ritchie Pickard – bass guitar (2007–2009) * Roslen Langton – vocals (2007–2009) * Katie Tayor – vocals (2007–2009) Aaron Tokona is known for bands Weta,

The Superjesus The Superjesus are an Australian rock band formed in Adelaide in late 1994. Their debut album, ''Sumo'' (February 1998), peaked at No. 2 on the ARIA Albums Chart, their second album, ''Jet Age'' (October 2000) reached No. 5 and their ...

and Fly My Pretties among other music groups.

Discography

Iron

"Iron" – EP (20 July 2009), mastered by Greg Calbi, Mixed by Neil Baldock (tracks 1–6, 8–10) and Steve Fowler (track 7), recorded by Neil Baldock and Steve Fowler (4), written by Nick Gaffaney, Loretta Recordings, distributed, licensed and manufactured by Sony Music Entertainment New Zealand – 88697520542.

Cairo Knife Fight

"Cairo Knife Fight" – EP (15 August 2011), the self-titled debut, written and produced by Nick Gaffaney and Aaron Tokona, recorded and mixed over a period of two years at

Roundhead Roundheads were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651). Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I of England and his supporters, known as the Cavaliers or Royalists, who ...

and Clevetown Studios in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

and

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

by Neil Baldock, recorded by Steve Fowler, released through

Liberation Music Liberation Music is an Australian record company and label, started in 1999 by Michael Gudinski and Warren Costello, based in Melbourne. Its stated aim is to find, nurture and then to develop new talent for a world market while remaining ind ...

Cairo Knife Fight II

"Cairo Knife Fight II" – EP (3 October 2011), Liberation Music.

The Isolator

"The Isolator" – EP (30 January 2015), was written and recorded in three different countries with musicians Aaron Tokona, Joel Haines, Laughton Kora, William Knapp, Alexander Edward Winter and Samuel K, with session recordings in Melbourne, Auckland, recorded and mixed in New York City by producer

Justyn Pilbrow Elemeno P is a New Zealand rock band. The band's first album, '' Love & Disrespect'' was released on 4 July 2003, and reached number one on the RIANZ albums chart. Their second album, ''Trouble in Paradise'' was released on 24 November 2005 a ...

(

) and Samuel K, produced through Loretta Recordings Limited under exclusive license to Warner Music New Zealand Limited.

The Colossus

"The Colossus" – LP (29 May 2015), includes collaborations with musicians Aaron Tokona, Joel Haines, Laughton Kora and William Knapp,

Mark Lanegan Mark William Lanegan (November 25, 1964 – February 22, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the ...

(

Screaming Trees Screaming Trees was an American rock band formed in Ellensburg, Washington, in 1984 by vocalist Mark Lanegan, guitarist Gary Lee Conner, bass player Van Conner, and drummer Mark Pickerel. Pickerel had been replaced by Barrett Martin by the ti ...

) and Tyler Fournames (

Marilyn Manson Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He came to prominence as the lead singer of the band which shares his name, of which he remains the only constant member since it ...

) and John Anderson (Banks), released through Loretta Recordings under exclusive license to Warner Music New Zealand Limited.

Seven

"Seven" – LP (20 October 2017)

References

External links

* *
"Iron" (2009)

"Origin of Slaves" (2011)

"The Violence of Action" (2015)
{{Authority control Musical groups established in 2009 New Zealand alternative rock groups Industrial rock musical groups New Zealand progressive rock groups Musicians from Christchurch 2009 establishments in New Zealand Rock music duos Male musical duos