Mary Shannon and Jessie Swan from the folk band Thieves. Picture: JAMES BRADY
LAUNCESTON alternative folk group Thieves are stealing the limelight in Tasmania and now the group has its sights set on New Zealand.
The seven-piece band last weekend cemented its presence in the Tasmanian scene, marking its debut appearance at the Cygnet Folk Festival.
It was the ideal follow-on to their performance at the 2012-13 Falls Festival, according to frontwomen Mary Shannon and Jessie Swan.
"I've been going to Cygnet since I was 16," Shannon said.
"We decided to actually go and apply to play this year and we got accepted, which is pretty awesome.
"It's the first year I've been able to legitimately participate there."
Aside from a plethora of shows planned for Tasmania, Swan said the band was considering a New Zealand tour.
The trip could see a tourism company following the band across the country during its tour, and comes after its involvement with a successful New Zealand ad campaign.
"It's kind of in the works that one," she said. The guy that filmed our first video said that (our song) Marrawah has become almost like an anthem in New Zealand now, which is a pretty big deal."
It's a case of prioritising, according to Shannon, who said the band had put off recording an album for almost half a year.
The band's next performance will be at the Burns Creek Party in the Paddock festival on February 22 and 23.For more information or to hear Thieves go to tinyurl.com/ bkfhbnz or search for Marrawah on Youtube.