Connan Mockasin

Connan Tant Hosford, better known by the stage name Connan Mockasin and sometimes credited as Connan Hosford, is a New Zealand musician, composer and record producer.

Critically acclaimed and described as "a psych-funk oddball...a contrarian", Mockasin has been credited with the 21st century crossover of psychedelic and indie music, and praised for his unique and isolated approach to songwriting.

Born in Napier and raised in Te Awanga, Hawke's Bay, Mockasin grew up between rural vineyards.

The son of a musician, he went to school in Havelock North.

He gained his stage surname from his childhood habit of making mocassin-like shoes out of sheepskin and old motorbike tyres.

Mockasin was born in Newtown, Wellington in the autumn of 1983, and raised in the "dinky wee settlement" of Te Awanga in Hawke's Bay, to father Ade Hosford, a musician formerly of Autumn Stone and Philharmonia Orange.

He had a "lovely" time growing up on a "vineyard" off the Pacific, which featured "lots of nice wines."

Mockasin started his first band "The Four Skins" (named by his father, Ade "because there are four skins on the drums") while attending Havelock North Intermediate School in 1995.

In 2003, after moving back to his birthplace in Wellington, Mockasin briefly played in a band called "The Hornery Stiffmen" (later to become a track title on "Please Turn Me into The Snat"), consisting of Blake Pryor (bass) (who later appeared as an actor in "Bostyn 'n Dobsyn") and Christopher Chalmers (drums), before forming his principal New Zealand group "Connan and the Mockasins", named after Connan's interest in making his own shoes.

Playing alongside Connan were Ross Walker (upright acoustic bass) and Seamus Ebbs (drums).

He moved to Wellington at age 20 to further his music career, and played in various bands until the formation of Connan and The Mockasins in 2006.

It was with this band that Connan relocated to London in May 2006 after releasing their second EP "Uuu It's Teasy".

They relocated to the United Kingdom the same year, and Mockasin was pursued by record labels before returning to New Zealand in 2008.

The first release to bear the name "Connan Mockasin" was the 2010 LP, "Please Turn Me into The Snat", which was re-released as "Forever Dolphin Love" the following year.

This album saw a significant change in style to Connan's previous work, and has been described by critics as "fluid", "meandering and blissful", "seemingly effortless" and "mesmerising".

In a conversation about why he made the album, Mockasin said "It was never meant to be released...It was just me being silly, really, and Mum forced me to do it."

Recording took place in his home in Te Awanga.

The re-released 2CD version included a live recording entitled "Forever Dolphin Live", recorded in an apartment in London.

It was at this stage Hosford put together an incarnation of the existing Connan Mockasin live band: Matthew Eccles (drums), Nicholas Harsant (bass), Sam Dust (keyboards) and Rory McCarthy (percussion).

He released his debut solo album in 2011, Forever Dolphin Love, to critical acclaim and success particularly in Europe.

Mockasin and band toured with Charlotte Gainsbourg as her live band after Mockasin composed the song 'Out of Touch' for her 2011 album Stage Whisper.

Artists who have expressed admiration for him include Beck and Radiohead, the latter of whom he toured with in 2012 in a sold-out Australasian tour of Auckland, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.

Those who have cited him as an influence include Beach House, Tyler, the Creator, Nilüfer Yanya, James Blake and Charlotte Gainsbourg, the latter two he has since collaborated with.

Blake has acclaimed Mockasin as a personal friend and mentor, saying "having him around always makes me feel like I could do anything."

Connan Mockasin has also worked with Laurence Arabia, Liam Finn, Dev Hynes, Mick Fleetwood, and MGMT, as well as his father on the 2021 album It's Just Wind released through American label Mexican Summer. He has lived and worked in London, Lewes, Wellington, Manchester, Los Angeles and Tokyo.

He is in a relationship with Japanese glamour model Hiromi Oshima; the couple have one daughter.

Connan Mockasin toured with Radiohead in Australia and New Zealand throughout November 2012, playing sold-out shows in Auckland, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.

His second album, Caramel, was released in 2013, and was described by Pitchfork as "stainless world that is both unsettling and fitting".

Mockasin has released a string of albums since then, the latest being 2021's Jassbusters Two, the "sequel" to his 2018 album Jassbusters.

Additionally, he has scored and produced his own films, such as a visual interpretation of Jassbusters and Bostyn 'n Dobsyn.

Mockasin's music is known for its unconventional subject matter, themes, styles and instrumentation; he has been positively labelled as openly "weird", and a pioneer of "trippy, mutated soul".

His international success is notable for by far eclipsing his success in his homeland.

Mockasin announced the release of his second album, Caramel in September 2013.

It was released the following November.

Connan commented, "I wanted to make something simple. Something nice and relaxed. I liked the name, and the album just came up around that. It's what I felt like 'caramel' music would be."

The album was recorded in a hotel room in Tokyo: "I know a few people in Japan. We'd have little sleepovers, a bit of fun, a few drinks and stuff. I liked the atmosphere. It was just a hotel room, two beds. It was nice."

Critics have said it is an album which "demands patience", and one which leaves you feeling as though "time is being stretched".

It featured singles "I'm The Man That Will Find You" and "Do I Make You Feel Shy?".

Regarding the album cover, Mockasin wanted a "simple photo."

He admitted that he had a "few different ideas," and he even considered changing the album cover after the initial tour.