The Snow Ponies make songs. They are based in a small stable block in central Waikato, conveniently located next door to an apple orchard. Yum!
Join the herd for updates on new releases and special offers on sugar cubes:
NEW SINGLE
Coming Soon!
SOMETHING CHANGED
Released 4 Feb 2026
THE LONG WAY HOME
Released 5 Nov 2026
GIVING IT ALL AWAY
Released 15 Oct 2026
Who the fuck are The Snow Ponies?
My name is Phil Dean. I am The Snow Ponies. I was gonna make it a proper band, with gigs and groupies and everything. Then I had a bad head injury in 2024 and now bright lights and loud noise completely spin me out. I went to see Pulp in Auckland recently and I could barely walk afterwards. And I didn’t even have a drink. Totally worth it though, what a fucking great gig.
So for the moment, no band. Just me. Hopefully that changes. Who knows? Anyway, that’s me in the photo. I know, I’m not actually a pony. Sorry.
Anyway, I’ve done hundreds of gigs and released loads of music over the years. Then I got tired of it all in 2017 and took a break. Stopped writing songs. Left Melbourne. Returned to NZ. Played a guard in Rings of Power, which was really fun. Got beaten up by Jason Momoa in Aquaman 2. Wrote a book. Then someone gave me a bag of weed and I spent a month getting stoned and all of sudden the universe started gifting me loads of songs.
So I started recording again and I’m having so much fun. There’s an album on the way later in 2026. I’ve got loads more new songs lined up for recording after that too. I can’t keep up. I’m fucking loving it.
Nice things that people have said about The Snow Ponies
“The Long Way Home” is a wistful, beautifully eccentric slice of indie pop storytelling”
BOBPS.BLOG
“The Snow Ponies “The Long Way Home” is a frost-kissed waltz through the backroads of love, a four-minute slow-burn that feels like driving a rusted pickup under a skyfull of falling stars”
OURSOUND
“The Long Way Home moves with a slow, breathy patience, like headlights cutting through mist on a rural road… there’s a touch of Neil Young in the guitar warmth, a hint of Pulp in the storytelling, and the subtle new-wave glow of Ultravox woven through the production… it creates a landscape that feels nostalgic without leaning too heavily on the past, giving the track its own gentle gravity”
INTROVERT DISCO – Song of the day
“Phil Dean’s voice feels lived-in and immediate… Influences peak through without ever dominating: hints of pastoral Neil Young melancholy, the cheeky immediacy of contemporary indie pop, and the widescreen jolt of classic new wave results in something that feels both referential and wholly new”
HELLAFUZZ
“If this represents the level of craft Dean brings to his first NZ-based musical endeavour, the promised album on the 2026 horizon should prove essential listening. The Long Way Home succeeds by trusting in the power of intelligent songcraft, meticulous production, and emotional authenticity – unfashionable virtues perhaps, but enduring ones nonetheless.”
INDIE DOCK MUSIC BLOG
“What makes The Long Way Home especially compelling is the way it balances melancholy and optimism. It is grounded, human and strikingly honest”
LOOP SOLITAIRE
The Gathering Tide /// Zeptepi /// Darn Thorn