Amplifying
How Many Indpendent Records Stores Are Left In NZ?
Yesterday, after Mr Music Manager mentioned an indie record store he visited in London, we got to thinking about how many independent record stores are left in New Zealand. With the decline in physical music sales in NZ over the... More
Q&A with Andrew Spraggon from Sola Rosa
Low and Behold, High and Beyond represents quite a divergence from the sound on Sola Rosa's four previous albums. How would you identify the change that has happened between then and now, Andrew?... More
Q&A with Kevin Field
In creating your new album Field of Vision, you've worked with Nathan Haines on production and recording at Neil Finn's Roundhead Studios and also done some in George Schoushkoff's Revolver Studio. How has that been?... More
Q&A with Heavy Metal Ninjas
You guys are involved in various other musical projects and the Heavy Metal Ninjas will only just be coming to some people's attention now. When did the band actually form? Richie Allan: 2010 - the actual band... More
Q&A With Jonny Love
You've spoken a bit about the process of writing and demoing for this album, travelling and writing in hotel rooms, etc. Can you tell us about that experience? It was incredible, South East Asia is just an amazing place to... More
A decent chat with Barnaby Weir
On the eve of the release of his brand new solo album Tarot Card Rock, Ellen Falconer chats to the man himself - Barnaby Weir... More
Home-Brew's Pre-BDO Chat
Local hip-hop outfit Home-Brew has always been one for the DIY route, and have done so rather successfully. Four EPs have been released (with a full-length on the way), there have been a couple of nationwide tours, and last Friday... More
A Letter Home from Urbantramper
Currently meandering around the world playing music and seeing some sights, Urbantramper took a moment to reflect and wrote us a little letter home. Awww! Dear Zealand. I miss you... More
Q&A with Adam Ladley (The Family Cactus)
Taking seven people and their instruments to the other side of the world is no easy feat. Wellington band Family Cactus managed to achieve this late last year, when they lived in New York for two months - performing at... More
Q&A with Street Chant
Auckland band Street Chant have been around for a while now, building their reputation on killer live shows and their ability to create songs worth using your internet bandwidth on. After a name and line up change, their highly anticipated... More
Latest Reviews (More)
Tattletale Saints - How Red Is the Blood
The duo behind this debut album of sensitively understated folk and subtle simplicity have a bit of "form", we might say. They are expat Kiwis Cy Winstanley and Vanessa McGowan who were previously in Her Make Believe Band. Their AM... More
Sam RB - Queen Street Acoustics
Auckland songwriter Sam RB has been met with some skepticism (if not outright cynicism) by many mainstream music writers on account of her song for the New Zealand Olympic Team (music journalists rarely like patriotic or cheerleading songs, regardless of... More
The Bads - Travel Light
In an interview some years ago Graham Brazier said that in the rush to embrace younger artists, New Zealand had created what he called "adult contempt". If you were over 28 you were ignored, he said... More
Popstrangers - Antipodes
Because international writers can often take a more dispassionate view of New Zealand culture -- witness the difference between local and overseas reviews of The Hobbit; ours mostly loved it, theirs went hmmm, yawn -- it is often salutory to... More
Plum Green - Rushes
Although until recently we had Plum Green's succession of notable EPs to keep us sated, the release of her debut album Rushes is no less welcome. After years of preening up support, along with a short and productive crowd funding... More
Girls Pissing On Girls Pissing - Eeling
Given their chosen name, you can guess that this Auckland four-piece don't expect (or possibly want) mainstream recognition either at home or abroad. And you don't want to know what comes up if you do a web-search or look on... More
Hello Sailor - Surrey Crescent Moon
The mythology and facts surrounding Hello Sailor as the Famously Dissolute Ponsonby Rock Band of the Seventies probably does them a disservice these days... More
Pin Group - Ambivalence
In his liner notes to this important reissue from Flying Nun, Bruce Russell makes the point that this collection has not only historical significance -- the Pin Group's Ambivalence was the first single on the fledgling Flying Nun label in... More
Dear Time's Waste - Some Kind Of Eden
When I heard 'Clandestine', the first single from Dear Time's Waste back in 2009, I was immediately hooked by its simultaneously sparse and complex nature. The powerfully monotonous bass and snare drums, accompanied by no crash and scarcely a cymbal,... More
Julie Lamb - Trippin' The Light
"If you catch me, don't burn yourself", enunciates Julie Lamb in Tell Me Who I Am, the opening track on her second album Trippin' the Light. It's some fitting phrasing indeed when we view the record in its entirety. Lamb... More
Latest News (More)
Fly My Pretties To Return With New Album And Tour
The brainchild of Barnaby Weir, Fly My Pretties, are returning to release their fifth album. They have today announced a new nationwide tour, to be followed by the release of a new album. ... More
RIANZ and PPNZ To Merge
The Recording Industry Association of NZ (RIANZ) and PPNZ Music Licensing have today announced they are joining forces under a new name – Recorded Music NZ Limited... More
The Drab Doo-Riffs to Release New 10-Inch Vinyl Only EP
One of the country's most exciting acts, The Drab Doo-Riffs, have today announced a new 10-inch vinyl only EP, and release party to celebrate. By the sounds of the line-up, party is a more than apt word for the show... More
Ghost Wave Announce Ages Album Release Tour
Ghost Wave are set to release their highly anticipated album, Ages, later this month, and are celebrating with a tour around New Zealand. ... More
She's So Rad To Release Disco EP
She's So Rad are have announced they are releasing a new disco EP next month on Japanese record label Wonderful Noise. The sound is a departure from the post-punk/shoegaze sound of their first album In Circles, but still showcasing the... More
Audio Culture Website Launches
NZ On Air has today announced the launch of audioculture.co.nz, an online history of New Zealand Music... More
Delaney & Marlon Take Out Country Tui Awards
Delaney Davidson and Marlon Williams, the duo behind the amazing album 'Sad But True - The Secret History Of Coutnry Music Songwriting Vol. 1', have claimed the first two Tui Awards for 2013. The album was awarded the RIANZ Best... More
Aaradhna Breaks Records at Pacific Music Awards
Aaradhna has broken records with her clean sweep of last night's Pasefika Proud Pacific Music Awards, winning all five categories she was a finalist in, as well as the NZ On Air Radio Airplay Award... More
Skeptics To Release Documentary and Re-Issue Classic Albums
One of New Zealand's most influential and innovative bands is poised for a return to the public eye. Flying Nun Records will re-issue two classic albums from Skeptics, which will coincide with the release of Sheen of Gold, a documentary... More
Making Tracks May Funding Round Decisions
NZ On Air have today announced the decisions for May's round of Making Tracks Funding. Of the 126 eligible applications, 24 recieved funding for either recording and a video, or a video only. The successful applicants are: Recording & Video:... More
