Articles tagged with "Interview"
Keepsakes on bringing his Techno back to Aotearoa
26/07/2021
James Barrett has spent the last few years making a splash in the venerable techno scene of Berlin. Now in COVID ravaged 202X, he’s returned to his homeland and is wasting no time in bringing his brand of dark pounding techno to the ravers of Aotearoa. I caught up with James ahead of his Friday Dunedin party. How long have you been back in New Zealand? We got... More
Kane Strang on burnout and the value of experimentation
2/07/2021
In March this year ex-Dunedinite Kane Strang surprised everyone by quietly dropping an album, his first in four years, without any of the extended industry machinations which usually go with an album release from an established artist. Titled Happy to Perform, it also happens to be an absolute gem, probably my favorite local release of 2021 so far, presenting a sound which feels moody, raw, and altogether unique.... More
Jazz: Coming soon to a loft near you
8/06/2021
If there’s one thing I think we can all agree on here in the Ōtepoti music community, it’s that we’d quite like more spaces to perform and experience music in, which is why it pleases me greatly to see a new initiative intent on giving us exactly that. Dubbed the “Albany Street Jazz Loft”, the project aims to take the unused loft of the Playhouse Theatre and fill... More
Music for people, not profit
6/05/2021
Way back in February of 2020, just before everything turned to custard, New New New hosted its largest lineup of acts to date. The event was called Music for People and featured 11 vastly different acts ranging from hip-hop, experimental noise, grunge, indie rock and more. Now Music for People is about to receive its long overdue sequel, with double the venues, triple the music, and the same... More
The Veils frontman Finn Andrews on why he's bringing back Nux Vomica
24/03/2021
London/NZ based indie band The Veils are touring New Zealand, and for the first time ever they’ll be performing their dark and brooding 2006 sophomore album Nux Vomica in its entirety. I caught up with frontman Finn Andrews, who is gratefully “stuck” in New Zealand, about the tour. What made you decide to revisit this album? It’s a slightly convoluted story. We were invited to play a festival,... More
Dave Borrie, ex Bachelorette hopeful and Radio 1 DJ, tells all
20/02/2021
There are two things which get me out of bed in the morning: music and reality TV. It's the drama, it's the humanity, it's the sheer craft which goes into massaging reality until it becomes hyper-real broadcast mythos. There's really nothing else like it. So you can imagine my excitement when it was announced that Dave Borrie, local Radio 1 DJ and Musician, was going to be on... More
Richard Ley-Hamilton on the (sort of) return of Males
10/02/2021
Way back in 2012 Males were a tent pole of the local Indie scene, along with bands like Astro Children, Two Cartoons and Kane Strang. Their catchy single “So High” was thrashed by student radio stations across the nation. Then in 2016, without even a bang or a whimper, they played their last show, before going on an extended hiatus. Lead singer and guitarist Richard Ley-Hamilton headed to... More
Jutland Street: The venue which wasn't a venue
5/12/2020
Around a year ago I wrote about None Gallery. None Gallery was a collaborative art space which hosted art exhibitions and music gigs since 2003. It ended when the building was sold to a property investor. It is now a gym. A few months ago I wrote about The Attic. The Attic was a venue and practice space which was a cornerstone of the indie/alternative scene since 2011.... More
Tuscoma and the global pandemic
15/08/2020
Wellington blackened post-metal-gaze duo Tuscoma released their highly anticipated second album Discourse in April - only to have their national and global tour cancelled due to the ongoing pandemic. I caught up with guitarist and vocalist Kurt Williams to talk about their second attempt at a national tour, but since then COVID has re-emerged and plunged the country into another partial lockdown, forcing them to cancel yet again.... More
Whiskey and the Wench
16/10/2019
After... by Whiskey and the Wench Whiskey and the Wench are widely regarded as Dunedin’s loudest folk-punk band, with around a decades worth of blistering (sometimes literally) live jams behind them. This Thursday they’ll be adding another one to the pile in the form of a long overdue album release gig! I spoke to Ruth Evans who does accordion and vocals alongside her bandmates on guitar and mandolin... More
Eat the right lunch, eat a Night Lunch
18/09/2019
Known for their intense and enigmatic live performances, Night Lunch have been kicking around the local underground for about a year and have just released their first EP Double Trouble! Double Trouble! by Night Lunch I spoke to the combo of Liams which make up the duo, Liam Dorf Clune and Liam Hoffman, to get the skinny on what they are exactly. How would you describe the music... More
Mild Orange make music which feels right
31/08/2019
Mild Orange shuffled onto the Dunedin scene in early 2017 with a sultry mix of soft indie-rock and a splash of Mockasin creaminess. And then an Ukrainian YouTube music influencer shared their first self-produced single, Some Feeling, and almost overnight their popularity exploded. Now that single has over 12 million plays. Listen to Mild Orange's first album, Foreplay. Back home from a massive European tour, they’re entering the... More
Say goodbye to Battle of the Bands and hello to Bring the Noise
16/08/2019
This year marks the 23rd iteration of OUSA’s Battle of the Bands competition - and it also marks the first (hopefully of many) under the new name "Bring the Noise". To get the low down on the what and the why I spoke to Jason Schroeder, OUSA Events Manager. "Battle of the Bands" vs "Bring the Noise"... What was the reason behind the name change? The name Bring... More
According to these guys you can actually make money off your music
21/07/2019
Thanks to capitalism, making money is an essential part of not starving to death. Unfortunately for most musicians though, converting their immense cultural capital into food on the table is a problem the wondrous free market has yet to fully solve. If it were up to me instead of spending $14.1 billion a year on a non means-tested benefit for one of our wealthiest demographics we’d instead give... More
Catching up with Michael Morris
23/03/2019
Until recently Michael Morris was making down and dirty rock n' roll in Dunedin with The River Jesters. He toured both NZ and Australia, released a bunch of records, started a production company... And then last year he moved to Paris and released his first solo album Slow Loris. Slow Loris by Michael Morris NZ I caught up with the man himself while was back in NZ to get the... More
The Shambles - Gone but not forgotten
16/02/2019
Local blonk-pop band The Shambles are parting ways, but they’re not going out without one last tour, one last opportunity to experience the electric energy which had them blazing a trail up and down the festival circuit the last few summers. Their trajectory has been short but very sweet, like a gummy bear or Danny DeVito, but much like a gummy bear (or Danny DeVito) the heavenly flavour... More
Hexis and their insane 80+ show world tour
18/12/2018
Over the past four months Copenhagen-based blackened-hardcore band Hexis have been on the largest tour of their career, and next week they’ll finally be arriving on our shores. The tour has seen them playing non-stop since September everywhere from Sweden to Mongolia to Australia. By the end they’ll have been touring for 93 days, played 81 shows, and visited twelve countries. It’s incredibly impressive and a little bit... More
Blindfolded and Led to the Woods on their strange origins
14/11/2018
I fondly remember the day 16 year old me came home from school, switching on the TV to semi-ironically watch mother of the nation Erin Simpson attempting to capture the young teen demographic, only to be aurally assaulted by a technical death metal band called Blindfolded and Led to the Woods. It seemed like a mistake, yet it kind of didn’t. “The Erin Simpson Show” was for kids,... More
What is Congress of Animals?
7/11/2018
Congress of Animals is what happens when a bunch of NZ’s most prolific and respected musical talent gets together and jams without any particular goal in mind. Included in the group is Bret McKenzie (Flight of the Conchords), Age Pryor (Fly My Pretties, Woolshed Sessions, Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra), Justin Firefly (Fly My Pretties, Woolshed Sessions), Nigel Collins (Flight of the Conchords, Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra) and Ben... More
Exclusive: Destroy All False Metal does not play metal
25/10/2018
Destroy All False Metal might sound like a radical metalhead’s ultimate dictum but it’s actually just a band from Wellington, and tonight they’ll be playing Dunedin. Formed when members of Beatcomber, Goya and Mothers Dearest met up for a spontaneous jam, the (super?) group have been kicking around Wellington’s underground for the past few years. Now they’re bringing their new lineup to the South Island for the first... More
Sugarcoated Bullets on AMPED and Numbskull
22/09/2018
AMPED Project concluded again this year with a marathon 6 hour gig at Fifty Gorillas. Fifteen highschool acts played, who had all been coached and nurtured through the project (for free) by Nadia Reid, and who were all also seriously impressive. If this is the future of Dunedin music things are definitely looking good. I spoke to one of the bands who participated, Sugarcoated Bullets. They stand out... More
The mystery of Ben Woods
12/09/2018
It’s hard to know what to expect from Ben Woods Group. So far the only Ben Woods release is one song called “Lozenge” on Melted Icecream’s awesome new compilation of Ōtautahi music, Sickest Smashes from Arson City: Legacy Edition. It’s a sort of fuzzy lo-fi indie-pop type thing which feels just right as it slides down your earholes. I wouldn’t mind a few more of those. Other than... More
The Mentalist Collective are finally releasing an album
5/09/2018
The first time I saw The Mentalist Collective was when they played to a crowd of ten or so at one of ReFuels open mic nights. This was 2014, when ReFuel was still ReFuel and going to gigs there wasn’t cool. The open mic night performances ranged from impassioned singers with acoustic guitars covering Neil Young to the legendary banjo originals of Wolfman Stuey. It was an interesting... More
The All Seeing Hand on their new album and more
4/08/2018
At the Cook last Friday Wellington based indescribable trio The All Seeing Hand did what they do best. Set to a backdrop of RGB LEDs they transported the audience to a dystopian future of broken systems and syntactical errors. Also in this world was a uniformed commander wearing something reminiscent of an 18th century naval captain, a polyphonic wizard with samplers beneath his palms, and the searing scent... More
Talking to Methchrist
28/07/2018
If you’re feeling a little itchy it could be because Methchrist haven’t played a gig here since January, but that all changes tonight. In a vile ritual of hatred at the Crown Hotel, the solar anus will expand and from its foul depths spew forth a torrent of pure evil into the expectant mouths of the cult elite. There will be no escape, and only the true will... More
Talking Soaked Oats with Soaked Oats
2/07/2018
Dunedinsound: Your press release described you as a "southern stew of Kurt Vile, Mac DeMarco with a good shake of Kevin Morby". If you as a band were a real stew, what would be in it? Oscar: It'd have to be oats I guess. Dunedinsound: Oats in a stew? Oscar: Yeah it thickens it up. Henry: Stringy meat. Like quite a reasonbly poor cut of meat, like a... More
How to organise an all ages gig when all anyone wants to do is sell alcohol
27/06/2018
November last year a bunch of highschoolers decided to gather all of their friends and put on a big gig. They called it the Big Gig and that it was, with eight acts, five hours of music and a massive, enthusiastic crowd who were surprisingly interested in forming conga lines. Next weekend sees the much anticipated return of the Big Gig featuring a different but equally big lineup,... More
Talking to Julian Temple of Julian Temple Band
31/05/2018
In 2004 Julian Temple Band slipped quietly into the Dunedin music scene as a humble 3-piece. But what was three gradually become four, and now for their sixth album 14 years later they’ve flourished into a mighty six piece with the addition of Richard Ley-Hamilton of Males (and more) on guitar, Steve Marshall of Left or Right on bass and Logan Hampton of Alizarin Lizard on keys. I... More
Death and the Maiden on their new album
30/05/2018
Death and the Maiden’s second album exists in the same shadowy world they created in their self-titled debut but refines it, polishes it down until it’s a smooth black pebble. It’s an enigma, like being at a dance party and realizing part way through you’re actually at some sort of pagan ritual of death. Wisteria by Death And The Maiden It’s been just over a month since the... More
Talking to Damin McCabe of Jack Berry fame
5/05/2018
Damin McCabe, otherwise known as Jack Berry, assembled a band specifically for OUSA Battle of the Bands 2017 just to play his songs and see what would happen. They ended up winning. It wasn’t a surprise to me despite their band name sounding a lot like a working title... The grooves were tight and bouncy, the songs unbelievably catchy, and Damin’s autotune-enriched vocals added a unique edge. Although,... More
Record Store Day 2018 at Relics (video)
28/04/2018
Twenty years ago if you wanted music you had to leave your house, go to a record store, talk to some people, part with $30 and return with a CD to pop in your discman. But today we have near instant, near free access to most of the last few hundred years of recorded music. So that makes record stores obsolete, right? Well there’s certainly less demand but the... More
How ＳＰＬＡＳＨ ＣＬＵＢ ７ became a meme page (video)
21/04/2018
Way back in 2012 Dunedin local Jamie Dickson started releasing music online. He was inspired by a bubbly, aquatic-themed aesthetic called seapunk, which emerged in online communities such as Tumblr. He called his project SPLASH CLUB 7 after the highly influential 90s pop group S-Club 7. Fast forward to 2018 and SPLASH CLUB 7 has hundreds of thousands of fans from all across the globe. But for those... More
Talking to Julie Dunn of trace/untrace records (video)
7/04/2018
In the first of a video series on cool people doing cool things I spoke to Julie Dunn who runs trace/untrace, a local micro-independent record label to get the lowdown on the sort of operation she's running. Just under a year ago Julie Dunn and Richard Ley-Hamilton decided to start a record label. Their main kaupapa was to support DIY and grassroots efforts within Dunedin. Rather than aspiring towards... More
An evening with Sheep and some expired chips
24/03/2018
Graham Matrix, singer and guitarist for local post-grunge-pop band Sheep, passes around a bag of Sour Cream and Chives potato chips. “These are dated so they might taste a bit funny” he warns. Graham Matrix VS The Entire Galactic Chaos Empire by Sheep They taste fine to me, and apparently also to drummer Tobias Heeringa and keyboardist Josh Bottz, who munch them down eagerly. I first saw Sheep... More
Bediquette on his new EP
15/12/2017
Bediquette’s new EP YIELD came out about a week ago and it’s good. Really good. YIELD by bediquette Meaty bleeps and bloops shimmy around arrhythmic, danceable beats. Chewy digital textures forge an atmosphere which is both cold and organic, all while soft whispery vocals guide you through the harsh yet beautiful world. It’s an auditory feast. My only complaint is that it’s not long enough. If you haven’t... More
Talking to Karl Leisky about experimental electronic music
18/11/2017
mf/mp are a hot new semi-local label who’ve already made waves with their lathe cut “Sundrian Editions” which feature pairings of experimental electronic musicians from across the country. I talked with Karl Leisky, one of the label’s founders and artists, about their upcoming release event at Toitū and more. Why not give their latest release a spin while you read? sun003 by SL / Fuckault WHAT IS IT? mf/mp is... More
The Rothmans's on their second EP
17/11/2017
On a chilly August night in 2015 I went to a gig at the Robbie Burns pub and had my mind blown by a band called The Rothmans. A.S.L by The Rothmans I was there to support my friends in their pop punk band Slothvegas. By the time they’d finished the pub was empty apart from some old guys guzzling Speights and watching the cricket. Despite that I... More
Talking to Andrew Wilson from Die! Die! Die!
14/10/2017
Prolific post-punkers Die! Die! Die! have released another album, and are returning to Dunedin on Friday for a blistering show at None Gallery. I caught up with Andrew Wilson who’s handled lead vocals and guitar since he formed the band in 2003. CHARM.OFFENSIVE by Die! Die! Die! SO CHARM.OFFENSIVE RELEASED LAST WEEK. HOW DOES THAT FEEL? Yeah, good good good… It’s quite funny when you release a record... More
Sugarcoated Bullets and the new wave of Dunedin bands
4/10/2017
Dunedin’s high schools are pumping out more fizzy bands than ever before, although you might not know it because most venues are bars, and bars don’t allow highschoolers... Luckily we’ve got DIY spaces like The Attic who, next weekend, will be hosting a huge lineup of highschool bands. Not only will it be a hell of a lot of fun, but it'll be a chance for people like... More
Koizilla: Prolific psych-rockers
30/09/2017
For the third time in a year Dunedin’s one and only surfadelic riff monster ‘Koizilla’ is releasing an EP. Clean the Kitchen. end the world by Koizilla This one’s titled ‘Clean the Kitchen. End the World’, a follow up to June’s ‘doomsurfdoom’ and September’s ‘Blunder Brother’. This prolific release schedule brings to mind the Australian psychrock band King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, possibly not a coincidence since... More
Joining Agent Ewok for a jam session
23/09/2017
We emerged from the tiny practice room on Baldwin Street trembling and sweaty. It wasn’t a warm day, but the doors and windows had to be kept closed otherwise the neighbors would complain about the noise, so it’d gotten hot. Guitarist and vocalist Oscar Francis immediately rolled a cigarette. “It’s a special occasion” he explains. I wasn’t quite sure what the occasion was. Maybe it was the set... More
METHCHRIST discuss their new album and more
15/09/2017
Finally some good news for local fans of war, filth, corruption, torture, scum, obliteration and death. In a ritual of hatred and disdain at Crown Hotel tonight, METHCHRIST will unleash their full-length album “Nomadic War Machine” upon the true followers. If you’re not a member of the cult elite you can still experience the desecration by checking it out on Bandcamp or picking up a cassette. The album... More
Onslaught 13
28/08/2017
By the time you’re reading this it’ll be too late: Onslaught will have begun. Probably the biggest event in Dunedin’s music calendar, the Onslaught punk festival is back for the 13th time and it’s huge. Eighteen bands from all over the country converge on the Crown Hotel to ensure your innards are fully liquified over two nights. If you weren’t there last night you missed out, but luckily... More
William Henry Meung on defining experimental music and more (Video)
5/08/2017
William Henry Meung recently released his latest of many musical projects. A long time member of the Dunedin "experimental" music scene, he spoke to me about how he defines his music, how he ended up where he is artistically, and the role of public art. Rotten Rainbows. side X: Devour the hands. side Y: Spit out the leaves. side Z: Bonus live recording at The Auricle Sonic Arts Gallery.... More
Cath Cocker on the value of public art and more (Video)
4/08/2017
Local artist Cath Cocker recently organized the Nocturnal Projections and Other Small Happenings art event. I spoke to her about why she values public art and some of the challenges she faced along the way. ... More
Astro Children open up about the new album and the state of the Dunedin music scene
2/08/2017
Recently I caught up with Millie from Astro Children to discuss their new album, One Direction, and general feelings on the Dunedin music scene. THIS IS A BORING QUESTION BUT HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR MUSIC? It might a boring question but I still don't have an answer. Whenever I get asked that I'm like I don't know, it's loud? It's kind of hard as well because our... More
