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December/January 2017

COVER STORY

Interviews

SWIDT: Straight Outta Onehunga

Finalists for both the 2016 Critics Choice Prize and the Urban / Hip Hop Album of the Year Tui at the NZ Music Awards that followed soon after, unassuming Auckland hip hop newcomers SWIDT missed out on ...

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FEATURES

Interviews

The Eversons: (Not Stuck ) In London

It’s a rite of passage, isn’t it? Pack up your bags and head for British shores, pull pints in a pub or become one of the many fabled Kiwi baristas of London. Bid farewell to Aotearoa and see what ...

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Interviews

Paul Cathro: Parachute Down

The last time Paul Cathro was pictured in NZ Musician it was as a member of Dunedin band Ha The Unclear, who were about to drop their debut album in mid-2014. Recorded not long before they moved north, ...

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Book Reviews

Hirini Melbourne: Toiapiapi, 25th Anniversary Edition

The original release in 1991 of ‘Toiapiapi’ by Hirini Melbourne (1949-2003) was a profound and beautiful landmark on the soundscape of NZ music. A first of its kind with an exclusive use of te reo ...

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Interviews

The Verlaines: Delayed Gratification

The Verlaines have been a musical force for 35 years (in various guises), and intriguingly currently exist in two versions, one of which is the original trio of Graeme Downes, Jane Dodd and Robbie Yeats. ...

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Fresh Talent

Fresh Talent: Lukas

“I used to think, ‘if you don’t get anywhere when you’re young with music, you’re not gonna get anywhere. You need to start building a foundation now.’” Referencing the upcoming release ...

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Industry

Jeremy Ansell: Sifting Through Neil Finn’s Private Universe

Crowded House fans had a September to remember with the announcement that the seven albums the band produced between 1986 and 2010 would soon be re-issued in deluxe editions. Each album has been expanded ...

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Fresh Talent

Fresh Talent: Albion Place

Taking its name from a street on the band’s home turf of Dunedin, Albion Place formed in 2011 and currently includes Micah Davis-Rae on guitar and vocals, Hugh Fulton (synthesiser), Tom Kelk on bass ...

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Interviews

Sacha Vee: Sweet Distractions

Being of mixed heritage has proven a creative blessing for quite a number of our best known music artists. In Sacha Van Beek’s case it was a Dutch one via her father’s parents, and a connection with ...

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Interviews

Madeira: In Good Humour?

Her voice first danced its way into our lives during the summer of 2014, when Yumi Zouma’s introductory single The Brae was on heavy rotate across alternative radio airwaves. Based in Christchurch, Kim ...

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Fresh Talent

Fresh Talent: Tommy Nee

Growing up in Hawkes Bay, Niuean singer/songwriter Tommy Nee found an escape from his “tough upbringing” through music. Difficulties faced throughout his life have undoubtedly shaped his sound, with ...

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Fresh Talent

Fresh Talent: Molly & The Chromatics

Over the summer of 2014, Molly & The Chromatics started playing covers at house parties. With most of the original line up hailing from Auckland’s North Shore they quickly developed a solid following ...

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Interviews

Kings: Don’t Worry, Be Happy

Six60 and Broods pretty much owned the NZ Singles Chart back in May when an unknown guy calling himself Kings turned up with Don’t Worry Bout It, which entered at #20. After hovering in the bigger numbers ...

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Interviews

Albi And The Wolves: A Pack Of Three

Easily mistaken at first glance as an oddball half-band – an open-mic night kind of unfinished ensemble – Albi And The Wolves typically take little more time than the obligatory count in to convincingly ...

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Fresh Talent

Fresh Talent: Iris Guevarra

The young Iris Guevarra was only seven years of age, yet heartbroken and crushed at what she thought was the realisation that her dreams could never come true… “I joined the talent competition, ...

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Interviews

Opetaia Foa’i: Making Moana’s music

New Zealand composers quite possibly have a strong reputation in Disney land, courtesy of Bret McKenzie’s genius in composing Man or Muppet, for which he famously won the Original Song Oscar at the 2012 ...

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Book Reviews

The Dunedin Sound – Some Disenchanted Evening

By Ian Chapman, Bateman Publishing, rrp $50 One of the many endearing aspects of Dr Ian Chapman’s book, 'The Dunedin Sound - Some Disenchanted Evening', is just how much of it is taken up with the ...

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Get Yer Kit Off

Get Yer Kit Off: Jimmy Mac

Throughout 2014 James McDonald performed all across the globe with Lorde, playing not drums but synths and electronics. Late last year Jimmy Mac surfaced back home in Auckland under the guise of Scuba ...

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Remembering...

Ray Columbus OBE (4/11/1942 – 29/11/2016)

For those going out to popular music venues or at home watching TV in the 1970s and ’80s, Ray Columbus was a very familiar figure. A fantastically versatile performer and unusually great Kiwi showman ...

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LESSONS

Guitar Cool

Guitar Cool: Coping with Pressure and Stress

It’s that time again and of course I hope that you have a great Christmas and New Year – and that Father Christmas brings you that new guitar you have been dreaming about.  With that possibility in ...

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Finding Your Voice

Finding Your Voice: How Aotearoa Is Perfect For Touring!

I had the great privilege of recently touring Aotearoa with Arts on Tour and experienced tour veterans The Alpaca Social Club, stretching from Riverton to Kaitaia with 23 gigs in 26 daze! This column ...

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Tutors' Tutorial

Tutors’ Tutorial: Mixing In The Box – Part 4

Panning is one of the first concepts people become familiar with when getting into music production. The pan pot (panorama potentiometer) is right there on the channel strip and moving it around probably ...

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Deep Thinking

Deep Thinking: Some 12/8 Xmas Trickiness With The Verlaines!

As it’s the Christmas period, I thought I would do some shameless marketing. There is a new album, ‘Dunedin Spleen’ from The Verlaines, a Dunedin band with which I play, that’s due for release ...

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MUSIC

Draghound

Draghound EP

18/04/2017

Mass Spectrometer

Périphérique EP

20/02/2017

David D'Angelo

Born In Paradise

17/02/2017

Makeshift Parachutes

Mr Happy EP

15/02/2017

Princess Chelsea

Aftertouch

09/02/2017

Abigail Knudson

Religion EP

08/02/2017

Rebel Sound Radio

Regret Nothing

07/02/2017

Fly My Pretties

String Theory

06/02/2017

One Waka

Dub Sea Voyages

04/02/2017

Show Me Where It Hurts

Self-titled EP

03/02/2017

Roy Irwin

Jesus On Fire EP

02/02/2017

Hopetoun Brown

Look So Good

01/02/2017

Deathnir

Die By The Axe

31/01/2017

Troy Kingi & The Electric Haka Boogie

Guitar Party at Uncle’s Bach

27/01/2017

Emo Empire

Fact & Regret

25/01/2017

Bonfire Baby

Self-titled EP

24/01/2017

The Thomas Brothers

Self-titled

24/01/2017

Miles Calder & The Rumours

Self-titled

20/01/2017

Black Fox Trio

Rhythm Is Your King EP

19/01/2017

Matt Joe Gow

Seven Years

18/01/2017

Electric Wire Hustle

The 11th Sky

17/01/2017

Ross Mullins

The Poet And The Fisherman

16/01/2017

This Little Badge

Pass It On EP

13/01/2017

Zed Brookes

O Sweet Cacophony

13/01/2017

Jake Stokes

Before We’re All Dead EP

11/01/2017

Tommy Nee

Colorblind EP

10/01/2017

Myele Manzanza

OnePointOne

09/01/2017

The Cattlestops

Dance In The Rain

06/01/2017

The Zoup

Symbiotic

05/01/2017

The Hopkinsville Goblins

Posts From Planet Earth

05/01/2017

Albi And The Wolves

One Eye Open

05/01/2017

Holly Christina

Sweet 16

22/12/2016

John Key Trio

Back & Forth

21/12/2016

Devilskin

Be Like The River

21/12/2016

Looking For Alaska

Looking For Alaska

19/12/2016

Anna Coddington

Luck/Time

16/12/2016

Tourettes

Feel Like Shit, Looking Great!

15/12/2016