Fresh%20Talent

She’s been compared to the likes of Erykah Badu and Kimbra, but Wellington-based singer, songwriter and beat-maker Estere Dalton is proving to be a one-of-a-kind performer and is quickly making her mark on our underground music scene. She and her MPC 1000 Sampling Station, dubbed ‘Lola’, have just come off the tail end of a stream of wildly successful live shows across the country, including an impressive showcase at Camp A Low Hum earlier this year, and show no signs of slowing down. ...more

Essentially the vision of songwriter/singer and guitarist Jason McIver, Heathen Eyes is now in its in its second incarnation, after a period of finding their feet, both musically and professionally, with members coming and going for various reasons... ...more

In the midst of a busy Thursday, I sat down for a Skype date with Volita Pearl Bioletti, guitarist, vocalist, and founding member of indie rock and roll outfit, The Neo-Kalashnikovs. Having begun as a solo artist, Volita eventually grew disillusioned, throwing in her single status for the chance to collaborate with brothers Moss (on drums and also on Skype) in 2007, and subsequently bassist Gabriel in 2010. ...more

Christchurch band The Response defy description – in fact, they struggle to pigeonhole themselves. The musical duo and married couple, Andy and Vic Knopp, say they "move around” the musical landscape: alt, electronic, folk, indie, pop… ...more

Auckland three-piece Yolanda have been playing their own brand of crunchy, groovy, neo-psychedelia since high school, and performing in their current incarnation since 2010. The band consists of guitarist and vocalist Pete Ruddell, bassist Carl Redwood and drummer and percussionist Bridge. ...more

On a sunny Auckland afternoon in Parnell, I sat down with a light beverage and Chloe Langley, half of the self-proclaimed rockabilly two-piece Faster Pussycat Kill Kill. With foundations built on and influenced by the likes of artists such as Brian Setzer, Tom Waits and The Kills, the FPKK sound is a garage-pop, mixed-gender masterpiece, filled with stories of high school dropouts, fast cars and love gone wrong. ...more

Formed only in August of 2012, Auckland psych/rock trio Husk have already toured extensively around the North Island and released two singles, My Love and Sick Seagull Blues. Featuring Ukiah Brown on vocals and guitar, Robert Bruce on bass and Matt Hutson on drums, Husk describe their sound as "… heavy, grooving, hectic and satisfyingly fluid’. ...more

Summer has been kind to Jesse Will. The Auckland singer/songwriter was named Roundhead Studios’ Songwriter of the Year last year and he just finished recording his debut EP, ‘Hold Your Cards’. ...more

Pukerua Bay band Killing Bear features Tia Beaufort on the drums, samples and vocals with Cormac Ferris on the guitar, effects and lead vocals. Shortly after the demise of grunge rock band Alpha Noise in 2009, Ferris starting writing new songs and started his own solo project, then Beaufort joined and Killing Bear was born. Their name is derived from the concept of their music, as Beaufort explains. ...more

Nick Raven may be a fairly fresh face on the Kiwi music scene, but that hasn’t slowed him down from releasing a debut album, ‘Love and Lomography’. His music evokes the introspection of a desert traveller; each plaintive song seems glimpsed through a heat haze, staying around just long enough to get stuck in your head before slipping away again. ...more

From that cold, dark corner of NZ known as Dunners comes the sunniest indie-pop band you’re likely to hear, this year or next. Males is comprised of Richard Ley-Hamilton (guitar, vocals) Sam Valentine (bass, vocals) and Ben Madden (drums, vocals). Sam Valentine acknowledges the summery nature of their music, but isn’t sure where it comes from. ...more

It was a fortuitous bit of late night listening that led me to discover Shepherds of Cassini. Having met bassist Vitesh through a mutual friend I was finally checking out the link he’d sent me weeks earlier. It was after midnight, the lights were out, seemed the perfect time to squeeze one more track in. ...more

Even though they’ve supported international heavyweights like Green Day and Kaiser Chiefs, wooed fans at the Parachute Music Festival and had a strong showing with singles Cinema Smile and Make Light, Young Lyre’s internet footprint remains relatively small. That’s bound to change soon as the Auckland five-piece’s charming new EP ‘Nightswimming’ is sure to get people talking. ...more

It happens that I was there at the start – a party held by The Neo-Kalashnikovs’ Volita Bioletti in Mt Albert, Auckland. Apart from really good nibbles, lots of ex-Fleet FM DJs and number of surprisingly young fellow human beings, it’s worth mentioning that performing at the party were Otis Mace, some band with Shane Holland in it, and most importantly Jessie Kollen’s then-band, Public Hair. That’s where Mark Paton met Jessie. ...more

A ghostly hybrid of delta blues, bluegrass and alternative folk, Nina McSweeney’s debut album ‘The Bitter Sea’ effortlessly soars and grinds through the nine beautifully-crafted tracks. Opening with lead single Lost In Translation, McSweeney ushers us into a haunting world of contrast; personal stories pitted against myth, sweet strings against gritty distortion. ...more

The level of songwriting at this year’s Auckland University Songwriters Competition was extremely high, with all participants showcasing one ‘intimate’ song and two with the backing of a full band. Popular Music student Sam Springett ended up taking out the prize, his solo number entitled Slow Dance pricking the ears of the industry-based judging panel. ...more

Auckland-based two-piece, The Bemsha Swing, are a post-punk band with a difference. The difference being neither member plays the drums – channeling the legendary Steve Albini’s Big Black project. They‘ve even recently given the drum machine a name, ‘Frankie’. ...more

Alot of bands start out looking to get their foot in door or a pole vault into the public eye via grants or high profile support slots. Auckland two-piece Igor, consisting of Catherine de Barra and Brittany Roxanne, are going against the grain in creating their own opportunities regardless of what’s going on around them. Rather than waiting for someone to help them out they’re helping themselves. The formation of Igor however is more nonchalant than their work ethic would have you believe. ...more

Having subjected gig-goers to their intense live show for some time now, Zac Arnold and Martin Selman are about to self release their debut EP. With four tracks clocking in at just under five minutes it really does encapsulate the fierce whirlwind that, as Mean Girls, they’ve become known for. ...more

To follow her musical ambitions Rhiain McGrath sold her piano. It may seem an odd way to begin pursuing a career in music but for the demure leading lady of Rhiain and the Utter Strangers, it made perfect sense. The money raised from the sale went towards the recording of her first EP, ‘Heartplusmelody’. ...more

Auckland act Cool Rainbows is Djeisan Suskov’s baby. Suskov has been around for a while, playing in bands such as Trees Climbing Trees, the early 2000 post-punk outfit Nova Echo, who were basically Cut Off Your Hands, plus Djeisan. Cool Rainbows features around six other musicians when performing live. ...more

Five Mile Town are fresh talent at its freshest. The three teenagers have only been making music together for six months, but somehow in that time have managed to put together a solid bunch of songs, release an EP, sell out the release show, perform live on Good Morning and nab two shows in Australia, opening for Sydney-based band, Set Sail, in June. ...more

Christchurch power trio Ipswich – named from a street sign somewhere between Christchurch and Dunedin – are a force be reckoned with. ...more

With her first single, You’ll Never Take That Away, Jamie McDell’s acoustic blend of folk and pop, along with a fair bit of country, has started making appearances on our TVs and commercial radio stations. ...more

While recording Lydia Cole's debut album ‘Me and Moon’ at Neil Finn’s Roundhead Studios in Newton last year, during lunch, one of the engineers walked into the kitchen where the band was eating. In a tone suggesting it was nothing special, he said three words: ‘It’s snowing outside’. Like kids, grins Lydia Cole, she and her band jumped from their chairs out onto the street, dancing in the snow. ...more

Will Saunders, formally of Auckland trio The Quick And The Dead has been toiling away on his own ‘odd folk psych’ solo project since August. He has previously spent time amongst the smoky streets of London and whilst there says he learnt some important truths about making music. ...more

Wellington-based performer, DJ, radio host and music producer, George Duncan (aka D:UNK) is embracing the DIY ethic with both hands. He tells me how he uses a hand-built, arcade-style MIDI controller and Monome to manipulate his idiosyncratic sounds and synthed-up beats on stage. Now a student with Victoria University’s Sonic Arts programme, he’s learnt to write specialist software that works in with his devices like futuristic instruments. ...more

Merely 17 and already a skilled MC, songwriter, beatmaker and bandleader, Loui The ZU (Mzwethu Ngubane), is representative of the first wave of tumblr.com generation musicians to emerge here in NZ. Blending blogging with social network themes popularised on facebook and twitter, tumblr allows users to post text, images, videos, links, quotes and audio to their page. Heavily utilised by a new breed of 25-and-under outsider musicians, the site allows these often completely D.I.Y artists to showcase, beyond just their musical works, efforts in graphic design, photography, art and even home filmmaking. ...more

British / Kenyan ex-pat Mara Simpson arrived in Wellington two and a half years ago, and quickly came to love the capital’s musical and creative scene. “I really liked NZ music already”, she says, “and I think Wellington’s such an amazing, creative hub and very unpretentious!” So, desperately wanting to become involved Mara’s Kiwi musical voyage begun. She did a couple of solo gigs, but before long it became a natural collaboration involving quite a few other people. ...more

It’s been a long wait for Miss Little. With almost five years between her ‘Miss Little’ EP, which she did in 2006, and the recent release of her very impressive Sydney-recorded debut album, ‘When Things Fall Apart And Into Place’. “The album kind of decided to take this long – I never meant for it to take so long. The initial recordings only took a week or two actually, the rest was waiting really.” Outside of Miss Little, Sarah McCallum (whose direct musical lineage includes father Mal and brother Lewis) is an accomplished composer and arranger, with a strong classical background. But the crossover between the two personas ends there. ...more

Christchurch band Mmdelai truly are Mmdelicious. Their freshly recorded, self-titled EP is like candy to the ears, jam packed of eerie, unique tracks that are a cut above the offerings of many of their contemporaries. Heavily influenced by U.N.K.L.E, the band say that the sound captured on the EP is “one massive evolving collaboration, inspired by friends bands, other bands we’re in, and life events in general.” ...more

Sherpa have been cutting their teeth on the underground circuit for a few years now, but have only just started to gain real traction. With their new album ‘Lesser Flamingo’ due outin March and a refreshed style plus line up, they’re ready to take that giant step from teen underground party band to the next big thing. ...more

Together as a band since February 2009, Wellington post-rock quintet Spook The Horses’ desolate, fuzzy soundscapes and growled vocal performances are the product of lasting friendships, a series of never quite solidified bands dating back the members’ high school years, and the social nature of the local music scene. As guitarist Donnie Cuzens' states, “Wellington can be a fairly close-knit culture a lot of the time. Alex, Ben and I shared stages in separate bands for about three or four years before I joined them in Spook The Horses.” ...more

I remember the first time I heard Tied On Teeth, I was listening to one of the bNets and was struck by a track so catchy I had to actually stop what I was doing and take note. Like a bee stuck in a net. Blue sounds like the 5.6.7.8’s track Woo Hoo as featured in Kill Bill Volume One, but played with the freshness and fervor only youth can provide. ...more

Released in September, ‘Trials’ is the debut from expandable two-piece Christchurch outfit The Tiny Lies. Not only about the trials we all face in life around “… love, loss and the infinite grey areas in-between,” it also takes into account the many trials and tribulations Charlotte Ivey and Harley Williams went through to record and release this little gem. ...more

Sitting at a table with Tom Scott, Lui Tuiasau, Christoph ‘El Truento’ James and Hayden ‘Dick Dastardly’ Dick – collectively known as @Peace, in homage to the Twitter generation – I’m watching Tom and Lui sort through the pieces of a partially-assembled puzzle. ...more

At least half the members of southern four-piece Alizarin Lizard have an academic music background, which they put to good use writing extremely catchy songs. A likeable bunch, they have also done their homework on how the music industry works – figuring out how to make a profit in the low-budget local touring business better than many others. ...more

Of Nigerian descent but born in the UK, Bohemian Thought (real name: Bohemian Thanni) arrived in NZ five years ago. An information technology worker at the time, Bohemian relocated here after writing, as he puts it, “A letter to a friend, which actually became a message to myself that it was time for a change”. ...more

Eight girls, all dressed in different colored boiler suits and surrounded by instruments are crammed into the cave-like stage at Ponsonby’s Golden Dawn Tavern. They haven’t even begun, yet all eyes are on them. It is the Wellington acts’ first gig in Auckland – their EP release show – and above them a hand-sewn quilt reads: ‘St Rupertsberg’. ...more

They’re Dirty Sweets and they’re done dirt cheap. Actually that’s half wrong and at least another half misleading. The name is actually taken from the 1971 T. Rex hit Get It On – and the tracks on their two EPs to date have been recorded professionally, albeit track-by-track as funds permitted. ...more

Auckland rock trio Black Palm’s debut EP ‘Better’ has a grunty, dirty rock and roll sound, but a candid chat to the boys reveals a variety of musical backgrounds and influences that belies their gutsy swagger. ...more

For an awkwardly angular 150kg instrument, Joe Blossom’s piano gets around. In the last month his Yamaha CP70 has been seen on Breakfast TV, on the dance-floor at a Wellington bar, and polished for a music video shoot in an Auckland high-rise. Born Sean O’Brien, Joe Blossom says the 1970s Yamaha is centre-stage to his act. A portable electronic piano would lack the sound and showbiz that wooed a five-star review from Grant Smithies. ...more

Some acts just exude a natural musicality and ‘togetherness’ that makes the rest of us slightly envious. Katie Scott & The Miss T’s (sisters Bronwyn and Kayla Turei) are one such trio. Even perched on chairs and couches in the living room on a wintery evening, each casually holding a guitar (or bass in Kayla’s case), when they rehearse a song, it’s tight, it’s warm, and their vocals and harmonies are flawless. ...more

Seth Haapu has been writing songs since he was 8 years old. “I used a Panasonic tape cassette recorder, I’m sure it was from like 1986. I was 8 at the time, so I didn’t really know how to play anything, but I used a Kenny G track – I think it was called Home, and wrote a song to that” he laughs. ...more

It’s a rarity that a meeting at a schools’ choral festival would lead to something unique and unconventional. However, this is what happened to Wet Wings, the Christchurch-raised, Wellington-based duo of Darian Woods and Lucy Botting. ...more

If there ever was a band that didn’t deserve a Fresh Talent profile, Beastwars is it. They deserve the cover. All four band members have been working in the music industry for many years, and have played in a variety of bands. Yet news about Beastwars’ brand of heavy, fiery, fuse-blowing rock is just trickling out, for it took five years to record their first album. ...more

In late 2009, Kate Uhe returned to Wellington from her OE and formed City Oh Sigh with friends Catherine Henehan and Sarah Smythe. The name emerged from Kate’s time in Britain, where she performed with bands such as Ladybird and Planet Earth. “I was London, so that’s where the ‘City’ came from, and I was a bit tired of it. That’s where the ‘Sigh’ comes from. And, I liked the sound of it” Kate explains. ...more

'Mr Hayday' is one lucky guy. Not only is he the creator of some very catchy and fun electronic beat music, he arrived ready-made with his own stage name. The name Hayday seems to suit him just fine with his sunny disposition and quirky tunes. ...more

Wellington act The Body Lyre formed in 2009 after vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Rhydian Thomas’ band Strangers broke up. Rhydian had been involved in the local hardcore and metal scenes, and his (now defunct) record label Actionman Records released Hamilton hardcore. The Body Lyre (after lines from Rimbaud poems) began as his solo project before he recruited vocalist Ana McGowan. ...more

Over 2008 and ’09, working alongside Johanna Freeman (his girlfriend at the time) Mark Turner achieved a modicum of local and international recognition as a bedroom pop duo called Little Pictures. After a stint spent touring Europe and living in Amsterdam, Freeman and Turner “... decided to put that all behind us, went our separate ways and came back here.” ...more

It’s not often that an unknown, and unrecorded Kiwi artist gets signed to an Australian record label, but that’s exactly what happened to Hollie Fullbright, aka Tiny Ruins. Hollie had recorded some demos in her bedroom, put them up on myspace, and was working on playing a few shows and doing some more recording with her friend Djeisan Suskov (aka Cool Rainbows) when she got an email from Aussie indie label Spunk Records. ...more

Born in Fiji to Fijian and Danish parents, raised on Auckland’s North Shore, Erakah (real name Kate Bennison) has been singing in church choirs since a young age, but it wasn’t until she left high school that she began to think seriously about being a professional singer. ...more

Ghost Wave is a three- or sometimes four-man band (they’ve just expanded their line up to include a new bass player - Mike Ellis) who are Auckland indie label Arch Hill’s most recent signing. ...more

Aucklander Ben Tolich does have a good reason to call his new band Mali Mali. “My birthday is the independence day of the country Mali – but there were other bands already called Mali, so I doubled it.” ...more

According to Joel C. Blood, Auckland four-piece Blue Blood are a band keen for pretty much anything. Boredom and conventionality however, not so much. “Blue Blood believe in the party gods. Life is too short not to enjoy it to its fullest.” ...more

Finding information on recent Monkey Records’ signee Chris Hurn is a problematic exercise. Aside from barebones MySpace, Facebook and imdb pages, and an official website, there is little decent information on this Tauranga-born, Lower Hutt resident. Hurn started playing classical piano at around 10, spending his next decade focused on that king of instruments (and fundamental backbone of song writing). After 10 years twinkling the ivories, Hurn, as he explains, “started adding other instruments on top of that.” ...more

For a bunch of guys who are so laid back, their music is anything but. Their first gig together prompted a last minute rush for a name, which ended up as Popstrangers, derived from an obvious mash of ‘popular’ and ‘strangers’. No postmodern connotations, really. Two years, a line up change and a trip across the ditch later, Popstrangers aren’t strictly all that new, but just like a Sunday morning in Avondale, these guys are still pretty fresh. To keep their sound in tip top shape, they cut dead song ideas right off at the pass. ...more

Auckland-based Black River Drive are a band earmarked for success. At just two years of age, their list of achievements include a song reaching number one on the Rock FM, a tour with Autozamm and an album release. Add to this their recent gig opening for rock heroes Bon Jovi, and you have a band looking poised to be the next big thing. ...more

While appropriately playing at times on the very evident Wild West theme, Wellington’s Jessie James and the Outlaws more often colour their music with more local storytelling and politics. ...more

Strange Beast are young, energetic and a relatively new band on the scene, but certainly no strangers to each other or to the live stage. The threesome of Calum Salmond, Daniel Barrett and Liam Mertens have known each other since attending Rangeview Intermediate, and have been writing songs together since they were 16. ...more

For a band that describes their music as “pre-apocalyptic rock music that is heralding the end,” guitarist Michael Hall and vocalist Peter Wujkowski of Carthaginian are surprisingly approachable guys. Self-confessed “massive geeks”, Michael and Pete waste no time in delving into the musical philosophies of their Auckland-based four-piece, most importantly the politics surrounding authenticity and creative freedom. ...more

Wellingtonian Eva Prowse has been steadily becoming well known through work with her musician father, Chris Prowse, and performances with the Fly My Pretties caravan. She has a long history with music, having played various instruments from a young age. ...more

For the last six years Will Rattray has traveled in endless circles around the islands, bringing the swamp rock thump of Thought Creature to towns as far flung as Franz Josef. That band carved its identity on the road, then proceeded to release their first album, ‘Teleport Palace’ in 2008. The fact that this was only two years back at first makes Rattray’s forays into a side project sound strange. ...more

We like animals,” says The Good Fun’s lead singer/guitarist Leroy Clampitt when asked to describe his own idea of ‘good fun’. “To be able to hang out and talk with, for example, a lion for a day, would be pretty good fun.” And right away (as if his name wasn’t giveaway enough) I realise that this Waikato four-piece possess that slightly unhinged quirkiness creative musicians are renowned for. ...more

Wholesome Kiwi breakfast – Weetbix, yoghurt, and stewed blackboy peaches. It may not be the most ‘rock & roll’ band-name-story, but thanks to the hospitality of one great aunty, it is now forever etched in history as the birthplace of Dunedin band Black Boy Peaches. ...more

It’s a lazy Sunday afternoon when I meet Glass Owls at an inner city Auckland café. Tomas Nelson and Anthony Metcalf had already been wandering around the city a good hour before our interview. ...more

Hailing from Auckland, this heavy melodic rock five piece started playing music together at high school, bringing together their disparate musical backgrounds for various school bands, and Rockquest projects. Upon leaving school they took a five year break from music, each pursuing their own careers, but came back together four years ago to reform November Zulu. ...more

Active on the circuit since November last year, Auckland-based alternative rock act Rackets have quickly forged a reputation around the country for ludicrously fast paced (almost time alternating in fact) noisy songs with unrepentant pop hook sensibilities. ...more

Killing Bear is a tomahawk-wielding, vengeful spirit possessing the reluctant body of all-American guy named Frank Williams. Killing Bear lives in the Amazon and eats mutant creatures for breakfast. ...more

As a law student learning a dense new vocabulary, Joe Buchanan admits a little legal lexicon has slipped into the rhymes he writes as Rap Authoritar. ...more

The Outsiders are a Wellington based alt-rock-punk four-piece who’ve spent the last 18 months recording their debut album ‘The Words Will Write Themselves’ in between touring Europe and Australia, and flexing their live muscles playing everywhere from squats in Germany to sold out international crowds in Amsterdam. ...more

If there is any one person that Tono and The Finance Company do not want to be, it is Barry Smith from the middle of the North Island. Vocalist/song-writer Anthonie Tonnon says he wrote the song Barry Smith From Hamilton, from the band’s upcoming sophomore EP ‘Fragile Thing’, after a Sunday night at home with his folks watching television. ...more

Growing up on a diet of The Specials, Public Enemy, Afrika Bambaata and The Clash – Nadeem Shafi (aka Scalper) has an interesting taste in music – a reflection of where he grew up in Ilford, London he says. A cultural melting pot of different ethnic groups, from the Pakistanis and second generation West Indians, to the local Londoners. ...more

It may seem like an unusual plan, but singer/songwriter Phil Austen decided to go back to university so he could start a band. He figured that the pop music course at Auckland University would be a likely place to start looking for talented bandmates. And indeed it was. Though they’re not all current students, ...more

An Auckland group of 30-somethings doesn’t necessarily conjure up a portrait of magic, fur-bearing mammals, but that is almost exactly the type of image the band Thieves were going to go for. ...more

Fearful for the future of his people, King Tubby sent his most trusted advisor to recruit the Knights of the DUB Table…who would honour and protect his way of life, and the way of the DUB (Dedication, Unity, Brotherhood).” ...more

Auckland’s Mile High members having all been jamming in their bedrooms (with or without instruments) since a young age, finally finding each other and forming as a five-piece in late 2008. From there it’s been a quick take off, with their first single Now getting noticed with radio play on The Rock and Zone FM, along with appearances on Sunrise, The Big Night In and C4, also recently performing at the Big Day Out. ...more

The smooth dusky vocals of 24 year old Sacha Vee have garnered comparisons with Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Billie Holiday and our own Hollie Smith (all of whom she draws inspiration from), but Vee is not one to be defined by comparisons. Having recently released her debut self-titled EP and toured the country, she is gaining recognition for her versatility and polish – which has been developed over a lifetime of musical exposure and collaboration. ...more

When you picture a bear and a cat blended together, you don’t necessarily immediately think of a panda. But when translated from Chinese, panda evidently literally becomes bear cat. So when Auckland’s own ‘panda pop’ band (made up of Dan Trevarthen and Jocee Tuck, plus friends) were looking for a name that rolled off the tongue and reflected their inspiration, ‘Bear Cat’ seemed to fit nicely. ...more

The Teacups are a three-piece from Auckland, beguiling audiences with their lush vocal harmonies. Having just released their debut album ‘Forest Fiction’, they have come to wider attention performing highly acclaimed opening slots for Jose Gonzalez and Cat Power amongst others, getting significant bNet radio airplay and having the whimsical and wondrous Magic Song placed on a TV ad for Massey University. ...more

I can’t get the youthful country styles of The Unfaithful Ways off my mind. From the creative fountain which makes up Christchurch’s Lyttelton Harbour, also home to The Eastern, comes another excellent alt-country band in the 4-part shape of The Unfaithful Ways. ...more

Tiddabadés (pronounced tid-dah-bad-uz), which sounds curiously similar to high-school street slang ‘to-the-baddest’, are Wellington’s latest offering of new wave party-punk. Formerly known as Batman Tiddabades after a sausage dog that frequented their bass player’s rugby practices, the ‘Batman’ was ditched due to a series of death threats. ...more

Apparently the songs of Auckland five-piece Great North were delivered to front man Hayden Donnell by drunk angels – “So I thought I’d better get a band together…” While this romantic notion fits their particular blend of alt-country folk rock, inspired by Springsteen, Gillian Welch and Wilco, the truth is more that they’re all friends, who decided to start a band. ...more

The title Haunted Love conjures up many visions, but as Geva Downey and Rainy McMaster explain, the idiosyncratic name was taken from Geva’s collection of Gothic Romance comics from the ’60s and ’70s – which are often source material for their unique dark pop. Formed in 2005, Haunted Love emerged in 2007 with the song Librarian – the film-noir-ish video portraying them as librarians wreaking revenge on a rule-breaking patron in Dunedin’s Public Library. ...more

Stevie Starr (known as Stevie Nicholl to his parents) is bursting with passionate ideas about the creative industries, and when it comes to talking about music (his own or others) he is an effusive interviewee. Finding a love of music as a teenager, he soon realised it fit nicely with his penchant for poetry and began weaving the two together. Picking up more instruments and influences over time, he began working towards an album about four years ago. ...more

Dear Time’s Waste is the creation of Claire Duncan, a project that began in her bedroom and has grown into a fully-fledged band. The name comes from Shakespeare’s Sonnet 30, a poem about looking back on the past with both regret and nostalgia. “I think for me it relates to the way I feel about creating music, having a really cyclic relationship that doesn’t really ever end.” Auckland-born Duncan grew up surrounded by a musical family, especially her father. “My dad’s a one-man-band, he plays pretty much everything.” ...more

Trent Reznor, meets William Burroughs, meets Ridley Scott, with a bottle of red and a good frock.’ That’s the somewhat tongue in cheek, but reasonably apt description offered by electronica/ rock/ breakbeat/DnB act Haluciagea when asked about their debut album ‘Liminoid’. ...more

Hideto Kobayashi moved to Christchurch from Tokyo in 2001, and through his production and DJ work, started performing under the moniker Rare Shot Blue in 2005, working with various talented local musicians. Kobayashi explains the name matter-of-factly: “I wanted to be rare. I wanted to shoot down my dream, so ‘shot’. I don’t like the colour red, so much because it freaks me out sometimes, therefore ‘blue’”. ...more

The Ribbon’s front man Luke Munn admits staying focused is a struggle. He has his hands in many pies, from curating online projects to performing experimental sound sets. Meanwhile, his partner in music, Campbell Birch, spends all his income on the latest CD imports, albums and tickets to the next big international act to hit Auckland. But somehow or other the duo have managed to come up with their second EP release in as many years, bringing us percussive indie electronica six track ‘Teenage Crown’. ...more

Harbour City Electric originated back in 2007 as a resident Friday night funk band for Sandwiches Nightclub in Wellington. Over the last few years the band has gone from a fluid and rotating roster of local soul, funk and jazz musicians jamming out, to a tightly codified seven-piece roster, focused on writing, recording, releasing and touring high quality (genre non-specific) live music. ...more

Panther & The Zoo is a musical collaboration led by the intriguingly-monikored Graham Panther. "People don't ever believe me that that is actually my last name!" Panther's young interest in music was stimulated in part by some of the free gigs put on by the Christchurch City Council at the city's Town Hall. Moving to Auckland at age nine, his musical education continued throughout high school, picking up skills on various instruments before helping form Auckland indie pop band Phoney Bone in 2005. ...more

To paraphrase Elan Mills, the relevance of documenting the making of a band is secondary to the beauty of capturing the magic unfolding. Previously of successful Wellington rock band Paselode, Mills - creator of new Kapiti Coast-based band The Volunteers - is referring to the animated documentary, or 'documation', series published in weekly episodes on stuff.co.nz earlier this year. Produced by the Simmonds Brothers, the series juxtaposes charming animation with film footage to chronicle the band's development and the creation of their debut album entitled 'Friends, Family and Fools'. ...more

As his adopted name would suggest, hip hop bursts from Tourettes like a nervous tick in a rush of raw and honest music. A man of many talents, he is also a poet and writer. Also known as Dominic Hoey, Tourettes' new album, 'Who Said You Can't Dance to Misery', has just been released. The album documents the four years since his previous EP in which he's gigged, been tattooed, had three relationships, one nervous breakdown, and toured overseas. ...more

Don't let anyone tell you that folk isn't cool" is both motto and modus operandi for a young folk band who break for tea poured from fine china. I know this not from time spent with Forbidden Joe, talking loose leaf and sea shanties, but from intently scanning the cover of their debut EP, 'Oh What a Queer Sensation'. ...more

Over the last decade local acts such as HDU, Jakob and Looma have shown that upfront vocals are not the only way to reach out to an audience. Instead these groups have focused on creating instrumental soundscapes from crescendos of echoing, distorted guitar and pounding drums. Sora Shima was formed with similar intentions by guitarist, Jason (Jae) Lurman, whose original intention was simply "…to find three other people who were as obsessed with Mogwai and Godspeed You! Black Emperor and mimic 'Come On Die Young' at max volume till the cows came home." ...more

Being named after the month of September technically makes this Auckland band fall under the star sign of Virgo - whose qualities include being a perfectionist with attention to detail and artistic as bass player Zaria Yussof informs me, tongue in cheek. ...more

'Truth You Know' is the first E.P to be released by musician/songwriter Tim Beals. After being the 'session guy' for a while, Tim decided to release his own project and perform under the moniker Ashes of August. ...more

Did you hear the sound quality of the album? That's the answer," responds Rana Freilich, guitarist for Nelson-based metallers Legacy of Disorder. The question: How feasible is the band's dream to play to the world while remaining based in NZ? ...more

The sophisticated songwriting of The Artisan Guns might well have you assuming this is a much more seasoned band. The four young Guns are all still at university (three of them studying music), and have only been together for just over two years, having debuted with The Whipping Cats and The Nudie Suits at The Odeon Lounge 'closing party' in 2006. They met at MacLeans College where vocalist/guitarist Matt Hope wanted to start a band so recruited Alex Freer to play drums, Jonothan Pearce for guitar and Reuben Stephens to play bass. Initially envisioning a country/folk band, the foursome still cite those influences, but are certainly not confined by them. ...more

It's all about sharing her music for Christchurch singer songwriter Anneka Thwaites. After spending her earlier years travelling around the world, learning wood carving in Sweden and then running her own business as a cabinet maker in Blenheim, Anneka realised what many aspiring musicians do before ditching their day job to follow their hearts. ...more

Needles and Bees must be one of the most efficient bands in NZ. They've technically only been together in their current line up for eight months, yet have already recorded and released their debut EP 'A Quilt of Conversation' and done an extensive 13-date tour across the country. ...more

Charlie B has been involved in the local electronic scene for over six years, but his latest EP titled 'The Annihilation', where he acts under the moniker Optimus Gryme, is strongly focused on his original passion, dubstep. ...more

Wellington band Silenzio and the Swift (previously known as Date with Doom) are refreshingly different. The band comprises Osaka Silenzio (vocals, guitar), Charles Davenport (cello), Hamish Bones Cardwell (bass), Michael Kane (drums) and Chris 'the shadow' Petrie on saxophone. ...more

Wellington's proud residents Beatrootz were initially brought to our attention with the R'n'B dance joint No DJz way back in 2005. At that stage the potential was obvious (it reached #17 on the singles chart), but the Beatrootz maintain that a hot video isn't all that counts nowadays. ...more

Lead guitarist Dave Rowlands is looking to describe Clap Clap Riot for me. "We write with the perspective of pop in our heads, but when we play, we play with the perspective of rock 'n roll entirely. It's all sort of ferocious leather jackets and chords that sound bad, and out of tune guitars." ...more

Crash Test For Favourite Things (here-on referred to as CTFFT to preserve my sanity), are a threesome who have been not so quietly simmering away at the fringes of Aucklands' alternative rock scene for a couple of years now. An ever-increasing cadre of loyal fans have been drawn to their melodic brand of what a lot of people would likely call 'prog', or as vocalist/guitarist Mikey Brown describes it, "… music that makes people think a bit". Mikey is joined in CTFFT by bassist Tony Swift and drummer Jono Tiernan. ...more

'DISCO grunge' is the way Auckland's Brand New Math describe their sound. Sometimes. "I don't think we're sophisticated or tight enough to create disco punk, so it's disco grunge," lead singer Brad Artist explains. ...more

WELLINGTON is a veritable cornucopia of musicians, so it's not uncommon for promising singers and bands to fade away into obscurity. We should all hope that the soulful voice of Iva Lamkum won't be one of them. ...more

Knives at Noon are the architects of a new, eclectic brand of music, drawing inspiration from across a musical spectrum including dance, rock and electronica. ...more

Los Muertos ('the dead', as in celebrating and acknowledging the dead - Samhain/Hallowe'en and Mexico's Day Of The Dead) are very much alive and kicking around Auckland. ...more

Rock is but a pebble in the concrete jungle that is the Wellington music scene. There's a lot of indie and roots-reggae, but we seem to leave it to Auckland bands to stumble down here for a taste of some searing riffs and whisky-coated, swaggering vocals. Well aware of this situation, the capital's Elston Gun knock back those whiskeys and party on anyway, scene or no scene - the latter is actually the way they prefer it. ...more

Raw funk energy, lashings of soul and some thick jazz roots provide the backdrop for a hearty dose of jagged street poetry and a serving of irresistibly danceable rhythms on the liquid-smooth debut EP of The Shades. ...more

...They also opened for US band OK Go, managed to get themselves on playbills with Evermore, Opshop, Pluto and The Have, and in late Feb will be supporting Incubus when they play Auckland. ...more

"The amount of effort and planning it took to pull it off was immense but it was made all the more worthwhile when we did a video release show in Auckland and sold it out." ...more

You may have wondered what the correct pronunciation is for this up and coming Christchurch band... ...more

Recorded and mastered with Christchurch producer/sound guy/muso Jules Marchant, with a little help from MAINZ tutor Marcus Winstanley and Arie van der Poel at their own respective studios, it is a polished and professional package of whimsical funky pop rock'n'roll. ...more

In performance, The Enright House incorporate many elements, live and mechanised drums, synths, poetry and a lot of guitars usually manipulated with anything from bottle caps to chopsticks. ...more

CHRISTCHURCH band The L.e.d.s will kick your preconceptions about electronica into touch. ...more

The band immediately caused a stir, winning (the late) Channel Z's Unsigned competition in 2004 with their very first demo Send In The Clones. ...more

Armed with a pocketful of plans Kolab are now finishing up their debut album at Studio 166... ...more

WEST Auckland singer Anna Wilson has appeared in Shortland St and Hercules, endorsed hot chicken and cool OJ as a model and scooped armfuls of motocross trophies as the champion of big, grunty off-road bikes. ...more

ALTHOUGH Christchurch singer Lauren Mitchell understandably name checks jazz singers Fitzgerald, London and Vaughan as influences, it's her love for Erykah Badu and Jill Scott which wash over her stunning, self-assured first album, titled 'Debut'. ...more

Their Victorian chic is perhaps then, less to be found in the melodic rock they play and more in the lyrical content of their songs. ...more

Hailing from Wellington, now resident in Auckland, Polly Prior broke into the music industry as a 19 year old singer/songwriter contestant on TV3's 'Get Your Act Together'. ...more

Few bands can boast to forming because they've been offered a gig with a top international musician - but The Voodoo Kreepers can. ...more

Yet another effortlessly impressive addition to the roll call of students of rock'n'roll from Devonport are the eclectically named White Birds and Lemons. ...more

With an (as yet untitled) six track EP on the way, produced by Cobra Khan's Milon Williams, the West Auckland punk/hardcore act are surely one of our most promising prospects of the genre for 2007. ...more

Their fans call them "the bandiest band". ...more

Since 2002 The Hot Grits have been making a name for themselves in Auckland and parts of the lower North Island as fine purveyors of the psychedelic afro-beat, big band sound. ...more

"YOU name it, we've worn it; leotards, cheerleaders' outfits, ice skaters' outfits..." Rosie Rigger, aka Roxy, of Charlie Ash rattles off a list of the band's eye-popping stage getups. ...more

HOW'S this for rock cred? Young Auckland band Kill Surf City got props from Dinosaur Jr. Sort of. ...more

The last few years have seen a major resurgence in interest in funk and soul music here. ...more

For those who immediately feel the urge to make comparisons to The White Stripes, please heed warnings made by Auckland female two-piece The Bengal Lights. ...more

Fast cars, faster women and bittersweet teenage love. Funny sounding subject matter for music? Or did those phrases touch a chord with you? ...more

As the red lights fall across the basement of Auckland's Galatos Bar five musicians step into a small area of the dancefloor some may consider a stage. ...more

Anji Sami is frustratingly elusive when it comes to talking about her own music. "I just can't do it, I just start getting silly," she says as she transforms her voice into something that sounds, well, silly. ...more

Although their name was taken from the album title of an initial influence by the name of Maroon, Antagonist is a fitting title for this metalcore act. ...more

The Tiger Tones are a three-piece Christchurch band who formed less than six months ago. During this short time, they have stirred up a great deal of attention; getting the police called to their very first gig, and most recently winning RDU98.5FM’s original band competition, RounDUp, as a wild card entry. ...more

Wellington's Cherry's Gemstones is an all-girl band, but that's not what they want to be known for. ...more

There's nothing quite like a 10 year hiatus from recording an album to give your songwriting some perspective and maturity. ...more

Backstage at the Globe Theatre, Palmerston North, Black Chrome have hooked up a local support band for their upcoming gig in Koln, Germany. ...more

They’ve only been around officially for a year, but five-piece Auckland pop punk rockers False Start have already managed to kick-start their music career. ...more

From the ashes of popular Auckland post-punk outfit Nova Echo comes the Shaky Hands. ...more

Poisoners are a ska punk act comprised of past and existing members of such well-established bands as The Managers, Missing Teeth and the disbanded Rudies. ...more

Christchurch band Starlett formed because members Rosie O'Connell (drums), Lisa Blatchford (bass) and Emla Palmer (guitar/vox) wanted something to focus their energies on. ...more

They say that where there's smoke there's fire. Not so in Port Chalmers, Dunedin during a recent Orientation tour, when one of New Zealand's oldest hotels was completely engulfed in smoke. ...more

Punches is an Auckland duo of James Duncan, (solo performer, producer, guitarist with SJD, Dimmer) and vocalist Kelly Steven. ...more

TAKAPUNA Grammar quartet The Electric Confectionaires have sparked audiences from the Smokefree Rockquest to the local produce stage at the Big Day Out with their unique take on barbershop, garage, psychedelic, blues, surf and jazz. ...more

Grey Lynn six-piece The Midnights are fast putting Auckland on the local reggae map with their rhythmic blend of original flax roots reggae, soul, ska, rock steady and blues. ...more

Let's start with the obvious - just what is a Gestalt Switch? ...more

Motocade is Eden Mulholland, guitar/vocals, Will Mulholland on drums (yes, they are brothers, joining the legacy of talented musical families), Scott Sutherland on bass and Geordie McCallum, guitar/keyboards. ...more

Five minutes into meeting Auckland trio The Twitch at an inner-city cafe, Fleur (vocals, bass) suddenly bursts out apologetically with, "This really isn't our scene. Would you mind if we just went to the liquor store, bought some beers and drank them in the van?" ...more

Arriving at the launch party for the new, self-titled Duchess EP, you could be forgiven for thinking you’d accidentally turned up at a bowls club rather than a live gig. ...more

Unless you were fortunate enough to catch a Demi Whores live show back in 2002/3, the first this Auckland three-piece would have come to your attention was likely when they scored the support slot for Interpol's Auckland and Wellington shows in August. ...more

The Undercurrents' story begins with a typical South Island scenario - mid-winter 2003, with Nick O'Keefe (bass, vocals), living under the shade of Christchurch's Jade Stadium, freezing to death, huddled around the old Conray with friend Jamie Holloway, making up songs. ...more

Connan and the Mockasins debut EP, 'Naughty Holidays', naturally earned a secure place high up in my CD tower. When I heard that guitar/vocalist Connan Tant Hosford actually wears moccasins when playing live, well, their EP edged up one more space. ...more

THE Chandeliers surf, but they're three on a board, riding jungle and desert and swamp. ...more

If there was a prize to be won for the most inventive tour names it would have to go to Ruptus Jack. ...more

You can't help but warm to a band who are honest enough to describe themselves as 'hyperactive pop geeks'. ...more

Tourettes first appeared on the local hip hop scene as a member of Insomniacs, one of the founding crews of Auckland label Breakin Wreckwordz. ...more

You may have seen Bored Gordon in a fishbowl, wedged between McLeod’s Daughters and Extreme Makeover. ...more

Revved up and ready to burn, Wellington’s Cortina just missed the connection to this year’s South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas. ...more

Waiting for The Checks to start their gig, it’s hard to believe the five stovepipe-trousered 18-year-olds, busily chatting to their school-age groupies, are the same band who have supported REM and been lauded in NME. ...more

The young band from Christchurch’s Mairehau High School had to surrender its name early on in its lifetime. ...more

The name Farmer Pimp, is one that intrigues and is certainly not forgotten in a hurry. ...more

Had he not been dazzling the panel at an audition for The Lion King stage show, Laughton Kora would liked to have joined his brother Francis in talking to NZ Musician. ...more

Lead singer Stu, who paints his shaven dome for every gig, has played with Nail and Lil for years in covers bands before they formed Chuganaut three years ago. Munro (bass) joined the band a year ago. ...more

Roger Greenaway decided he wanted to be a musician half-way through his fifth form year at school. He wanted to start studying music straight away but he wasn't allowed to. So he left. ...more

If you're the kind of person who hates Auckland duo The Fanatics, visit their official website www.thefanatics.co.nz and you'll find the most delightful little game - cheekily titled 'Kill them Fannys' where little animated Fanatics caricatures pop up randomly on the screen from behind wooden barrels for you to shoot. ...more

Named after speed and numbers, Tempo 38 have been regular faces on the Napier music scene since 2000. Recently they have upped the tempo, so to speak, with the release of EP number three - 'Con'. ...more

The Boxcar Guitars consists of a line up worthy of a soap opera. ...more

Asked to list the influences of his band, Tourist bass player Rob Ranger soon includes Manic Street Preachers. ...more

They've signed a record deal, released two singles and videos, received heavy airplay on the b.Net, Channel Z and The Rock, played support for Powderfinger, released an EP 'Shade of Brown' and have just finished a nationwide tour. ...more

Capitalrecordings's latest signing Definite & Bling have such multi-cultural backgrounds and varied musical histories they cannot help but bring a rich range of influences to their music as can be seen on their debut single, Jump Up. ...more

A supposedly haunted meat-works was the setting for Auckland band Mozelee's first video. Something Real was created by Adam Jones of Zoomslide, who says the deserted building was one of the creepiest places he's ever had to work in. ...more

After touring the world with her piano, Evolver's front woman Emmanuelle Gomez returned to New Zealand, heard the band play and decided if they didn't want her she would "die of a broken heart". ...more

Palmerston North trio Reflector is another one of those mystical conglomerations with family at the centre of the music. ...more

Asked what they have been up to since the release of Solo Bravo's first EP 'Action On Highways' back in 2002, it's slightly worrying that the Christchurch four piece's main songwriter Chris Walker says "... the band has been a bit of a revolving door actually". ...more

There have been no government grants yet for Christchurch 6-piece band 4ManBob - but they have been pushing on regardless. ...more

When punk gasped its last breath in late '70s Britain Joy Division rose from the ashes, as the movement gave way to a darker, sparser kind of music. And hot on the heels of the fading garage rock revival in New Zealand comes the appropriately named Die!Die!Die! ...more

You'd be forgiven that thinking that indie band Ghostplane have been very fortuitous in their one year history to be where they are - about to release the 7-track 'Panther Valley Country Club' on Arch Hill, with an album planned for later in the year. ...more

The inspiringly titled Goon recently won the 2003 York Street Acid Test competition at Auckland's Temple bar. ...more

Having been in a host of covers bands, it was only after guitarist and singer Phil Stoodley formed his own band and named it after himself that he finally felt at home. ...more

It takes a special band to make an audience literally stand up and pay attention. ...more

Peter Hill aka Inspector Ital, has just landed in Japan, but leaves behind a beautifully crafted jazzy-dub EP he called 'Come on Natty'. ...more

One of the most exciting acts to come out of Christchurch in the last year or so, Slipstream push the boundaries of indie rock in an artful ’moody psychedelic soundscape’ direction. ...more

"Fresh?" splutters Rickenbacker player John Howell over the phone. "I'm not fresh, I'm 30!" ...more

The name may sound like they would be more at home on the boy-racer circuit, but instead The Accelerants are heating up the Wellington music scene - and giving the city back some of its rock roots. ...more

This Night Creeps is a visually evocative name for a band, so it’s hardly surprising the music they make evokes strong imagery. ...more

Auckland band Bolbox Rex like to have a good time. In fact, it's somewhat of a philosophy. ...more

Wellington lads Ejector took a surprise starring role at the recent Resonate music seminars in Auckland. ...more

Fuelled by their parents' vinyl collection while home-schooled in rural Fielding, Evermore have proven that isolation doesn't need to stunt a musical career. ...more

Although Auckland singer songwriter Marvey King's first single Rosary has just been released, she says she can't wait to get another one out as it has been her only song aired in six or seven months. ...more

Hamiltonian Mark Tupuhi is the face and talent behind the name St Lucy. Since winning the 2002 York Street Acid Test, Tupuhi has been busy planning the next step in St Lucy's evolution, from solo act to fully-fledged rock group. ...more

The last few months simply have sped by for Wellington's Two Lane Black Top. ...more

Word has spread fast about Batrider, the new kids on the Wellington rock'n'roll block. ...more

There’s no denying that Christchurch three-piece Hooster are on a roll. The band seems to have won every radio station competition on offer over the past few years, and have secured a generous helping of NZ On Air grants as a result. But the band – bassist Kris Giles, guitarist and singer Ed Loughnan, and drummer Al Evans – admit there is a secret to their success. “We try to plan for the occasion,” says Kris. "We try and hit them with stuff that’s the right format for their station.” ...more

What better way to summarise a band than with their own lyrics? How about ‘Rock and roll on the dole’ or ‘We suffer for our music’? Both capture the hard working, no money, music-as-a lifestyle culture of the Slavetrader boys; Matt Alien (vocals and guitar), ALC5 (guitars and keyboards), James Jett (bass and vocals) and Pablo Diablo (drums). ...more

The night before our interview, the Bleeders played a charity show at Auckland's Papa Jacks in aid of a dog that lives in New York. ...more

Wanganui rock band The Have should consider writing a book called ‘How To Become Rock Stars in 9 Months’! The four-piece only began playing together in March, but have already won the smokefreerockquest, recorded a single and music video, and are now fielding offers from a handful of record labels. ...more

Hailing from a suburb north of Auckland known as a sedate environment for retirees to go and fade away, hasn't meant The Mint Chicks have toned down their youthful exuberance. ...more

Just as good tele drama relies on a strong ensemble cast to succeed, bands rely on the collective strength of its members. In this respect Wellington five-piece Paselode come pretty close to being 'The Sopranos' - and not just because they look good in suits. ...more

Third time has indeed proven lucky for Bay of Plenty band Stardrunk, who won this year's Battle of the Bands after coming up short in the regional section of the competition twice before. ...more

Having been together for five years, Fuce are no spring chickens in their hometown of Christchurch. Strength in years as a band is now starting to pay off around the rest of the country and also overseas. ...more

For STYLUS - 2002 marks life after nu-metal. It's also life after Tadpole for the band, who were momentarily in hiatus while bassist Paul Matthews joined the high-rolling ball of Tadpole in 2000 to record the platinum award-winning 'Buddhafinger' and subsequently tour with the band. ...more

"Heavy, twisting, epic acoustic rock" are the exact words that Daisy Chain Halo use to describe themselves, and you'd better believe it! ...more

Just four months old, Dunedin four piece band Monkey Knife Fight are already showing with the big guns - they were asked by Martin Phillips to support The Chills at the Arc Cafe, within a few months of forming. ...more

The task of organising all eight members of one million dollars falls on manager Steven O'Hoy, and although he doesn't play in the band there is no surprise that he is as much their united voice as any member. ...more

An Australian tour is no pipe dream for this noisy Wanganui rock band - it's happening this summer: ...more

Wellington punkers Blake formed a little under four years ago when drummer Dave Brown met vocalist/guitarist Craig Coburn while waiting for his friend's band to finish practising. ...more

Being a Dunedin band carries with it some pretty heavy lineage and high expectations, but three-piece Carriage H seem ready to meet them. ...more