If it had been a list of 121 it would likely have been easier than identifying just one inspired/inspiring locally produced album for each of the years since NZM was launched in 1988. True there weren’t many real crackers in those first years, but by the mid ’90s we were back on track (in all manner of musical directions), and since 2000, well, things have positively exploded. 21 is really nowhere near enough though, we’ve had to leave way too many valuable albums out. In no particular order then, these albums summarise our voters’ pics. ...more

Admittedly it seems a bit maudlin to be talking about the dearly departed in the middle of your 21st party, but then it’s always appropriate on such occasions to raise a glass to absent friends. The period 1988 – 2009 has seen the death of many highly respected musicians and local music supporters, including some former NZM contributors we greatly miss. ...more

This was always going to be pretty random list – drawing on the recall and individual sense of humour of our selected nominaters – and we really didn’t give them much more guidance than the header above. There did prove to be a few obvious and popular selections among the top 21 however – we’re all suckers for a bit of real international success, no matter how fleeting. Again, this list is drawn from the period that NZM has been around, ie. since 1988, and is presented here in no particular order. ...more

David Dallas never really felt comfortable with a rapper name, even after the alias saw considerable success. It was the moniker to which hip hop heads around the country referred when talking of the next big local hip hop artist of 2004, the name repeated across the liner notes of numerous albums in ’05, and one he would put to rest just a year later. He admits the reversal from Con-Psy to his given name may have led to confusion for some listeners. ...more

There aren’t a great many Kiwi recording artists with household name status who could claim to be revered by musicians and fans alike, or whose recorded output has been almost universally acclaimed by critics over three decades. Not many have made it that far without going, well frankly, a bit soft, without smoothing over the edges of youthful exuberance and settling in to a kind of safety-first holding pattern in their recorded output. One of those few is Shayne Carter – an inductee to the NZ Music Hall of Fame at the 2008 Tui Awards. Mark Bell finds he’s as bristly and uncompromising as ever, his muse showing no sign of even thinking about leaving the building. ...more

Ed Cake (aka Ed McWilliams) has featured as musician, producer, engineer on albums from Tim Guy, Anika Moa, Don McGlashan, Duchess, The Brunettes, The Chills and Brand New Math. He was in legendary Flying Nun band Bressa Creeting Cake, and has worked as a solo artist under various monikers, releasing his own ‘Downtown Puff’ in 2004. He has also worked short film and feature film soundtracks, and also as a sound designer for various theatre projects. Cake’s latest album project ‘The Fearsome Feeling’ is being released under the name Pie Warmer – a group assembled in 2005 after his discharge from Auckland Hospital’s mental health clinic. With Jason Smith (keys), Tamasin Taylor (violin, vibraphone and vocals) and Cole Goodley (drums) Ed Cake has created an album of quirky poetry, darkly comic imagery, and tingling sounds of twisted pop. He’s a bona fide creative genius and we figured the best way to capture and convey Ed Cake was by getting a fellow musical genius to interview him. Geoff Maddock, best known for his long term role as guitarist/arranger/songwriter/producer with Goldenhorse, was also a member of Bressa Creeting Cake, and has collaborated with Cake several times over the years. Here’s how their exchange went. ...more

Striking seven-piece Wellington band Family Cactus recently released their alt-folk rock debut album ‘Come Howling’ – an album full of intriguing characters and dark stories, much like any family. Lead singer, guitarist and songsmith Adam Ladley, with co-songwriter and vocalist Nina Siegler spoke to Lydia Jenkin as they kicked off their maiden national tour. ...more

James Duncan has made a name through some impressive guitar playing to the music of Punches, SJD and Dimmer. Despite his very apparent chops, Duncan has never been one for over-the-top solos, instead he focuses on creating dreamlike, atmospheric lines that build like lightning beneath the clouds. Now, as well as featuring heavily on the new Dimmer album, he has stepped into the light with the release of his debut solo album, the welcomingly titled ‘Hello-Fi’. He talks to Gareth Shute about his appetite for continual experimentation. ...more

The packaging of the Opensouls’ second album is as sparse and cool as the music is rich and warm. Ditching the funky, jazzy, hip hop flavours that previously defined their sound in favour of a lavish Motown-inspired (open) soul direction gives plenty of scope to question their reasoning. For Karl Puschmann however, the first question was a more simple ‘why?’ The one question every Opensouls fan in the country would want answered, he reckoned, had to be why Opensouls quote Sting on their new album ‘Standing in the Rain’? ...more

Dawn Raid have learnt plenty from the experience of selling literally millions of Savage singles, one key lesson being the global potential of the Polynesian market. Once seen as a strictly South Auckland hip hop label, they have dabbled successfully in the soul arena and see nothing at all out of sorts in getting behind Pacific-blend, ‘sunshine reggae’ ensemble Sweet & Irie. Indeed label head Brotha D has played a considerable role in developing the band and album. Richard Thorne talks to Edward Ru, lead singer and founder of Sweet & Irie, about what can come of a dream. ...more

Having packed a lot of touring and good times into the two years since their debut album release, Auckland-based eight-piece funk/soul behemoth Tahuna Breaks are now ready to float album number two and get back into their trusty tour vans to funk up the country. Drummer Tim Gemmell and vocalist Marty Greentree talked to Lydia Jenkin about ‘Black Brown and White’, about balancing their fun philosophy with their work ethic, working with the inspirational Lee Prebble, and about their simple motivation to bring the party to as many people as possible. ...more

It does seem Tama Waipara loves a good journey, and he has certainly traveled a long way from the small town of Opotiki where his iwi roots lie. There was the journey that took him from studying at Auckland University to becoming a Masters student in classical clarinet at Manhattan School of Music in New York. The literally accidental one which saw him shift musical focus from instrumentalist to his voice at the age of 25, and of course, the one that brought him back here after eight fruitful years in one of the world’s musical capitals. More recently has been the journey of developing a musical persona that he likens to the long lost Polynesian cousin of Sergeant Pepper, harking back to that era and beyond, while encapsulating his own musical future. He talked musical personalities with Richard Thorne. ...more

With a career now erratically spanning three decades, Flying Nun legends The Clean still stick to the kind of approach that made them popular in the early 1980s. As a result the ten tracks on the band’s latest album ‘Mister Pop’ are readily recognisable and some you sense could have been delivered at any time since – on vinyl, tape, CD or mp3. The adherence to origins applies as much to their music and recording techniques as it does to their apparently laissez-faire approach to the band. Gavin Bertram spoke to guitarist David Kilgour about overcoming the difficulties of working across continents and about keeping their work genuine. ...more

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