Live: Seth Frightening, Glass Vaults, Disasteradio!
Flashback live review/photos of an early show at the Darkroom with Seth Frightening, Glass Faults and Disasteradio! with guest vocals from Zach Donney of Bang! Bang! Eche!
Articles, Interviews and Live Music
Live: Stinkfest 13! Day 2
Flashback to December 16th, 2011 at the Darkroom with a fabulous showcase of the legendary Stink Magnetic record label.
Performances from I Drink Your Blood, Ritchie Venus, Planet of the Tapes and Golden Axe.
#nzmusic #livemusic #darkroom #stinkmagnetic
Maryrose and Brian Crook (April 2004)
The Renderers played Christchurch on Friday April 23rd, 2004 at Creation along with the Terminals and an acoustic performance from Hamish Kilgour (The Clean / Magick Heads etc). I conducted this interview with Brian and Maryrose Crook in the lead-up to the show.
The Incisions – Let Terror Rain
Wow, this is loud, caustic stuff.
The 2nd album from the ever-changing Christchurch 3-piece The Incisions blow the current crop of rock’n’roll revivalists out of the water. Its pure fire in a recording, scratchy, loud, abrasive and rude – more in the style of Japanese noise merchants Guitar Wolf or (particularly) Teengenrate than The Datsuns (who seem positively polished in comparison).
The Clean – Compilation
My review of ‘Compilation’, the original retrospective of The Clean’s first phase releases. 2 singles and 2 EPs crammed into a brilliant album.
Cloudboy – Down at the End of the Garden
2001, Arclife Records, ARC010 Demarnia Lloyd is something of an enigma in the Dunedin music scene. Over the past 7 years her involvement in former rock outfit mink and current band Cloudboy, as well as her solo material as cloud… Read More »Cloudboy – Down at the End of the Garden
Tall Dwarfs – The Sky Above, The Mud Below
2001, Flying Nun Records, FNCD456 After 20 years of continually releasing dynamic, independent and thoroughly inventive music – the Tall Dwarfs have released perhaps their most laid-back and restrained full length with ‘The Sky Above, The Mud Below’, their 13th… Read More »Tall Dwarfs – The Sky Above, The Mud Below
Demarnia Lloyd – Set Upon a Curve
2002, Arclife Records Oh how CD’s have changed the face of music! Where once a double-album ‘opus’ from the likes of Led Zeppelin barely scraped the 60-minute mark, we now expect our albums to be at least 45 minutes long,… Read More »Demarnia Lloyd – Set Upon a Curve
Michael J. Brassell: A Memorial [Mar 2004]
A memorial I wrote for Michael J. Brassell after he sadly passed away from pneumonia in 2004. I helped organize a music tribute wake here in Christchurch to celebrate his life, whilst a similar event was also help in his then-current home of Dunedin.
Christchurch in the 80’s [By David Swift]
The Christchurch scene of 1980-82 is pretty legendary, and rightly so. This was most fertile period of rock’n’roll in the city since the beat-boom days of Chants R’n’B circa 1966. There were some very good Christchurch punk bands (notably the… Read More »Christchurch in the 80’s [By David Swift]
Dark Tower – Canterbury Drafts
2001, She’ll Be Right, SBR98912 Six years is a long time to be waiting for a debut album. Christchurch, New Zealand hip-hop duo dark tower started strongly way back in 1995 with a killer lead single and subsequent EP entitled… Read More »Dark Tower – Canterbury Drafts
Shocking Pinks – Mathematical Warefare
2005, Flying Nun Records, FNCD494 Mathematical Warfare is an album with a heavy back-story and variety of disclaimers. Almost completely removed stylistically from the sound the band became known for just last year, the Shocking Pinks have gone through so… Read More »Shocking Pinks – Mathematical Warefare
Styles Upon Styles 2: Pacific Soul Warriors
2002, Sugarlicks Recordings, SUGARCD002 Following on from Sugarlicks first compilation ‘Urban Soul Pollution’, comes ‘Pacific Soul Warriors’ — without quite the high-profile line-up that the first compilation had. This time the album focuses more on the more soulful end of… Read More »Styles Upon Styles 2: Pacific Soul Warriors
Mike Hex [January 2004]
An interview I conducted with Michael Brassell, aka Mike Hex – at the time the creative force behind Hiss Explosion and a musical co-ordinator for Arc Life Cafe / records down in Dunedin. Sadly Mike passed away just a few months later.
Darcy Clay – Songs for Beethoven
1998, Antenna Recordings, ANT012 Originally published as a retrospective feature review for Stylus Magazine There’s a distinct possibility that you may never see this album in even your most reliable of indie music stores. Darcy Clay was an unusual talent,… Read More »Darcy Clay – Songs for Beethoven