From pop-punk frontman to big-name producer, Joel Little’s musical career has followed a rare trajectory. A new Audioculture feature traces his path – here are a few of the highlights. The early years Joel Little’s introduction to the New Zealand music industry came as the frontperson of pop-punk band Goodnight Nurse in the early 2000s. … Read more
Extracting raw materials for new technology like electric vehicles can take a terrible toll on the environment. So New Zealand company Geo40 has developed a process for sourcing strategic minerals from our abundant geothermal resources. Over four decades ago, Mike O’Sullivan, founder and COO of Geo40, did a high school project examining whether precious minerals … Read more
With the international borders closed New Zealanders have been rediscovering the delights of their own country. For Aucklanders, it’s the perfect opportunity to explore the many volcanoes scattered around Tāmaki Makaurau, writes Gareth Shute. There are a plethora of volcanoes across Auckland, though just a handful get the vast majority of visitors. You no doubt … Read more
‘Mapping Auckland’s Venues’ is a series by music writer and historian Gareth Shute that looks at the growth, contraction and general change in the city’s live music scene over the years. In this instalment, first published by Audioculture, Shute takes a look back at the decade where ‘Think Big’ applied just as much to shoulder pads … Read more
With more than 1,000 local businesses on its books, MyHR saw firsthand the pressure the Covid-19 fallout put on New Zealand’s SMEs, as well as having its own business model tested to the limit. New Zealand’s Covid-19 lockdown had a seismic effect on human resources departments. In order to stay afloat through the chaos, thousands … Read more
After three decades in existence, Tautai Contemporary Pacific Arts Trust has launched its own gallery on Auckland’s Karangahape Road. The first thing that hits you entering Tautai Gallery’s inaugural exhibition, Moana Legacy, is the range of works on show. On one huge wall is a mural of black humanoid crocodiles on a pink background by … Read more
Early model electric vehicles are already running low on juice, with some batteries down to around half their original capacity. With the international auto industry slow to find solutions, one New Zealand company is using Kiwi ingenuity to repurpose old batteries and keep the cars – and their owners – going further for longer. As … Read more
The rise of ‘plant-based’ diets seems like a win for those who decry eating meat. But some vegan groups claim the halfway step of vegetarianism is ineffectual if you really care about animal cruelty, climate change, or your own personal health. An article in the Guardian last year asked “Why do people hate vegans?”, suggesting … Read more
Forget Cook. The Adventures of Tupaia is much more interested in the famed navigator and priest who shared his formidable indigenous knowledge with Pākehā. The cover tells the story. Stars everywhere. Palm trees in silhouette. And two figures: there’s Tupaia in the foreground, eyes shining, arm raised, pointing the way, generally looking magnificent. And there’s … Read more
Faced with staff shortages, equipment failures, cancer risks, and a jump in critical calls that can leave them traumatised, some firefighters are wondering if it’s time to hang up the hose. Gareth Shute reports on the dissatisfaction inside Fire and Emergency New Zealand. The state of our nation’s fire service is probably not something most … Read more
Scientists have been pleading the world to take action on climate change, yet a sizable chunk of the population still denies or downplays its reality. Gareth Shute runs down the most popular arguments for ignoring climate change and finds them wanting. There’s been consensus in the scientific community about climate change for at least a … Read more
If you want to do something to reduce your carbon footprint, you’ll probably consider both an electric vehicle and installing rooftop solar panels. But which is more effective? With overseas research often inapplicable to New Zealand, one man ran the Aotearoa-specific numbers. Phil Jones is not your average greenie. He’s worked in the sustainability sector … Read more
Today is Love Your Local Venue Day, part of NZ Music Month, and it marks the 15th anniversary of beloved Auckland venue The Wine Cellar. Gareth Shute pays tribute to the best dive bar in town. This piece is republished with permission from Audioculture.. The Wine Cellar has become a well-loved landmark within the live music … Read more
The six members of City of Souls previously played in some of NZ’s heaviest and most beloved guitar bands – Blindspott, Blacklistt, and 8 Foot Sativa, to name a few. Guitarist Trajan Schwencke tells Gareth Shute why they’re just as focused on melody as they are on riffs and why in this case, three guitars … Read more
The first 101 issues of Rip It Up have been added to the free online archive Papers Past. Gareth Shute tracked down some of the people behind this legendary publication to get a sense of how it started and why it was so essential to the local music scene. Rip It Up magazine was a … Read more
David Seymour is one of the most visible political figures in NZ media, with his opinions aired more widely than you might expect from the sole MP for a party that polls at 1%. How does the ACT leader manage such an impressive media presence, asks Gareth Shute. In the past two months, David Seymour … Read more
Throughout 2018, James Milne (aka Lawrence Arabia) released a song a month to fans who’d supported him via a Kickstarter campaign. He took time out from his tour supporting the resulting album, Singles Club, to speak with Gareth Shute about the ups and downs of producing songs to a monthly schedule. Two years ago, James … Read more
Bob Marley played his first and only New Zealand concert on Monday, 16 April 1979, at Auckland’s Western Springs. Writing for RNZ, Gareth Shute looks back on that visit and the seismic effect it had on this country’s relationship with reggae music, which continues to resonate forty years later. In the days leading up to … Read more
There’s been a decades-long campaign to get a quota of New Zealand music on radio, but radio is no longer where a lot of us hear new music. Gareth Shute investigates whether the same pressure should be applied to streaming playlists. In 1989, the music played by New Zealand radio stations included less than 2% … Read more
After living and working for years in London alongside his band, The Veils, Finn Andrews returned to Auckland last year. Gareth Shute caught up with him between performances at WOMAD to find out about his heartbreak-inflected new album, One Piece At A Time. The impressive achievements of The Veils have often been overlooked. After all, … Read more
The Auckland City Mission is in the midst of a $90 million redevelopment. Gareth Shute, once a volunteer at the Mission, talks with long-serving staff member Wilf Holt about how the Mission has developed over the past two decades and what lies ahead for this nearly 100-year old institution. Back in 1999, I was a … Read more
Poetik is a fresh talent in the Auckland hip hop scene, but he takes a very retro approach to his music, creating G-funk bangers and selling CDs direct to fans as if the internet hadn’t been invented. Gareth Shute caught up with him to talk about his old-is-new approach and why it’s all part of … Read more
Gareth Shute digs around to create a best-of-2018 music list with one criterion: the tracks all have less than 1000 streams on Spotify. One cruel thing about online music services like Spotify is that they instantly put a number next to every track, which is intended as a sign of its popularity. Particularly cruel is … Read more
Back in 2014, Hamish McKenzie was asked to write a book about Tesla, but instead Elon Musk gave him a job at the company. Four years on he’s released Insane Mode, a book that looks at Tesla and the dozens of young automaker start-ups it’s inspired. He explains to Gareth Shute why he believes the widespread … Read more
Meer has been known for her punchy, slick rapping since her duo Cool Tan (then called Heavy) dropped their first EP in 2014. Last year, she kicked off her own solo career and here she talks to Gareth Shute about her new single ‘1953’. There are many reasons why Meer (real name Reem) holds a … Read more
The last five years have seen Israel Starr develop into one of the leading lights within Aotearoa’s reggae scene. Gareth Shute caught up with him to discuss his new single with Reality Chant, ‘Future Navigator,’ and the astounding popularity of local reggae music. Israel Starr has the kind of grassroots support within the reggae community … Read more
By her early twenties, Kaylee Bell had achieved the top honours in local country music – Best Country Album in 2014 and APRA’s Best Country Song in 2015. Before that, she’d set her sights overseas where strong interest pushed her 2017 single ‘Getting Closer’ past 1.5 million streams. She’s just released two new songs and … Read more
John Rykenberg ran a studio of Auckland photographers from the late ’50s through until the late 1970s. Last year, 900 boxes from his studio were donated to Auckland Libraries. One of the researchers investigating this massive collection of images was Gareth Shute, who shares some of his favourites. My interest in the Rykenberg collection came … Read more
Spring is just around the corner, so what better time to start work on your own playhouse? Why let a lack of building prowess or your shitty collection of tools stand in your way? Gareth Shute is way ahead of you and shares his journey of mis-discovery. Have you noticed that all the big hardware … Read more