Alex Casey attempts to get to the bottom of the Naked Attraction controversy for The Spinoff TV. Every Friday night, a new set of brave, naked tributes line-up for examination on TVNZ’s surreal dating show Naked Attraction. It’s a series that’s made a lot of people mad, raking in over 500 complaints to the network … Read more
We made it to the end of Survivor NZ! As always in real life, a Christchurch librarian emerges victorious. Luke Harries recaps. It’s been one hell of a journey, and it has all boiled down to this week’s live finale, where Christchurch-based librarian and Survivor superfan Lisa Stanger was named the winner and sole survivor of … Read more
The hugely popular British show about people watching telly is finally getting a New Zealand version. And Calum Henderson, for one, can’t wait. Good news: TV’s not dead. There are still people out there who regularly sit down, in their living rooms, and just… watch it, sometimes for hours at a time. Now, some of … Read more
These days, when people wave their hands at a gig, more often then not there’s a phone in them. RNZ Music’s Melody Thomas lays down the rules for using your phone at a concert. Imagine you’re in a packed stadium, watching one of your favourite musicians tearing it up on stage. All around you fans … Read more
SWIDT, the self-proclaimed “most electrifying rap group in entertainment”, extend their impeccable run with new EP, The Most Electrifying. Jogai Bhatt reviews. Award-winning hip-hop group SWIDT are back with a highly-anticipated six-track EP entitled The Most Electrifying, their second cohesive body of work following last year’s breakthrough album Stoneyhunga. Spycc, INF, Smokey, JAMAL, AZA and … Read more
Dudley Benson premieres his new video ‘Zealandia’ and speaks to Hussein Moses about his high concept political album of the same name that’s been eight years and $90,000 in the making. The day after Dudley Benson sent off his new album Zealandia to be mastered, he was back singing again, only this time it was … Read more
Josie Moon is a rising indie-pop act, whose work is inspired as much by imagery and colours as it is by musical ideas. Recently she’s been working with Nik Brinkman (Physical) on a new EP of tracks, with a first single ‘After Hours’ out now. She talks to Gareth Shute about how her synesthesia helped … Read more
Let’s take our seat at the trestle table of broken dreams, as we devour this week’s serving of The Block NZ power rankings. Blow me down with a power heater, because this week’s Dinner Wars was the most compelling television we’ve seen since a man wearing a silver wig tried to work out what famous cricketer-turned-television presenter … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in New Zealand pop culture and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. This week on The Real Pod, we are feasting upon the crucial final days of Survivor NZ alongside an assortment of snacks from The Food Show. Duncan and Jane recap the happenings on The Block … Read more
Yesterday, it was announced that Shortland Street’s famous hourlong winter Mondays will transform into a six night monster. And, surprisingly, some fans were not happy. The incredible news that Shortland Street will screen on Sundays from September hit me harder than Chris Warner’s bathtub crashing through his kitchen ceiling. Shortland Street, six nights a week? Be still, … Read more
The Spinoff presents the video premiere of The Miltones’ new video ‘Disappear’ shot in Auckland’s iconic Civic theatre. The Miltones’ Milly Tabak says: Stepping into the historic Civic building is one thing, but being on stage with remarkable and talented people is truly overwhelming. Being a young female at the beginning of my career I experienced some ‘imposter syndrome’ – … Read more
Henry Oliver talks to Jon Toogood, best known as the frontman of evergreen rockers Shihad, about the new record of his collaborative project The Adults. Last time I talked with Jon Toogood – Shihad frontman, wild rock’n’roll singer, wirey mass of relentless energy – he had recently got married and was preparing for the album tour … Read more
One of the most important shows in the country is also its worst. Spinoff staff writer and occasional musician in a band called Great North, Hayden Donnell writes about playing onboard the Interislander. Despite often being dumped in the same category at record stores, there’s not a huge amount that unifies New Zealand musicians. Our styles … Read more
There’s one more week to go on Survivor NZ, let’s get back in the drink. This season of Survivor NZ is keeping us on the edge of our seat right to the bloody end. This week we found out which three survivors would make it to the final tribal council, and face the jury of … Read more
The performance of Kendrick Lamar’s hip-hop carries special meaning for New Zealand’s minorities, Tamsyn Matchett writes. Kendrick Lamar has been on his DAMN. tour for more than a year. He will finish the 12 month marathon next week in Australia. Such a gruelling, brutal schedule is warranted given the huge mainstream success of DAMN., and its … Read more
Six60 are as much a business as a band, and have achieved historically unprecedented success with a very unconventional approach, writes lapsed Six60 hater and music critic Duncan Greive. New Zealand has never known a band like Six60. Their success is complete and unblemished – so vast that it can render the milestones of other … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Bajan-New Zealander Amber Maya about making music, going to school with Rihanna… and how to dispose of a body. Okay. Let’s start with something easy. Who… are you? I am a performing artist from Barbados and New Zealand. I make what I like to call soul-tronic, or electronic influenced RnB mainly. … Read more
To celebrate the release of Chelsea Jade’s long-awaited debut album, Sam Brooks asks her everything about her (and other people’s) music. It’s the rare unambiguously sunny morning in Auckland when Personal Best drops. I’m sitting outside a big building, waiting for an interview, long flowy coat on, big sunglasses on, and I’m listening to the album from … Read more
Here’s everything you need to know about the very chilled-out, extremely popular tropical house DJ. Hang on a minute – I thought ‘tropical house’ was something they have at the botanical gardens. What is it? You know that Ed Sheeran song that goes “I’m in love with your body / I’m in love with the … Read more
Ahoy there mateys and welcome back to The Block NZ, where tempers flared like an over-primed diesel heater and emotions flowed down the broken downpipe of hopes and dreams. Tara Ward recaps. Week two gave us drama aplenty as we witnessed teams fight like feral cats, Mark Richardson wave his umbrella around willy-nilly, and The … Read more
The Real Pod assembles to dissect the week in New Zealand pop culture and real life, with special thanks to Nando’s. On this week’s Real Pod, the dream team are back together after a mad week and there is much to discuss from telly land. Heartbreak Island has come to an extremely poetic end, Survivor NZ … Read more
Season eight of Suits starts dropping on Lightbox tomorrow – and Katherine Heigl is coming along with it. Sam Brooks details where the former TV princess has been up to since her heyday. Katherine Heigl has had a strange career, you guys. First up, she had Roswell. You know, that show about aliens starring the guy with … Read more
Play It Strange CEO Mike Chunn met a young autistic drummer and quickly realised how hard things were for those with Autism Spectrum Disorder, especially the young. When Play It Strange and Rotary Newmarket supported the recording of 16-year-old Kane Chong’s song ‘We Are One’ – a track dedicated to his severely autistic best friend, Connor – … Read more
We’re halfway through the school holidays and you’re probably running out of things to do with the kids. Never fear – Tara Ward to the rescue, with the ideal time-filling shows on Lightbox. Welcome to the school holidays, the magical period when whānau bask in the glow of two weeks of quality time with their … Read more
Hussein Moses speaks to Majid Jordan, the Toronto duo making noise thanks to one hell of a co-sign from Drake. While Drake might be experiencing whiplash right now after getting owned in a rap beef he started then breaking records with his album Scorpion, the Canadian superstar has put together an impressive roster of artists … Read more
Based on one of the most notorious murder cases in New Zealand history, Mistress, Mercy finds itself hamstrung by the limits of the doco-drama genre. In 1989, Renee Chignell and Neville Walker were convicted of the murder of Peter Plumley-Walker. Police alleged they had thrown him into the Huka Falls after a bondage session with Chignell, … Read more
Only five survivors are left battling it out for the money and glory, and honestly, it could be anyone’s game at this point. Could our winner be pharma-hunk Dave, who in immunity challenges is always the runner up, never the bride? Or maybe Tara, who no one in the jury is particularly angry at for … Read more
Singer-songwriter Theia tells her story of self-harm and taking back the power by writing about it. I break out in cold sweats a lot at the moment. I’m hit with major waves of crippling terror every time I think too intently about the fact that I’m releasing a new song. Not just any song, but … Read more
We’ve come to the end of the dystopian conservative marathon that is the second season of The Handmaid’s Tale – and oh my god what have you done, June! Tara Ward recaps. For the love of all things red and capey, why did you not get in the truck? It was the last few minutes … Read more