Tara Ward counts down the top ten moments from ‘Freedom & Whiskey’, the fifth episode of Outlander season three. Contains major spoilers, obviously. Sing me a song of a lass that is gone and then rocks on up again, totes out of the blue, wearing a strange coat and humming the Batman theme song. Everyone join in, … Read more
Alex Casey power ranks the second week of Married at First Sight NZ, where the glow has worn off and the rot has set in. Rip up your veil, feed the bride’s bouquet to the nearest giraffe and cast the cursed wedding rings deep into the nearest creek: true love is dead. Week one led … Read more
Lukas created his first buzz on Soundcloud before crossing over to a wider audience with his track ‘Comfort Clouds,’ which has quickly reached 120,000 streams on Spotify. He explains to Gareth Shute why he sees himself as part of a new wave of downbeat hip-hop acts poised to rise up from the underground. “I wouldn’t … Read more
Calum Henderson watches ITM Hook Me Up, a new fishing show that gets local celebs out in the deep blue. Give a celebrity a fish, they might do an Instagram post about it. But take a celebrity fishing? Then you’ve got a whole TV show on your hands. Prime’s new ITM Hook Me Up! is that show. … Read more
Our regular round-up of new songs and singles is back from its sabbatical, featuring Silicon’s take on Bic Runga, Aldous Harding’s off-cuts, the return of Kimbra, and more… SONG(S) OF THE WEEK Bic Runga – ‘Drive (Silicon Remix)’ A retro-futurist take on a New Zealand classic Released ahead of Bic Runga’s 20th-anniversary celebration of her … Read more
The Real Pod team assemble in the boardroom of dreams to talk reality TV and real life in New Zealand, and this week it’s all about one show and one show only. After scrabbling around like a litter of house pigs this week, Jane, Duncan and Alex finally find some time to dissect the glorious … Read more
Alex Casey rounds up all the characters on Lightbox who are glamorous writers and examines just how accurate their portrayals of the profession are. Like many, I was led to believe that being a writer would mostly consist of calmly sitting down at my desk next to an ornate antique lamp, cranking open my laptop and tapping … Read more
Henry Oliver rants and raves about the 2017 New Zealand Music Awards finalists then lists them all at the end. They got it (mostly) right The names you see most on the list – SWIDT (six nominations), Lorde (five) and Aldous Harding (four) – made the best albums in New Zealand in the last year, … Read more
Martyn Pepperell talks to New Zealand-born, Australia-raised vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Jordan Rakei about his shyness and his new album Wallflower, out now on Ninja Tune. “I have a friend who thinks that being an introvert just means you don’t need stimulation from other people,” says New Zealand-born, Australia-raised vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and producer Jordan Rakei … Read more
Liam Maguren talks to the Mukpuddy team about the return of The Barefoot Bandits, Māori MacGyver in space and getting adults excited about cartoons again. Ryan Cooper, Tim Evans and Alex Leighton are a triforce that take the form of New Zealand animation studio Mukpuddy. I burned my shoes for them when I celebrated their … Read more
A lazy knockoff or a legal maelstrom in waiting? Jihee Junn delves into the details of Love Island vs. Heartbreak Island. Amy Winehouse once crooned that love was just a losing game. But for reality TV producers all around the world, love – in its broadest sense – has been a winning one. Over the past year, … Read more
One Direction fan Sacha Judd on fandom, group chats, and how difficult it is to get Harry Styles tickets in New York City. Tickets to Harry Styles’ first solo tour go on sale on a Friday in May. He’s playing small venues – iconic theatres like the Greek in Los Angeles and the Ryman in … Read more
Tom Petty died today, aged 66. Jonny Potts remembers his 1993 Greatest Hits album, one of the best single-disc greatest hits compilations ever released. I still have my copy of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers’ Greatest Hits on CD. It was one of the first CDs I bought after acquiring a shitty boombox from an older … Read more
Kate Robertson chats on the phone with Macklemore for exactly nine minutes and thirty seconds, just enough time to ask him about his new album GEMINI, why he ditched the other dude, and making music in Trump’s America. It’s hard not to bop along to Macklemore. Some rap purists will say they thought he was … Read more
Tara Ward counts down the top ten moments from ‘Of Lost Things’, the fourth episode of Outlander season three. Contains major spoilers, obviously. Spare a thought for Jamie Fraser, the man who cannot escape his own animal magnetism. This season, no matter where he travels or how bad his hair is, Jamie’s golden charms have proved irresistible … Read more
Alex Casey power ranks the first week of Married at First Sight NZ, including reindeer jumpers, house pigs and too many kisses. As I expressed in my sappy review of the premiere yesterday, I have fallen hard and fast for Married at First Sight NZ already. I have walked down the altar, said “I do” … Read more
A Johnny Depp lookalike, a Tourism Wanaka ambassador and ‘Paleo’ Pete Evans walk into a Great Gatsby-themed dining room in suburban Auckland. From Tash and Hera’s place in Rotorua we go to Auckland for the second of six instant restaurants: the curiously-named ‘Manhatten 667’. Manhatten seemingly a misspelling of the New York City borough Manhattan; 667 one digit higher … Read more
London Grammar played live in Auckland for the first time on Saturday. Madeleine Chapman was at Spark Arena to see it unfold. There were technical issues at the London Grammar concert. I know this because the wait between the opener James Vincent McMorrow and the main act was 45 minutes. I also know this because … Read more
Alex Casey watches the first episode of Married at First Sight NZ, and falls hook, line and sinker for a 58 year old man named Mr Fluffy. Of all the things to anticipate in her upcoming marriage to a complete stranger, Claire (51) is only looking forward to one thing: sex. It’s the raunchy hen’s … Read more
With Married at First NZ beginning on Three tonight, Alex Casey recounts being in the room for the holy union of two complete strangers. The weirdest thing about being a guest a Married at First Sight wedding, aside from the obvious, is that there’s no music during the ceremony to tell you what to do. … Read more
As we bid farewell to the world’s only pub politics show, Back Benches host Wallace Chapman looks back at the series’ weird and wonderful nine years on air. Well, a big part of my life is over. I don’t want to hype the point, but that’s how it seems. We just had our last show … Read more
He’s made songs that are etched into the memories of generations of New Zealanders, but still fears the possibility of failure every time he sits down with a guitar or at his piano to write. Henry Oliver sits down for a few beers with New Zealand music icon, the ubiquitous yet mysterious Dave Dobbyn. Photography by Joel Thomas. For … Read more
The Spinoff and Spark proudly present Pod On The Couch, a weekly podcast exploring music and the people that make it. This episode: Henry Oliver reports live from the Silver Scrolls with Chelsea Jade, Bic Runga and more. Spinoff Music editor Henry Oliver flew to Dunedin to attend the Silver Scrolls awards show. Armed with a … Read more
Is Vikings fake news or did they really have those exuberant ponytails? Before the new season comes to Lightbox in December, Tara Ward tides herself over with some learning in Real Vikings. After a marathon session of the TV series Vikings, I’m left with as many questions as Rollo has hair combs. Who were the … Read more
Tonight, Ella Yelich O’Connor, along with her co-writers Jack Antonoff and Joel Little, won the 2017 APRA Silver Scroll Award for Lorde’s song ‘Green Light’. Elle Hunt explains why the song is so powerful. The 2017 Silver Scroll, the award for excellence in New Zealand songwriting, has gone to Ella Yelich O’Connor, along with her … Read more
Fifteen years after it entertained Kiwi kids during that neverending void between school and dinner, Maha Albadrawi and Lucy Zee remember the meta mayhem of WNTV. Every millennial Kiwi remembers What Now in the early 2000s. Everyone remembers Fiona Anderson giving away popcorn machines, everyone remembers Jason Fa’afoi in drag, everyone remembers Carolyn Taylor’s perky smile … Read more
The Real Pod team assemble in the boardroom of dreams to talk reality TV and real life in New Zealand, including the return of MKRNZ, Art and Matilda’s new cats and TVNZ’s new season announcements. This week on The Real Pod, worlds collide as Lena Dunham gets onboard with The Real Housewives of Auckland, Max … Read more
TVNZ just announced their new season line-up for 2018. Here’s what TV editor Alex Casey is looking forward to the most. Tonight, TVNZ launched their big new season programme on Auckland’s waterfront, including the likes of Big Bang prequel Young Sheldon, UK nudist horror show Naked Attraction and – gird your loins – an untitled Grey’s … Read more
Superfan Tara Ward counts down the top ten moments from ‘All Debts Paid’, the third episode of Outlander season three. Contains major spoilers, obviously. [Editor’s note: Before we go any further, if you haven’t watched the third episode of Outlander and don’t want a major plot point spoiled then YOU SHALL NOT PASS. Otherwise, please enjoy.] I’m … Read more