The Album Cycle: Bob Dylan just keeps on going, whoa Nelly Furtado’s back & more!

The Spinoff Music team review albums from Mount Eerie, Aimee Mann, Bob Dylan, Nelly Furtado, Vallis Alps and Anna Makirere. ALBUM OF THE WEEK Mount Eerie – A Crow Looked at Me One of the saddest albums ever Phil Elverum’s wife died last year. They had a one-year-old daughter. He made a tender and painful … Read more

Rumour has it that every day at 6pm ‘The News’ is screened: The Spinoff investigates

Sometimes New Zealand broadcast television feels like a wasteland, so we set our weekly columnist Tara the tallest, most terrifying task imaginable: recapping The News.  The 6 o’clock news bulletin is a time-honoured tradition, like death and taxes and only finding one sock when you definitely need two. The News has always been there, yet who … Read more

Confessional: Our favourite fake TV meals that we wish were real

There is no greater torture than seeing a delicious meal in your favourite TV show and knowing you will never be able to eat it. Here are some that we wish we could try.  From the deliciously disturbing dishes of Hannibal to Mr Bean’s botched turkey meal, there are countless fictional dinners that will remain … Read more

Pod on the Couch: Psych Fest and mind-bending New Zealand music

The Spinoff and Spark proudly present Pod On The Couch, a weekly podcast exploring music and the people that make it. This episode: Zac Arnold talks about Psych Fest, a psychedelic music festival in Auckland this weekend. Spinoff Music editor Henry Oliver talks to Zac Arnold, presenter of bFM’s Freak the Sheep, the best local music radio show … Read more

Time for Aaron Sorkin to walk and talk… straight into the sea

Over the weekend, legendary film and television writer Aaron Sorkin said some amazingly bewildered things about diversity and representation. Sam Brooks takes him for a gentle walk and talk.  “Are you saying that women and minorities have a more difficult time getting their stuff read than white men and you’re also saying that [white men] … Read more

New horizons: Aldous Harding’s ‘Imagining My Man’, reviewed

The Spinoff Music critics on Aldous Harding’s new single (and video) ‘Imagining My Man’. Henry Oliver When I first heard Aldous Harding’s ‘Horizon’, I was stopped cold. I’d listened to her album Aldous Harding a few times on its release but hadn’t kept up with her output (the primary medium of which seemed to be YouTube … Read more

Throwback Thursday: Sabrina the Teenage Witch is just as charming as you remember

While battling a bout of bronchitis, Claire Adamson rediscovers the ’90s magic of Sabrina the Teenage Witch.  In honour of its twentieth trip around the sun, I recently sat down (read: reclined on my bed with my laptop on my chest) to watch Space Jam, that much reminisced-about Michael Jordan vehicle from 1996. I had … Read more

A series of thoughts and feelings from The Mindy Project finale

With The Mindy Project season five coming to an end today, Alex Casey rounds up some reckons from the dramatic finale. Contains spoilers and delicious food. The Mindy Project remains one of my most reliable sitcoms these days, maintaining my affections where New Girl lost it years ago. It’s a love letter to the modern rom-com, … Read more

Why aren’t these awesome shows available to legally stream in New Zealand yet?

There’s a bevy of great new television shows that we can’t stream in New Zealand without breaking the law, and Aaron Yap has had it up to HERE. If there is one downside to this golden age of television on demand – where we’re all losing our minds over no fewer than ten amazing shows … Read more

Lorde sings Creme Egg version of ‘Green Light’

To once again prove she was not in Grey Lynn the other night, while marking seasonal confectionery treats, Lorde sings a Creme Egg inspired version of ‘Green Light’ on BBC Radio 1. She’s right, they are rich! And he’s right, they have gotten smaller! The Spinoff’s music content is brought to you by our friends at Spark. Listen … Read more

The Spinoff’s guide to the influences and appropriations of Drake’s More Life

Drake’s chart-dominating, streaming record-breaking ‘playlist’ More Life is a grab-bag of global influences. But if you don’t know your Moodymann from you ‘wasteman’, never fear – David Bell is here to guide you through it. I’ve always found Drake to be a kind of harmless doongie who can rap OK but write an amazing pop hook. … Read more

The Real Pod: Snake vs Plane, Gilda vs Adele and the latest on The Bachelor

Jane Yee, Duncan Greive and Alex Casey gather around the oval table and talk about the latest happenings in New Zealand television and real life in New Zealand. This week on The Real Pod, Alex, Jane and Duncan open with a disastrous Tim Tam slam before diving right into the latest in reality television and real life … Read more

The Spinoff Mix: Yumi Zouma’s ‘Dissipating Summer’

Auckland and Brooklyn-based dreamy/electro/synth/pop band Yumi Zoumi bid farewell to summer with an exclusive mix for The Spinoff. Seasons don’t change much in New Zealand comparative to other places. You could be forgiven for missing the subtle changes in the weather, but you would really have to be trying to miss things if you couldn’t feel … Read more

The Bachelor NZ Power Rankings, Week Two – Why can’t anyone use cutlery right?!

Alex Casey tackles the second week of The Bachelor NZ, including Shakespeare, funny tummies and bathroom tears. Time is limited. You could go at any point. Nobody is safe. That is both a beautiful haiku about the fragility of human mortality, and a direct quote from The Bachelor NZ last night. It’s the second week … Read more

Why hasn’t The Big Bang Theory been swallowed into a black hole yet?

Following the announcement that The Big Bang Theory is getting its own spinoff series, Angela Cuming goes off like a bloody rocket to Mars. There are three things I never bring up in a social setting: politics, religion, or The Big Bang Theory. The first two are tricky, but I can handle them OK – … Read more

Best Songs Ever: Kendrick takes on Trump, Zayn keeps trying way too hard & more!

Our regular round-up of new songs and singles, this week featuring Kendrick Lamar, Chuck Berry, Gorillaz, Blondie, Zayn and more… SONG OF THE WEEK Kendrick Lamar – ‘The Heart Part IV’ Kendrick vs Trump Coming along sooner than anyone expected, Kendrick Lamar’s new single is closer to the triumphant West-Coast anthems on good kid, m.A.A.d. … Read more

Pod on the Couch: The Naked and Famous’ Aaron Short on his new project, Space Above

The Spinoff and Spark proudly present Pod On The Couch, a weekly podcast exploring music and the people that make it. This episode: The Naked and Famous keyboardist, and Space Above founder, Aaron Short. Spinoff Music editor Henry Oliver talks to Naked and Famous keyboardist and producer Aaron Short about touring with Blink 182 and his new … Read more

The Album Cycle: Reviews of Drake’s soon-to-be-ubiquitous ‘More Life’ & more!

The Spinoff Music team review albums from Drake, Laura Marling, Spiral Stairs and James Blunt. ALBUM OF THE WEEK Drake – More Life What you’ll be dancing to this weekend A few years ago, as the recording industry was drowning in free mp3s, I told a friend who works at one of the Big Three record labels … Read more

A review of Don Henley written on a phone on the 049 bus from Te Atatu to Henderson

Don Henley from the Eagles played a gig at the Vector Arena in Auckland on Thursday night. Steve Braunias was there, and he reviewed it in a single paragraph tapped out on a bus trip today. As soon as Don Henley started playing Hotel California in the encore of his show on Thursday night at … Read more

Renters is New Zealand’s excruciating, hilarious answer to The Office

In celebration of Rent Week, Calum Henderson watches the hilariously bleak docu-series Renters and finds Kiwi comedy gold.  On the face of it, the TVNZ 2’s Renters show seems to exist solely to reinforce every negative stereotype about tenants in the Evil Landlord Handbook. It cynically takes all the worst and most extreme examples of bad … Read more

Watch: Repressed Memories #4 – The Ferndale Strangler still slays

Please enjoy the final episode (for now) of our online series Repressed Memories, wherein James Mustapic revisits weird local shows from his childhood (click here to watch episode one on Sensing Murder, episode two on Sticky TV and episode three on NZ Idol) When I was in my tween prime, Shortland Street was also in its prime. I … Read more

The Eagles: Hating them doesn’t make you cool, it’s just a waste of time

Don Henley, drummer/singer/songwriter of the Eagles, one of the most loved and loathed bands ever, plays in Auckland on Thursday. So, it must be asked, are the Eagles good or are they bad? Madeleine Chapman argues the former. There are very few things in life that make me genuinely mad. But the look of pure … Read more

The Eagles: The third worst band ever

Don Henley, drummer/singer/songwriter of the Eagles, one of the most loved and loathed bands ever, plays in Auckland on Thursday. So, it must be asked, are the Eagles good or are they bad? Greg Pritchard argues the latter. These days, a lot of energy is devoted to how Baby Boomers are the worst generation ever. … Read more

Married at First Sight is a beautiful bloodbath from hell

Aaron Yap has become obsessed with the latest season of Married at First Sight Australia. He explains why the ingenious reality show puts traditional scripted television to shame.  I wouldn’t consider myself an avid reality TV viewer, but I am admittedly susceptible to the cheap, junky pleasures of the genre. The more fucked-up the hook, … Read more