This week’s social media viral video was bleaker than usual – a wasted woman in a garage, looking half dead. It took The Hui to bring her to life – and in so doing lay bare some of the functionless duplication in our contemporary media, says Duncan Greive. All week we’ve seen the footage. A woman, … Read 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
From his home in Mt Eden, Paul Crowther makes one of the best distortion pedals in the world. Henry Oliver asks him how he does it. The first distortion pedal I ever wanted was a Boss DS-1. But only because I knew that Kurt Cobain used one and I was learning guitar by playing his … Read more
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
After watching both Adele and Justin Bieber storm Mt Smart Stadium one week apart, Alex Casey puts the pop heavyweights head to head. Last week I traveled back and forth to Mt Smart, more than any human should ever have to, all in the name of pop music megastars Adele and Justin Bieber. Among the flurry … 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: 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 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
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
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
Inside the Lightbox is a sponsored feature where we look for shows you might like to watch from their catalogue. This week, we figure out how you can fill the void before the next season of Vikings with help from the show’s newest star. Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s that … Read more
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
Game of Bros returned to Maori television tonight and picked up right where it left off: in a vat of coconut oil. Madeleine Chapman made a few crucial and important observations to keep an eye out for as the show progresses. Before I go any further I feel I must disclose that Aunty Henga and … Read more
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
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
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