The three guitar assault of hard rock supergroup City of Souls

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

Every issue felt like the last issue: The greatest hits of Rip It Up’s first decade

With the first 101 issues of Rip It Up going online this week at Papers Past – about 3000 pages in all – where to start? Two dedicated readers and contributors share their favourite moments from the magazine’s early years. In 1980 Simon Grigg founded the influential indie record label Propeller, which launched Blam Blam … Read more

None more black: The vibrancy of Wellington’s hard rock and metal scene

It’s one of the most tight-knit, well-established and supportive music environments in New Zealand. Ben Lynch pays tribute to the capital’s hard rock and metal scene. When discussing or researching heavy music in New Zealand, one thing quickly becomes apparent: it’s a fairly fruitless task to try and compare scenes from city to city. While … Read more

I’ve got questions in my mind: Smashproof’s ‘Brother’, 10 years on

Ten years ago, Smashproof released ‘Brother’, the song that swiftly became the longest running number one by a New Zealand act. Jogai Bhatt talks to the band about the impact of the song then, and what it means to them today. I remember it like it was only ten years ago. I’d recently made the … Read more

The New York collective coming to NZ to celebrate women and gender-diverse DJs

Moments presents Discwoman is a series of shows, panel discussions and workshops aimed at encouraging more women and gender minorities to get involved with electronic music. Emma Hall-Philips, the founder of local collective Moments, tells Katie Meadows what it’s all about. Since its inception in 2014, New York-based collective Discwoman has become so much more … Read more

The game-changer: Nathan Haines’ Shift Left on its 25th birthday

Twenty-five years ago, Nathan Haines released Shift Left, New Zealand’s biggest selling jazz album of all time. On the eve of its anniversary reissue, Graham Reid takes a look at the album’s genesis and impact. This piece has been republished with permission from Audioculture. In 1994 Nathan Haines released his debut album Shift Left, an album which … Read more

Not your pop princess: Theia on her excellent new EP

Christchurch-born Theia’s second EP Not Your Princess drops today. Sam Brooks chats with the singer about her new music and her video for International Women’s Day. Theia’s first self-titled EP was released two years ago, and it was a stunning artistic statement. The production was lush, her voice had a distinctive husk to it, and the … Read more

The music quota debate has finally arrived on Spotify

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

The Spinoff Music’s Songs of the Month: March

The queen of 2019 combining with the queen of a generation, a New Zealand band with the new teen-dance classic, a local artist breaking the floor with a new banger. These are the songs of the month – seven international, three local – as picked by The Spinoff’s culture editor Sam Brooks. International ‘Quiet Company’ … Read more

Connan Mockasin on Jassbusters: ‘It was really fun to be nervous again’

Connan Mockasin’s new side project Jassbusters is currently touring around the country. Taylor MacGregor talks to the musician about what excites him now, and what fans can expect from his show at Auckland’s Crystal Palace tomorrow night. In 2016, bright eyed and naive to the glitz and glitches of the showbiz world, I approached Liam … Read more

Inside the busiest week of New Zealand songwriting: Songhubs 2019

Last week APRA AMCOS NZ hosted SongHubs Auckland, an initiative which saw 18 Kiwi and Aussie songwriters connect with four international guests, for a week long song writing camp in Roundhead Studios. This is the fifth installment of this collaborative event, where curator Greg Haver shepherd writers and producers into groups of four to write … Read more

The nationwide music festival putting women front, centre and behind the stage

Milk and Honey is a nationwide music festival happening on International Women’s Day this Friday. Anny Ma talked to its organisers, Lani Purkis and Teresa Patterson, about why it’s so necessary. Milk and Honey is a music festival touring four cities and six venues, but all of the shows will happen simultaneously on one night: … Read more

The Spinoff Music’s Songs of the Month: February

Our sword-queen returns, a reliable popstar deepens her foundations and Aldous Harding mesmerizes us with the power of dance. These are the songs of the month – five international, three local – as picked by The Spinoff’s culture editor Sam Brooks. International Handmade Heaven by Marina Marina, now sans the Diamonds, has been one of … Read more

The Spinoff Music’s Songs of the Month: January

A popstar reclaims her hype, an indie-darling goes pop, and a trio of locals make good on their early promise. These are the songs of the month – five international, five local – as picked by The Spinoff’s culture editor Sam Brooks. International ‘Don’t Feel Like Crying’ by Sigrid For a while it seemed like … Read more

Now that’s what I call an alternative history of NZ music in 10 songs

The official history of New Zealand music is filled with songs by artists we all know and love. But what about the artists we’ve forgotten? Or the hits by our most loved artists that remain overshadowed by other, bigger hits? Henry Oliver traces an alternative history of New Zealand music via songs featured on the … Read more

In love with those times: Preserving Flying Nun’s legacy

Flying Nun’s rightful place in New Zealand history has been secured with the acquisition of the legendary label’s master tapes by the Alexander Turnbull Library. If Alexander Turnbull was around these days, he’d be your classic bearded, single-origin-coffee-and-fancy-toast-loving Wellington chap. Had he been at his peak in the early 1980s, on the other hand, he … Read more

Barefoot sound and electro-haka beats: Huia Hamon on making music her way

Huia Hamon, Musician

She’s a producer, promoter, artist, musician, māmā and more. It might seem like a pick’n’mix career but Huia Hamon wouldn’t have it any other way. Today, a decade on from her first solo album, she dons her musician pōtae to release Āio, a te reo Māori EP about peace, knowledge and self-reflection. When Huia Hamon … Read more

Dictaphone Blues: ‘We’ll all end up at the Grey Lynn RSC playing as 50-year-olds. That would be success’

Martyn Pepperell talks to Dictaphone Blues’s Ed Castelow on Tinder, synths and redefining indie success.  Auckland singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and studio tinkerer Ed Castelow has been a regular fixture on stages around New Zealand and Australia since the mid-2000s, playing in bands like degrees.k, The Ruby Suns, The Brunettes, Anthonie Tonnon and The Conjurors, and his own … Read more

Repressed Memories: The boys of early-2000s New Zealand pop music

In Repressed Memories, James Mustapic delves into NZ pop culture’s graveyard and digs up some bodies. This episode: remembering Dane Rumble, Fast Crew, J. Williams, Evermore and Scribe. Watch all the Repressed Memories videos here. The Spinoff TV screens Fridays at 9.45pm from June 22nd on THREE. Thanks to NZ on Air. The Spinoff’s music … Read more

Auckland City Limits primer: Disasteradio! (WATCH)

Wellington synthpop genius Disasteradio is playing Auckland City Limits this weekend! To help prepare you, The Spinoff retraces his career in 121 seconds.  Wellington synthpop maestro Luke Rowell has been making hi-fi and high energy music under the pseudonym Disasteradio since 2000. He’s been on a prolific run ever since, playing over 400 shows in 22 countries … Read more

Cheat sheet: What is the New Zealand Music Industry Manifesto?

Welcome to the Cheat Sheet, a clickable, shareable, bite-sized FAQ on the news of the moment. Today we figure out what the New Zealand Music Industry Manifesto means for local music. The what? The New Zealand Music Industry Manifesto. It’s basically just a detailed vision board, an agreement between a bunch of our local music representatives … Read more

Why are we inducting so few artists into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame?

The NZ Music Hall of Fame currently inducts two local artists a year, but is it really enough? Hussein Moses talks to Peter Grattan who’s petitioning for a total overhaul of the system to give New Zealand musicians the recognition he feels they deserve. Salmonella Dub made headlines recently when they turned down an offer to … Read more

Throwback Thursday: The gems of New Zealand pop music

New Zealand has a long storied history of pop music, from ‘Blue Smoke’ to ‘Poi E’ to ‘Royals’. Chelsea Jade and Sam Brooks did their best to cover some of the forgotten and not-so-forgotten gems in between. When the Cat’s Away: ‘Melting Pot’ Chelsea Jade: Let’s dive into the melting pot. It’s a palate cleanser. … Read more

‘What if birds aren’t singing, they’re screaming?’: Inside Aldous Harding’s head

A couple of years ago Aldous Harding was just another New Zealand folk musician. Then she found a fierce voice, and started playing a string of mesmerising live performances which now have her on the cusp of international stardom. Henry Oliver sat down with her to try and find out what sparked her transformation. Aldous … Read more

Breakout classical star Rebecca Nelson on singing at Gallipoli and working with Lorde’s former manager

Kate Robertson talks to Rebecca Nelson, New Zealand’s newest classical crossover star. Classical crossover singer Rebecca Nelson is kind of a big deal right now. Her debut album, Poppies & Pohutukawa, has been sitting around the top of the album charts since its release in early April, and is currently ahead of The Chainsmokers, David … Read more

Pod on the Couch: Is New Zealand Music Month broken? Can it be fixed?

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 talks to Hussein Moses about the pros and cons of New Zealand Music Month. Spinoff Music editor Henry Oliver talks to writer and Spinoff Music contributor Hussein Moses about what’s wrong with New … Read more

‘Colonisation is still dominating our culture’: Sarsha-Leigh Douglas on Māori identity and wahine power

As part of Equalise My Vocals, a new Spinoff project focusing on equality in the music community, Coco Solid speaks with musician and multi-disciplinary punk Sarsha-Leigh Douglas. Sarsha-Leigh Douglas (Ngāti Maru, Te Arawa, Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Kahungunu) is a local punk icon with an array of bands, underground projects and achievements under her heavy belt. … Read more