Summer reissue: In the latest episode of Final Mix, Yadana Saw and The Phoenix Foundation’s Samuel Flynn Scott road test new songs from the band’s forthcoming album Friend Ship. First published August 31, 2020. Independent journalism depends on you. Help us stay curious in 2021. The Spinoff’s journalism is funded by its members – click … Read more
In the latest episode of Final Mix, Yadana Saw and The Phoenix Foundation’s Samuel Flynn Scott road test new songs from the band’s forthcoming album Friend Ship. Samuel Flynn Scott originally wanted to call The Phoenix Foundation’s new album Anxiety. “Everything comes back to anxiety on this record,” the songwriter says in the latest episode … Read more
Luke Buda and Don McGlashan have today released “Children Don’t Belong in Jail”, a protest song about the refugee children detained on Nauru. The song, released in association with trans-Tasman advocacy group Mums 4 Refugees in the leadup to Universal Children’s Day on 20 November, seeks to add energy to and raise funds for calls to … Read more
The NZSO and The Phoenix Foundation performed their Celebrate! show last night at the Michael Fowler Centre in Wellington. Mark Cubey was there. “Anyone can be a success, but it takes real guts to be a failure.” That’s from a cartoon by Scottish genius John Glashan, who wrote plays and worked as an illustrator, but whose … Read more
The Phoenix Foundation’s Samuel Flynn Scott on longevity, listening to your old work and the band’s four-date tour with the NZSO to celebrate their 20th anniversary. Tonight, in their hometown of Wellington, the Phoenix Foundation start their four-city tour with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in celebration of the band’s 20th anniversary. Like many things … 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
You never realise how good you have it until it’s too late. In the first part of a series on Wellington’s flourishing food scene, former resident Samuel Flynn Scott yearns for the capital’s $7 menu. So long and thanks for all the roti, I don’t miss you at all. When I think of Wellington, until … Read more
Samuel Flynn Scott of The Phoenix Foundation goes on assignment for RNZ, immersing himself in a mixture of mediocrity, dazzle and rain. To steal and ruin a good lyric: there is no sun shining on the black clouds hanging over the domain today. It’s wet, it’s bleak. Ed Sheeran is in town and he’s used … 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
The sixth episode of our weekly pop music chat for umusic, shot and edited by The Spinoff’s own José Barbosa. It involves two pop rookies – The Spinoff’s Alex Casey and bFM’s Joseph Harper – listening to state-of-the-art pop music and having a chat about it. Simple. This week they discuss why Disclosure should slow … Read more