MARLON WILLIAMS announces new album Te Whare Tīwekaweka

Aotearoa/NZ songwriter Marlon Williams returns with his first new single since the release of his album My Boy in 2022. The first taste of his Māori language album Te Whare Tīwekaweka (Pre-order) is the single ‘Aua Atu Rā‘, a beautiful and elegant Maori folk sound combining languid vocals and breezy strumming. “Ko te reo Māori, he matapihi ki te ao Māori” goes the Māori whakatauki … Continue reading MARLON WILLIAMS announces new album Te Whare Tīwekaweka

NEW MUSIC: Ringlets – New Life

Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa / Auckland, NZ band Ringlets have a new 7″ and digital single out via Leather Jacket Records and Flying Nun Records. It follows the band’s excellent debut, self-titled album of last year. ‘New Life‘ jitters and jerks like a lost Parquet Courts single, all twitchy nerve ends before the verse smooths out the cracks with Leith Towers’ melodic lead vocal and chugging … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Ringlets – New Life

AOTEAROA’S FAMILY BAND RELEASE POST PUNK/NOISE ROCK SINGLE AHEAD OF NEW EP

Formed in 2023 while all three members were flatting together in Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland, Aotearoa/NZ, Family Band take influence from Chicago noise rock and late 00’s Trans-Tasman post-punk.  Today they share ‘Large Dirt Piles’, the first single from their debut EP The Dog Box (out digitally on April 30 via Sunreturn). It’s a minimal, repetitive and visceral slab of post punk, rock deconstruction that brings to mind Big Black, Die! Die! Die!, METZ and some of the … Continue reading AOTEAROA’S FAMILY BAND RELEASE POST PUNK/NOISE ROCK SINGLE AHEAD OF NEW EP

HALLELUJAH PICASSOS RELEASE AGILE AND POLYRHYTHMIC NEW SINGLE ‘TAX THE RICH’

Aotearoa/New Zealand’s Hallelujah Picassos continue to impress with their renewed activity and renaissance in recent years. Always a band to ignore genre limitations, they’ve explored hardcore, reggae, dub, indie rock, rockabilly and electronic styles – always with intriguing results. If you’re new to the band, make sure you head back and check out the Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland band’s brilliant 18 song retrospective compilation Rewind The Hateman … Continue reading HALLELUJAH PICASSOS RELEASE AGILE AND POLYRHYTHMIC NEW SINGLE ‘TAX THE RICH’

SWALLOW THE RAT RELEASE HEAVY SHOEGAZE/POST-PUNK SINGLE TERRA NULLIUS

Straight off the bat there’s a big nod to Bailterspace on this new track from Auckland, Aotearoa/NZ trio Swallow The Rat. Killer sound! There’s sonic weight and tectonic shifts in the way the guitar buzz and swing with a heavy MBV sway or Swervedriver if they were more indebted to post-punk. It’s noisy, woozy and rock solid. Vocals are barked, giving it a Girls Against … Continue reading SWALLOW THE RAT RELEASE HEAVY SHOEGAZE/POST-PUNK SINGLE TERRA NULLIUS

AOTEAROA GROUP DICK MOVE RELEASE NEW PUNK SINGLE

Taken from Dick Move‘s forthcoming new LP Wet, set for release on 6th October through 1:12 Records, ‘Small Man, Big Tweet’ is another brisk and bristling single from the Auckland group. Straight out of the gate the guitars buzz and fuzz, gloriously accompanied and interrupted by primitive drums and Frances Carter’s righteous yelp and snarl. The new album was produced by Peter Ruddell (Wax Chattels, Sulfate) and … Continue reading AOTEAROA GROUP DICK MOVE RELEASE NEW PUNK SINGLE

Aotearoa’s Hans Pucket Release New Single ‘No Drama’

A great sound on this brand new single from Wellington, NZ band Hans Pucket. ‘No Drama‘ is the title track from their forthcoming new LP due out on on USA label Carpark Records on November 4th. The single brilliantly blends crunchy guitar rock with soft art-pop shapes and a widescreen indie retro-futurist aesthetic. There are strings, horns and one can pick out a faint hint … Continue reading Aotearoa’s Hans Pucket Release New Single ‘No Drama’

COFFIN CLUB UNLEASH THE FRANTIC PUNK OF FSTFWRD/RWND

Hailing from Auckland/Tāmaki Makaurau in Aotearoa/New Zealand, Coffin Club get taut and frantic on this mighty slice of post-hardcore and post-punk that brings to mind Hot Snakes, Fugazi, Mudhoney and their compatriots Die! Die! Die. The song deals with themes of exploitation in the workplace, lack of care for low income workers, and trying to cope in a capitalist world despite all the stresses and … Continue reading COFFIN CLUB UNLEASH THE FRANTIC PUNK OF FSTFWRD/RWND

POPSTRANGERS RETURN WITH NEW SINGLE, ‘ARE PIGEONS DOVES?’

New Zealand (UK-based) band Popstrangers are back with a new single, their first released on Rice Is Nice Records and their first new music since 2014. ‘Are Pigeons Doves?” drifts along with a hypnotic, ethereal feel. There’s a tinge of Radiohead in the underlying tension, high register vocal and drum-less arrangement. Popstrangers explain: ‘Are Pigeons Doves?’ is about the conversation I had with a friend, where he … Continue reading POPSTRANGERS RETURN WITH NEW SINGLE, ‘ARE PIGEONS DOVES?’

NEW MUSIC: Michael James Keane – Inside

Deep, dark intonations from New Zealand/Aotearoa songwriter Michael James Keane. ‘Inside‘ starts off with Keane sounding like a summit meeting between Ian Curtis, Graeme Jefferies, Nick Cave and Jack Ladder before the band arrives and the intimacy is dissipated but not eradicated. Over strummed acoustics and a detailed yet unobtrusive rhythm section, Keane joins a heavenly chorus of female voices, the yang to his tonal … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Michael James Keane – Inside

NEW VIDEO: The Datsuns – Dehumanise

Directed by Sam Kristofski, here’s the third single from The Datsuns‘ recently released album Eye To Eye. I’ve been really impressed with the new album. It’s defiantly still the same essential sound for the New Zealand band – that mix of classic, stoner and psychedelic rock music. They certainly haven’t mellowed with age though, this track kicks like a drunken mule! As the press release … Continue reading NEW VIDEO: The Datsuns – Dehumanise

NEW MUSIC: A bLUNT jESTER – Cat Door

Rhythm and funk is the name of the game on this track from Auckland, New Zealand producer A bLUNT jESTER, who’s already had success with previous releases on student radio in Aotearoa. He dials into an 80s aesthetic of movie soundtracks that lean towards a cold wave and sci-fi dance floor aesthetic. Clinical production qualities built around a half-man/half-machine drum sound make it sound like … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: A bLUNT jESTER – Cat Door