Empty Streets I Walk For You

Their third album Form only just came out this week, but Die! Die! Die! has already recorded the bulk of what could potentially be their next album. Andrew Wilson and Mikey Prain tell us about how they came to sign with Flying Nun and dealing with the competitive overseas market.

Despite the lengthy delay between 2007’s Promises, Promises and Form, Die! Die! Die! has not actually been on hiatus as has been reported. Over the past three years the band has been touring extensively and writing new material, however they are still concerned about traction they may have lost overseas. “If you’re not continually doing stuff you lose really quickly any momentum that you were getting,” Mikey says as I sit down with him and singer/guitarist Andrew Wilson at Alleluya Café. “In music terms, three years is a forever amount of time… And everyone’s on such a quick turn around over there, especially in the UK. They want a new band every six months.”

To compensate they plan to base themselves mostly in Australia from August, Andrew says. “We do quite well over there, the same kind of level as we are over here (NZ), so it makes sense to be able to keep playing at the same level.” America is the next stop in October, most likely to play at CMJ Festival, despite their open disdain for industry festivals. “I find they’re getting worse and worse,” says Mikey. “The first time we went to SXSW and CMJ it was kind of exciting… and then it kind of becomes really ugly, just a whole bunch of industry people and bands trying to get on top of each other. It’s like the world cup of music.” They say this culture coupled with economic pressure has seen bands streamlining into mediocrity. “Music has changed a lot in America,” Andrew says, “there used to be so many crazy bands over there, and now it seems like there’s a lot more music-music now”. But that’s not to say they’re not excited to go back.

“I’m really optimistic about America, ’cause I don’t really think we’re going to become the biggest band in the world, but I can see us continuing at the level which we were at, which would be fine. We used to get good crowds in New York and the main centres. And that’s fine, I don’t really ever want to tour the mid-West again,” he shudders. “Maybe if it were house shows.”

“We turned down all these other deals that people had found for us, ‘cause they weren’t really what we wanted.”

The insularity of the New Zealand music scene has kept them cozy but has also dogged them in their six years. Die! Die! Die! is a well-known subject of public discourse, and they tend to polarise people. So naturally they’ve relished the opportunity to keep on the road and not get bogged down with pettiness. “I think whenever you go away and you come back you feel a lot happier because you’re not surrounded by things,” Mikey says.

This lightness of being comes through in Form, a fully realised vision delivered with an airy maturity. There’s typical gritted teeth and tension, but now layers of opaque guitars mist over the normally skeletal structures. They don’t exactly sound carefree, but there’s an overwhelming sense of cohesion; they’ve hit the right balance of pretty and menacing.

“For this album it’s been really good to experiment with new stuff,” says Mikey, on working with engineer/producer Nick Roughan (The Skeptics). “He’s got a really cool musical sense… and he’s come from a place where he’s done a lot of really interesting stuff and he can give us a lot more interesting ideas on how you can do stuff. It has been really cool, it’s been a big thing for us. The last record Promises Promises, we left lots of stuff out. On half of it some of the drum tracks can only go through one speaker and we forgot all the backing vocals… So it was good to do (Form) as well as we could… We put more into it.”

The change is instantly noticeable, with samples more prevalent and even synths, which Mikey says “we never thought we would ever do”. And it couldn’t have been released on a more appropriate label than Flying Nun. Having always led the way with the music Mikey, Andrew and bassist Lachlan Anderson have always adored, they’re thrilled to have Flying Nun back and taking chances on artists you wouldn’t automatically think would be a fit.

“I think they’re gonna do really good things,” Andrew says. “They’re judging everything on music, which is really awesome. Look at that Grayson Gilmour album, it’s not really my cup of tea but it is world class… It’s not about hype or what’s trendy at the moment. The thing that everyone’s expecting them to do is to jump on that Flying Nun bandwagon that is going on in Brooklyn, and sign a billion bands that sound alike… and I think that’s the opposite of what they’re doing.”

People didn’t get Die! Die! Die!’s “emotional attachment to Flying Nun”, Andrew says. “We turned down all these other deals that people had found for us, ‘cause they weren’t really what we wanted, so that kind of made a lot of people throw their toys out of the pram. Then they were like, ‘you wanna go with this label who don’t really have anything set up?’. We were kind of taking quite a big chance on them.”

Flying Nun was always the label they wanted for New Zealand. Mikey says on major labels, “We’ve never wanted to be signed up to one of those things and become part of the institution that they are. I don’t want someone telling us what our band’s gonna be and what our band’s gonna do, ’cause I think that would be the end of us.” Roger Shepard wanted to help them, Andrew says. “He was going, ‘If you guys sign to one of these major labels it’s gonna be the end of your band’.” Mikey agrees: “Basically it becomes more about money than music. All you become is a band on a piece of paper for them, and they’ve got lots of pieces of paper!” he laughs.

They’ve already recorded the bulk of what could be the next album at an old second-hand bookstore and at a studio in Mt Albert, Auckland, with Nick Roughan. Andrew says, “We might release an ep or an album; we recorded like 8 songs, and then two really long kraut rock jams, but they sound too much like Neu! So we don’t wanna release them now. Unless Neu! becomes really hip, then we’ll release them,” he says, tongue in cheek.

Die! Die! Die! is currently on tour throughout New Zealand, check the EMJ sidebar for dates.

Die! Die! Die!- We Built Our Own Oppressors: MP3

Click to buy Die! Die! Die!’s latest album Form

Die! Die! Die!- Myspace

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Auckland, Dunedin, New Zealand
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Looking Sharp

Daif King and Chris Cudby are famous around here for constantly breaking all the conventional pop rules. One could easily take their goofiness as a piss-take of the pop music industry, but oh no, they’re deadly serious. They started out busking on the Auckland streets in 2001 and have since gained one of the city’s biggest cult followings. Ask anyone about the old Edens Bar on K-Rd and they will instantly tell the story of Golden Axe’s refusal to play on stage, instead setting up their multi-keyboard stack on the pavement outside the bar and sending everyone into a teen-ergy, alcohol induced, dancing frenzy.

Directed by filmmaker Simon Ward, Golden Axe has just released a brand new video for the single ‘Free Time’, off their upcoming album Fantasy Footwork. The video features Don Brooker as an 8o’s karaoke singer/magician rehearsing before the wedding of two former Roxy Music fans who have just had a life changing spiritual experience. It’s got a typical retro vibe and you might notice Ward reusing a technique he applied to Disasteradio’s ‘Awesome Feelings’ music video.

You can download Golden Axe’s latest single ‘Free Time’, plus a new b-side titled ‘Like It Or Limpet’ from Bandcamp. Also check out Sarah’s interview with the band from the summer issue of NO. Magazine.

 Golden Axe- Hot ‘N Cold (Katy Perry cover): MP3

 Golden Axe- Myspace

Posted by Nick Fulton under Auckland, New Zealand
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Chilli The Cat Doesn’t Have Fleas

Anyone who has seen Fatangryman play live will know that the band struggles to keep in time, but that seems to be becoming more of a charm than a hindrance as they’ve given us dibs on their first single, titled ‘Wrapped In Plastic’. You’ll probably instantly notice that the guitar is out of tune, but don’t lots of bands do that on purpose? The song actually has some value, coming via a dry, monotone chorus and a grungy, heavily distorted bass line. It sounds a little bit like they listened to Batrider and then decided to play it really loose and dirty. Jessica Dew and Ary Jansen’s voices stick to a dark repetitious tone similar to Sarah Chadwick’s and Reuben Winter shows he’s no coward on the drums, adding some thunderous drum rolls. It’s very impressive when compared to their live performance, which is normally a shambolic mixture of nerves and laughter.

Fatangryman- Wrapped In Plastic: MP3

Fatangryman- Myspace

Posted by Nick Fulton under Auckland, New Zealand
[46] Comments

 Kaleidoscope

I could never write about my brother’s band The Map Room objectively, but am sharing it anyway because I thought it might strike a chord with some of you. Simon Gooding and Brendon Morrow’s music is full of layers; voice, grand piano, guitar, bass, drums, synth and occasionally mandolin. The five songs they’ve recorded for an EP have them sharing vocal duties, with Simon’s voice a high floaty contrast to Brendon’s lower grittier voice. The best friends met at the School of Audio Engineering (SAE) in Byron Bay a few years ago when they were assigned as roommates. They became fast friends and have collaborated in various forms ever since, including playing in Reb Fountain’s band The Bandits with Dylan Storey and Sam Prebble. Making use of their audio engineering skills (Simon was the Head Engineer at York Street Studios and Brendon did sound work for TV), they combine their love of well-constructed pop songs with embellished instrumentation. Titled in part because of their current travels in South America (the photo above is from the Salt Flats in Bolivia) the duo’s music is sculptural and delicate. ‘Pilot’ is my favourite; a dreamy pop song sprinkled with synths so light and airy they sound like they’re floating high above you, with vocals equally sky-high.

 The Map Room- Pilot: MP3

The Map Room- Myspace

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Auckland, New Zealand
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Kind Mutation

Nice Birds began on the North Shore of Auckland at the end of January last year. Born somewhat out of the ashes of two Northcote bands (Fox In French and The Happy Rainbow band), Nice Birds’ Michael MacDonald, Tim Berry and Alex Grant bonded over a mutual appreciation of post punk (particularly Joy Division, Jesus and Mary Chain, The Velvet Underground and Echo and the Bunnymen). With Michael’s muted mumbles garbled through his simultaneously shoegazey and prickly punk guitar, Tim’s beady basslines and anguished howl, and Alex’s clever pursuit of intelligent rhythms, Nice Birds’ sound is one that’s blossomed in the local gig circuit and has grown like a snowball.

All three members bring different ideas and influences to the table; they explain that while Tim nurses a love of The Feelies, Alex’s complicated rhythms stem from a love of jazz drumming. “I think it’s where my passion for drumming started,” he says. Tim, normally a guitarist, here is bass player by default: “We didn’t have a bass player. Then me and one of my friends found a bass on the street, so we did it up. It took a long time, but it was pretty fun.”

The future of the band is clear: they will be breaking up after their first and only EP, Swirly, is released on Friday. Michael has been offered a job in Australia, which leaves the possibility of a future project for Tim and Alex up in the air. There is also talk of continuing Nice Birds via the internet.

It’s always been an ambition of the young band to release their music properly, and Swirly looks set to cement their place as potentially Auckland’s most eloquent post punk band. Tim argues, “There’s not enough recorded music coming out of the Auckland scene,” hence why they want to leave their mark. Their internet-released self-titled demos collection provided a great early introduction to the band through roughly recorded favourites, including ‘F. Scott Fitzgerald Book Club’ with its interlocking melodies (now rerecorded for the Swirly EP) and the discordant and wordy ‘Lost In A Chinese Mine’. The former came from a failed idea of Tim’s to start a book club dedicated to the writer. Ask what his favourite Fitzgerald book is, and his response is surprisingly thoughtful. “Well definitely Gatsby, it’s the best one by far, but I reckon This Side of Paradise is him going ‘Look, I’m awesome, look at all this stuff I’ve done’, and then Beautiful and the Damned I felt was a little bit of a prototype for Tender Is The Night. But Tender Is The Night’s good as well.”

The band’s literary bent lends a kind of offbeat maturity to their music that can seem thinly spread in other bands, young and old. Taking cues from favourite bands, including the punk aggression of Die Die Die and the choppy rhythms and meandering guitars of Wilberforces, Nice Birds’ stripped-back sound can be attributed to a lack of gear; not just a deliberate decision.

“There are some great bands that use fancy pedals, but we don’t have any fancy pedals,” shrugs Tim. “We don’t really have anything,” says Alex. “I’ve got a broken pedal,” says Tim. “I think we’d rather sound like The Clean than like My Bloody Valentine.”

If a cheesy b-grade horror can inspire such integrity and intelligence in music, then there is hope despite Nice Birds’ breakup. After all, it all began when the three watched Pterodactyl, in which a girl, attacked by the prehistoric bird, seeks the help of the protagonist. Tim explains, “This guy’s like, ‘Nice birds!’, and points at her chest. It’s a terrible name, right?”

WIN one of two copies of Nice Birds- Swirly.
Email your name to music@einsteinmusicjournal.co.nz
Winners drawn Monday 22 February

Swirly EP release Friday 19 Feb, $5
w/ God Bows To Math, Hypercolour (ChCh) & Sidewalk Meese
6.30pm St Barnabas Scout Hall, Mt Eden.
Swirly EP available for $5 on the door

Nice Birds- F. Scott Fitzgerald Book Club: MP3

 Free download Nice Birds’ Demos

 Nice Birds- Myspace

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Auckland, New Zealand
[5] Comments

Laneway Festival

February 1, 2010

Britomart Square, Auckland

Last week our Melbourne friends told us that the Laneway Festival is one of the least respected festivals in Australia, we were surprised, but it meant we entered the first Auckland Laneway festival with a hint of scepticism. We’d been told stories of forty minute-queues to see bands, poor facilities and an even poorer location, but on first inspection of the Britomart Square set-up it seemed to be very well laid out. There was plenty of room for fans to access both stages; the toilets seemed aplenty and food stalls appeared to be well situated through the area. It all seemed very different from the description we’d been told of the Melbourne event.

As we entered, twenty minutes after the official opening time, Auckland band Street Chant had already taken the stage, jumping around like spastic children high on adrenalin and sugar. They seemed to be relishing their opportunity on the main stage, smiling and laughing at their friends and pounding through a raucous set. The only noticeable defect was a few on stage sound issues, which seemed to be a common problem throughout the afternoon with Surf City, The Phoenix Foundation and The Dirty Three all displaying minor moments of discomfort. Out front the sound was good, despite the blustery winds and intermittent rain.

Dear Time’s Waste were first up on the smaller ‘Red Bull’ stage, sending the crowd into an instant swoon with their beautifully executed dream pop. The band rarely has an off day and again they showed why they have been labelled one of the country’s hottest up-and-coming bands and easily justified their recent signing to Australian label Speak N Spell.

Surf City was the next band on the main stage to prove they were worthy of international hype. Recently hailed as one the highlights of New York’s CMJ Festival 2009, they had an expectation to deliver upon. And they did, providing an early highlight with their songs ‘Dickshakers Union’ and ‘Headin’ Inside’, which became the first catchy songs of the day.

Bachelorette, a late inclusion to the festival, replacing US band Hockey, fitted in well, but after Surf City lacked the energy to keep the crowd enthused. Her glum facial expression and nervous looking persona made her look lonely on stage and made it difficult to draw any emotion from her inter-dimensional pop music.

On the main stage The Phoenix Foundation travelled through a restless set that saw Luke Buda and Sam Flynn Scott addressing the crowd at regular intervals. Unfortunately a lot of their jibba jabba seemed lost on the audience and their songs often dragged, but when they got it right they were brilliant, like on ‘Nest Egg’ and ‘Cars Of Eden’. The performance also farewelled their long-time bassist Warner Emery, who after seven years in the band has decided to move on.

The XX were the first international band to take the stage and instantly you could feel the festival step up a gear. Their sound was polished and you could tell the band has spent the last six months consistently on the road playing night after night. Their music wasn’t particularly complex and it showed up even more so live than it does on record, but despite that it had an airy quality and a sexiness in the vocal melodies to make it float and work in the large festival environment.

What happened next was both beautiful and embarrassing. The much-loved folk singer Daniel Johnston, slightly awkward and timid, played a tear-jerking set that had fans and even those not accustomed to his music in awe. The crowd was hushed between songs, applauding when appropriate and showing Johnston complete respect. His shyness was obvious, apologising when the wind blew his sheet music and when it occasionally dropped to the floor, but his music was so wonderfully delivered that it took nothing away from his performance. His voice, somewhat childlike, and his rugged guitar playing was charming, melting hearts and fulfilled fans, some of whom had bought tickets to the festival just to see him play.

Johnston’s set was unfortunately marred by an embarrassing decision to start Cut Off Your Hands on the main stage before Johnston had finished. The deafening echo of bass and drums overcrowded Johnston’s acoustic set and it was obvious Johnston was affected by the noise coming from less than twenty metres away. It is unlikely Cut Off Your Hands made the decision to play over the top of Johnston, but it left many fans filthy and talk around the square suggested COYH were being blamed.

After a performance by The Black Lips, whose reputation seems to be more for their stage antics than their music, The Dirty Three were welcomed on to the stage by one of the Australian festival promoters. Warren Ellis, the band’s charismatic front man then set about deconstructing the audience’s ideas of instrumental music, explaining the meaning behind each song (which seemed to be made up on the spot to suit the situation). Plucking his violin and kicking the air furiously, Ellis entertained and inspired the crowd to let go of themselves and enjoy life, complimented by the masterful Mick Turner (bass) and Jim White (drums). After the sour ending to Daniel Johnston’s set The Dirty Three brought the Laneway Festival back to life.

While waiting in line to get a punnet of hot chips (one of very few options available to vegetarians), Chris Knox and The Nothing played a short set accompanied by Shane Carter (Dimmer, The Straitjacket Fits). Knox’s recovery from his recent stroke had advanced a little further since his last performance and it was a delight to see him on stage enjoying himself.

Still in line for chips (it was twenty metres long when we started and it took an hour to get to the front), it was becoming infuriating as Echo and the Bunnymen sounded electrifying on the main stage. The sun had just gone down and the stage lights looked spectacular around singer Ian McCulloch. When we finally got within sight of the stage the band belted out their classic single ‘The Killing Moon’ which sounded ethereal and breathtaking and their reputation as one of the most consistent live acts from the ’80s was truly recognised.

The 3D’s switched time slots with Echo and The Bunnymen and it worked in everybody’s favour. By now the first Auckland Laneway Festival had exceeded its expectations and there were still three bands yet to play. It was The 3D’s who delivered my favourite performance of the festival; part noise, part rhythm, all tight as hell. With much of the Flying Nun back catalogue being lost over the past decade, The 3D’s is a band that our generation has been starved of, but that was put to rest last night. Playing classics like ‘Hey Suesss’ and ‘The Golden Groove’, David Mitchell, Denise Roughan and David Saunders shared vocal duties and their guitar shredding and rhythmic lashings painted the night green.

Someone commented to me at the end of the festival saying that if Florence And The Machine had played Big Day Out and The Horrors had played Laneway then the two festivals would have had the perfect balance. It seemed to be the general consensus amongst the crowd that Florence And The Machine was a little too poppy for their liking, myself included, but her performance was definitely not to be missed. She jumped about the stage and never missed a note with her siren-esque voice; her long red hair flailing in the wind and her cape stretching out behind her. She played ‘Kiss With A Fist’ very early on which was a little surprising, but her more recent hits ‘You Got The Love’ and ‘Hurricane Drunk’ gave the crowd what they were waiting for later in her set.

Enter NASA and it seemed that half the crowd had been waiting all day for Florence And The Machine and had decided to go home. Despite having their power cut when the clock struck 11.30pm, NASA DJs Sam Spiegel and Ze Gonzales ended the festival with a dance party, mashing up The Beastie Boys, Pink Flyod, The Sugar Hill Gang and Grandmaster Flash. Along with a visual collage and aliens dancing on stage, they were by far the most fun, interactive act of the night and they even brought Ras Congo all the way from Jamaica to sing on their song ‘Money’. It was a shame it all had to be cut short by the council curfew, but it’s understandable when you consider the festival promoters already had an extension on their 10.30pm curfew granted earlier in the evening.

More Auckland Laneway Festival Photos

Posted by Nick Fulton under Auckland, New Zealand
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 Echo and the Bunnymen| The 3Ds| Daniel Johnston| The XX| The Phoenix Foundation| The Black Lips| N.A.S.A| Hockey| Surf City|  Sarah Blasko| Dear Time’s Waste| Florence and the Machine| Cut Off Your Hands| The Dirty Three| Street Chant| The Family Cactus| The Naked and Famous

February 1, 2010 - Britomart Square, Auckland

Buy Laneway Tickets

Daniel Johnston

Many of us were touched by Daniel Johnston’s story in the film that documented his life, The Devil and Daniel Johnston, which explained the California-born songwriter’s troubled life dealing with manic depression and bipolar disorder. He’s somewhat documented this with his moving and simple songs that he’s been writing since his teens. His are pop songs at their core, the rough and ready recordings grew from Beatles covers to world-renowned organ, piano and guitar-driven gems all recorded on old tape recorders or boomboxes. He’s taken this Beatles influence and turned it into countless heartfelt odes with poetic lyrics so precisely human that they are universally relevant and achingly true. ‘Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Your Grievance’, ‘Like A Monkey In A Zoo’, ‘Story of An Artist’, ‘Speeding Motorcyle’, ‘King Kong’ and ‘Walking The Cow’ are all favourites. Johnston was publicly revered by Kurt Cobain, who often wore the now recognisable ‘Hi, How Are You?’ Johnston shirt on stage and in photo shoots. Johnston’s also noted for his collaborations with Yo La Tengo, and counts Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips, Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth and Jason Pierce of Spiritualized among fans. At the same time as being a leading light for emotional DIY recording artists everywhere, he’s also built a solid career as an illustrative artist, spawned from his original, primitive drawings for his album covers. He’s exhibited his unrestricted and colourful art around the world. His music is characterised by his rather abrasive style of recording and singing; his classic songwriting is not hindered by production and relies much on his wavering, heartfelt voice and enthusiastic and playful manner, despite the serious and often sad nature of his lyrics. Johnston is an amazing addition to the Laneway lineup.
Sarah

Daniel Johnston- Don’t Let The Sun Go Down On Your Grievance: MP3

Daniel Johnston- Myspace

The XX

When we featured The XX on EMJ back in August they hadn’t even played a headlining show in their home town. In the few short months since then the Londoners have become one of the most talked about indie bands in the world, due largely to their very impressive self-titled debut album fusing trip-hop and music of the new romantics. Proving hot, the band has been on a very rigorous touring schedule for the last few months and still has 23 shows to play before Auckland’s Laneway Festival. Unfortunately they have paid a hefty price for their intensive touring, in early November guitarist/keyboardist Baria Qureshi (second from left) announced she was quitting the band, citing personal differences. She has not been replaced and Jamie Smith has picked up her parts in an effort to keep everything completely live.
Nick

The XX- Crystalised: MP3

 The XX- Myspace

The 3Ds

The announcement of the addition of legendary Flying Nun outfit The 3Ds to Laneway lineup was exciting to say the least. Onetime tour/gig mates with Nirvana, U2, Pavement, The Buzzcocks, The Lemonheads and Guided By Voices, amongst others, the Dunedin band has built a legacy on its brand of noisy, fun-loving raucous pop with almost surfy rhythms and scuzzy punk distortion, earning the title of “world’s number one noisy pop band” by SPIN magazine. Formed 21 years ago with the desire to make noisy, crazy music and have fun, The 3Ds takes its name from its founding members Dominic Stones (drums), Denise Roughan (bass/keyboard/vocals) and David Saunders’ (guitar/vocals) names. The trio recruited fourth member David Mitchell (guitar/vocals/mandolin) a year after the band’s inception and has influenced countless bands in New Zealand and around the world since. Each member of the 3Ds brings a plethora of experience to the group – Dominic was once in Bird Nest Roys and Snapper; Denise originally came from fellow fantastic Flying Nun act Look Blue Go Purple; David Saunders had been in The Battling Strings and Mr Big Noise; and David Mitchell was in Exploding Budgies, Goblin Mix and Xpressway Records’ revered Plagal Grind. They’ll take the stage at Laneway next to the young and the old, and remind us all why they’re one of the best bands to come out of this country.
Sarah

The 3Ds- Hey Seuss: MP3

The 3Ds- Myspace

Surf City

Surf City has never really been fully appreciated here in New Zealand but over in America the band can do no wrong. On their recent trip to New York for the CMJ Festival they were pinned up as heroes of NZ indie rock, as fans of the Flying Nun record label claimed to have found a new light, comparing Surf City to The Clean, The Dead C and Tall Dwarfs. They were hand picked to play Brooklyn Vegan’s very own CMJ showcase alongside Local Natives, Deastro and Cymbals Eat Guitars and were labelled one of the most anticipated bands of CMJ 2009 by several reputable music critics. The band’s debut EP (2007) has had world-wide distribution through Morr Music in Europe and Popfrenzy in Australia and their debut album will be out in early 2010.
Nick

 Surf City- Dickshakers Union: MP3

 Surf City- Myspace

 N.A.S.A

North America/South America is the creative collaboration between international superstar DJs Sam Spiegel and Ze Gonzales. They have been picked by the festival promoters to close the night and to hopefully end the festival with a bang. Both men sure have the experience to do it, Spiegel is the brother of movie director Spike Jonze and was responsible for scoring Jonze’s classic skater film Yeah Right!. He also produced the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ second album Show Your Bones. Gonzales is a famous Brazilian skateboard pro who made his mark on the Brazilian club scene in the late ’80s playing cutting edge hip-hop. In the ’90s he was a member of influential rap-rock group Planet Hemp, programming samples. As a duo, N.A.S.A released their debut album The Spirit Of The Apollo in early 2009 and gained widespread attention for the huge number of international pop stars they brought together for some very unusual and unique collaborations. Among them were Karen O, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Tom Waits, Chali 2na, Kanye West, Lovefoxxx, M.I.A and Santogold.
Nick

 N.A.S.A- Whachadoin? feat. Spank Rock, MIA, Santogold and Nick Zinner: MP3

N.A.S.A- Myspace

Posted by Nick Fulton under Auckland, New Zealand
[3] Comments

Double Happiness

Released on Monday, November 23, MUZAI Records presented two bands on one split CD. First is Auckland hardcore punk outfit God Bows To Math, with four tracks of spitting aggression and spiralling feedback. Then it’s TFF, the Dunedin teenagers who craft long, noisy jams using high pitched guitar screeches and crooked saxophone playing. I had a chat with both bands about putting the split together and about their future plans to tour the country together.

Rory MacMurdo, drummer in TFF, remembers quite vividly how the two bands first met. God Bows To Math were touring the South Island and Rory says “God Bows To Math sent us a myspace message asking us to play a gig and we kind of read it then completely forgot about it. Then the week that we actually had the gig we started seeing posters advertising it, so we ended up meeting this band kind of by accident and playing a show with them.” Martin Phillips and Tom Morrison (GBTM) put the lack of organisation down to their bass player Jeremy Amos, who used to live in Dunedin.

Meeting in Dunedin, the two bands had an instant reaction and agreement towards each other’s musical influences. Rory remembers, “we just started talking about music and had an instant agreement on bands and stuff like that. We just really liked each other’s styles.” They then played together again in Christchurch, and it remains the only show TFF have ever played outside of Dunedin. It was during the trip from Dunedin to Christchurch that Rory first remembers the split being discussed, “like bands do” he laughs, “kind of bullshitting.”

Martin says releasing a split seemed like a good way for both bands to reach a wider audience. “A lot of people in the South Island don’t know much about the Auckland scene and a lot of people from Auckland don’t know much about the Dunedin stuff, so it was a nice way of joining the two together.”

Initially the idea for the split seemed like it was just talk and that little action would ever take place to complete it, but when MUZAI Records became more of a serious record label the idea was motioned as a definite serious proposition. “It was kind of a bullshit thing for like a year and then it became serious about four or five months ago,” explains Rory.

“We recorded all the music live and quite fast, like first takes, and then Lisandru recorded the vocals later” - Rory, TFF

Both bands started recording songs for the split several months ago, but both ran into some unfortunate problems. God Bows To Math’s four songs come from two different recording sessions, the first session was recorded by Sam Shepherd (BMX Rapists) but Martin says “we did kind of a rushed job and we changed a couple of the songs.” The band then recorded with Tyler Burke, including their cover of TFF’s ‘Tornado Paul’.

Rory tells a much more amusing and painful story of TFF’s recording experience. TFF needed three separate recording sessions to get their material finished for the split, due to members and recording technicians falling ill. “Only one of our members, Lisandru, knows how to record properly. So we were going to record at school and it was going to be all good, and then on the day, me, Harley and Miki got to Logan Park High and started setting up shit and Lisandru never came… So we ended up recording without him because he just wasn’t showing up, we had no idea where he was and we were like, fuck, we have to hand these songs in in a week so let’s record. So we recorded without Lisandru and he ended up having kidney stones.”

Thankfully God Bows To Math wanted to discard half the songs from their first recording session, so it gave TFF time to re-record their songs. Unfortunately bad luck struck again, this time it was the band’s recording engineer Nick Graham that ended up in hospital with lock jaw. “So two times there was hospital issues and then finally a week later we recorded it with Nick again.”

“We recorded all the music live and quite fast, like first takes, and then Lisandru recorded the vocals later. So we did it at my house and at Nick’s house but it took a really fucking long time.”

“I was thinking it would be pretty cool if they could fly up here and we could drive them back and play shows in Wellington, Whanganui, Christchurch etc.” - Tom, GBTM

Both bands mutually decided to record a cover of one of the others songs. God Bows To Math chose to cover TFF’s ‘Tornado Paul’ and TFF choose God Bows To Math’s song ‘Hepatitis’. Martin and Tom joke, “that’s the only song we could figure out.” Martin’s request for some guitar tabs was declined by Lisandru, so he had to figure one of the songs for himself. The resulting cover of ‘Tornado Paul’ is very different to the original. Tom says “TFF play very fast and there’s a lot of noise so it can be hard to figure out what they’re playing anyway.”

“That’s the best way to cover someone’s song, don’t learn the lyrics, just learn a little bit and then the rest of it is up to you.”

TFF originally recorded a cover of ‘How To Beat Your Dad At Chess’, but decided to go with ‘Hepatitis’, a faster, noisier song for the split. Martin describes TFF’s cover of ‘How To Beat Your Dad At Chess’ as “a twelve minute stoner extravaganza” and Rory says “we just jammed on the riff for like twelve minutes.”

God Bows To Math is playing two release shows for the split, but unfortunately they are without their southern partners. TFF simply can’t afford to head north to play the shows, but plans are in the works to do a nation wide tour together next year. Tom shares his thoughts, saying “I was thinking it would be pretty cool if they could fly up here and we could drive them back and play shows in Wellington, Whanganui, Christchurch etc. That would be pretty cool and a way of helping them out, but they would have to be all-ages shows.”

God Bows To Math/TFF Split Release Show
Friday, November 27 at The Basement, Auckland
with guests, Sharpie Crows, Nevernudes, Freudoids and Nice Birds

 TFF- Beer Keg: MP3

God Bows To Math- Only Dead Fingers Talk In Braille: MP3

 TFF- Myspace

 God Bows To Math- Myspace

Buy the split CD from MUZAI Records’ online store

Posted by Nick Fulton under Auckland, Dunedin, New Zealand
1 Comment

Psychosis of Love

Finally! After grabbing our attention with their amazing and catchy single ‘Psychosis of Love’, Auckland duo The Gladeyes have finally announced the release details of their upcoming album of the same name. Psychosis of Love will be out November 9 on Lil Chief Records and features, on some songs, the drumming talents of Ryan McPhun (The Ruby Suns, The Brunettes), plus bass from James Milne (Lawrence Arabia, The Reduction Agents) Tim Guy, and Henry Oliver (Die! Die! Die!). The Auckland Children and Youth choir also reportedly added a “spine-tingling chorus”. If the lead single is anything to go by, The Gladeyes’ new album is going to be a thoroughly impressive, bold new direction for the girls. The single has become one of my favourite songs released all year, it is so compelling, sincere and catchy.

Album release tour dates:

Friday 13th November at Wunderbar, Lyttleton
Saturday 14th November at Chicks Hotel, Port Chalmers
Saturday 21st November at Wine Cellar, Auckland, with Ghost Wave and TBC
Friday 27th November at Mighty Mighty, Wellington

Tickets are $10 dollars at the door or buy the album for $25 and get in for free.

The Gladeyes ft Jimmy Payday- Psychosis of Love: MP3

The Gladeyes- Myspace

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Auckland, New Zealand
[2] Comments

They’re back!

Just announced today is the return of The Brunettes to New Zealand for a tour with Australian alternative pop singer Sarah Blasko in celebration of the release of their new album Paper Dolls. Blasko is a surprising but perfect choice, her sweet, honeyed voice and unique songs are very impressive. This will be Blasko’s first visit to New Zealand, and she’ll play all four dates with The Brunettes in Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland and Leigh (tickets are available from Under The Radar and the venues). Paper Dolls is released on October 26 and will apparently have drum machines and “an intimidatingly wide array of synths”.

Thursday 5th November at Al’s Bar, Christchurch

Friday 6th November at San Francisco Bath House, Wellington, with The Family Cactus

Saturday 7th November at Kings Arms, Auckland, with Cool Rainbows

Sunday 8th November at Leigh Sawmill Cafe, Leigh, with Cool Rainbows

The Brunettes- Red Rollerskates: MP3

Sarah Blasko- We Won’t Run: MP3

The Brunettes- Myspace

Sarah Blasko- Myspace

Posted by Sarah Gooding under Auckland, Australia, New Zealand
[4] Comments