Music News

Weekly Round Up: Friday 8th December

Photo by Connor Crawford / Friday 8th December, 2017 4:52PM

The summer gig season is now in full swing and New Zealand has been roasting in the sun all week. It’s also been an exciting week for tour news and musical releases, with the announcement that pioneering garage rockers The Datsuns and The D4 are joining forces for an epic run of North Island shows in March. Other exciting tour news includes the imminent return of US pop princess Taylor Swift next November, US songwriter Shenandoah Davis will be embarking on an extensive tour of Aotearoa this January, and US bluesman Blind Boy Paxton is heading back our way for a nationwide tour in February.

We were stoked to chat with Los Angeles-via-Auckland pop artist Chelsea Jade ahead of her Auckland appearance at Wondergarden 2017, and were illuminated by Keepsakes’ in-depth discussion with visiting UK techno artist Perc. We also caught up with US post-metal group Rosetta for the lowdown on next week’s North Island tour.

Local releases remained solid with Auckland legends Hallelujah Picassos dropping a summery new tune and announcing a new album for next year, pizza loving punks Markdown busting out a collection of super short tunes, and Auckland dance duo DJ Kush Boogie unveiling their latest single on acclaimed UK label Lobster Theremin. Wellington digital pop artist Disasteradio lifted the lid on his Sweatpants B-sides EP, and Capital City producer Mr Amish shared a killer collection of mutant dance instrumentals. Prolific and adventurous Auckland label The Grow Room unveiled a new album of Memphis rap-inspired tunes from Auckland duo Babyface, while Grow Room-affiliated rapper Cleophus shared a new mixtape of experimental hip hop.

Other local releases of note this week included a fried album from Christchurch electronic producer Yeongrak, an EP of haunting guitar pop from Wellington group SOAP, an intriguing collection of guitar-inflected songs and raps from Auckland artist Reuben Hudson, an uncompromising album of experimental soundscapes by Frank Stein, and an album of self-professed bangers from Auckland artist ‘Tom’.

The summer season’s killer shows are in no danger of stopping anytime soon. Ace photographer Connor Crawford took some great snaps of the mayhem that took place at King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard’s first appearance at Auckland’s Whammy Bar, while Oliver Gaskell captured the magic of Aldous Harding’s recent show at Wellington’s Opera House. Roving reporter Fluffy checked out this week’s Sia / MØ / Charli XCX show at Auckland's Mt Smart Stadium and gave it a wholehearted thumbs up in his first-hand account of the event.

Our Caught Live video for this week features Aussie psych rockers King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard who are tearing through the country this week with pals Mild High Club and La Luz for four shows at Auckland’s Whammy Bar and two shows at Wellington’s San Fran. Check out this recent footage of the group busting out their epic tune ‘Crumbling Castle’ at Brisbane Gizzfest 2017…