Music News

Weekly Roundup: Friday 1st March

Friday 1st March, 2019 6:53PM

It was a bucking bronco of a musical week as we charged into autumn, waving our hats in the air and yelling "yee haw!" while bidding adieu to sunny days and consistent good health. Upcoming shows to get hyped for include Jack White's Grammy-winning supergroup The Raconteurs are heading to Aotearoa for the first time ever to play a special Auckland headline event this April, English punk veterans Cockney Rejects debut New Zealand tour is back on track with new dates announced for mid-July, Adam McGrath of Christchurch folk / country figureheads The Eastern is saddling up for a comprehensive tour of Aotearoa starting in March, Auckland-via-Dunedin guitar-pop two-piece Two Cartoons will be playing one last show this April before moving on to even brighter things, Wellington guitar wranglers Sea Mouse are playing a extensive national tour in March, and a jaw-dropping lineup of local superstars are performing at Tāmaki Makaurau's Ihumātao Reclamation Festival, a protest event happening this Saturday 2nd March at Ihumātao, near Auckland International Airport.

Local metal maniacs better raid the piggy bank, as even more intentional acts are primed to descend upon our shores like an unstoppable viking hoard. Europe-via-Melbourne black thrash tour de force Destroyer 666 are teaming up with Swiss extreme duo Bölzer for a pair of remorselessly brutal events in Auckland and Wellington this May, and New Jersey death metal stalwarts Incantation are making an unholy alliance with Brazilian riff-butchers Nervo Chaos for two punishing shows in Auckland and Wellington this June.

We chatted with expat NZ garage-punk icon Dion Lunadon, who's returning to his homeland this month with his Brooklyn-based noise-rock group A Place To Bury Strangers for a crucial pair of headline events in Auckland and Wellington, and we were over the moon to host a no holds barred, slightly tipsy conversation between visiting legendary Happy Mondays dancer / mascot Bez and Melbourne-based interviewer Mitch Marks. We were also stoked to premiere a top tier pair of local singles – Tiny Ruins core member Alex Freer's solo project A.C. Freazy unveiled a slinky standalone single inspired by the sci-fi cinematic works of Ridley Scott, and Auckland live favourites SKILAA unveiled their sophomore neo-soul / RnB single ‘Way of the world’.

Our Caught Live video this week features feedback-loving Scottish indie-rock icons The Jesus And Mary Chain, who are wending their back way to Aotearoa for an unmissable pair of headline events at Auckland's The Powerstation and Wellington's Opera House next week. Dig out your hairspray and get amped for the occasion with vintage 1985 footage of the band (complete with fab intro), playing their signature single 'Just Like Honey' on UK music show The Tube...