Music News

Weekly Roundup: Friday 8th March

Friday 8th March, 2019 6:54PM

It was the definition of a crammed week for killer releases and tour news, with a fistful of awesome tracks materialising into reality and some unmissable shows for us to count the days towards in the near future. Significant live events on the horizon include Russian feminist punk collective Pussy Riot's visit to Aotearoa has evolved into a full blown national tour as they'll be bringing their Riot Days multimedia performance event to Christchurch and Dunedin in mid-March, US metal gods Metallica are returning to New Zealand for their first local show since 2010 to play an Auckland headline event on Halloween with support from masked monstrosities Slipknot, jazz legend Herbie Hancock is headlining the capital's multi-day Wellington Jazz Festival 2019 in June, and Salt Lake City crust punk / extreme metal crew Cult Leader will be deafening local metal maniacs with their brutal aural assault in Auckland and Wellington this April.

We were stoked to present a conversation between Jerri-Rae Leef and hard-gigging Queen of New Zealand hip hop Ladi6, who is playing in Wellington tonight for a special Red Bull Music Presents event in association with the female-focussed Milk & Honey Festival, happening in venues across Aotearoa in celebration of International Women's Day. We also hosted an in-depth conversation between visiting Berlin-based experimental electronic artist Jasmine Guffond and Auckland sound explorer Rachel Shearer, both of whom are performing at Auckland's Samoa House this Saturday. We had the privilege of premiering a mind-zapping single from Wellington trio Cookie Brooklyn & The Crumbs, featuring half of Orchestra of Spheres with the frontman of Marineville, who dared to ask the impossible question 'Is There Logic In Pop?'. On top of all that, we lifted the lid on our UTR March Playlist, overflowing with quality tunes by upcoming touring artists alongside the best new local and international tracks, intricately sequenced with your listening pleasure in mind by our tireless editor for whom sleep is an abstract concept – dive in and explore this month's playlist HERE.

Our Caught Live video for the week features Brooklyn-based songwriter Sharon Van Etten, who released her stunning new album Remind Me Tomorrow in January and is returning to New Zealand for a special headline event at Auckland's The Powerstation in June. Check out electrifying recent footage of Van Etten belting out her anthemic single 'Seventeen' on Jimmy Kimmel Live...