Friday Release Roundup - Rita Mae, TE KAAHU, Christoph El Truento, T. G. Shand + More

An absurdly stacked pileup of Friday tunes for listeners to tuck into this week, as the need for some kind of community calendar / noticeboard to help co-ordinate local releases becomes crystal clear. Check out our past seven days' news coverage of Tiny Ruins, The Big Fresh Collective, Silk Cut, Soft Plastics and Housewitches, plus more crucial Aotearoa releases from the past week below — including Rita Mae, ARAHI x TE KAAHU (plus her pop project Theia), Christoph El Truento x Hone Be Good, Big Pharma, Terrible Sons, Pavlov's Puss, HUMMUCIDE, T. G. Shand, LEON x Mukukā,  Ave Teth, Will Swinton, Transitors and Muroki.

Muriwai rising star Rita Mae (daughter of the late Jim Laing of The Jean Paul Sartre Experience and Lanky) shared the latest in a shimmering run of singles 'Night Drive'. She'll be celebrating with band at Whammy Backroom on 3rd March with special guest Molly Payton (solo) — snag tickets HERE.

Hawkes Bay's ARAHI and TE KAAHU have shared a fundraiser cover of Prince Tui Teka’s 'E Ipo', with proceeds from downloads going to Hawkes Bay iwi — Ngāti Kahungunu and Ngāti Porou — impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle.

TE KAAHU's pop alter-ego Theia dropped in-the-red new anthem 'Crucified By U' plus warped fever dream visuals, directed / produced by Nas Nixx and made with support from NZ On Air.

Producer of Avantdale Bowling Club's new album TREES, Christoph El Truento dropped new three track collab EP Looking Backwards with YGB's Hone Be Good.

T. G. Shand hints at ratty textures while delivering sumptuously smooth dream-pop grooves on playfully produced new single 'Fatwood' — sounding to these ears like the Ōtautahi's artist's finest solo release to date.

Written by the Raglan songwriter during trips to New York City and Berlin last year, Muroki shared his upbeat first single of 2023 'Sweet Lime'.

Featuring members of Macho Macho, Birdcage, Esteem Engine and Drive, Te Whanganui-a-Tara’s Big Pharma unveiled their debut recording, slowcore lurching fuzz-monster 'Terminal Patience'.

Ōtautahi's irrepressible Pavlov's Puss unleashed their ten song album of rough diamonds Tungsten Hearts Club — fronted by Ox O'Connell with former members Joe Sampson, Chris Andrews and Rory Dalley.

A solid week for Canterbury guitar tunes — Transistors reemerged with fuzz-fuelled two track EP 'Meaning Without Meaning / Oracles'.

The project of Ghost Wave founder Matthew L. Paul, LEON teams up with Zambian-born singer Mukukā on their groove-tastic, hopefully named new dance anthem 'Sunshine'.

No strangers to an infectious groove, Te Whanganui-a-Tara's jazz-rock four-piece HUMMUCIDE shared 'The Sound The Sea Makes', the latest single from their forthcoming album Tides.

Ōtautahi / Christchurch husband-and-wife songwriting duo Terrible Sons announced their debut album The Raft Is Not The Shore will be launching on 28th April, foreshadowed by lushly arranged new single ‘Asperatus’.

Rising Tāmaki Makaurau pop songwriter Will Swinton celebrated new single 'Wasted You' with a debut headline gig at Big Fan last night.

Tāmaki Makaurau industrial quartet Ave Teth's conclusive recording a riven Pap of Summer is a mind-crushing, barren soundscape released today by consistently excellent local underground imprint Wrought Material.