Great Sounds Great, Wellington’s multi-venue festival spanning one night and 11 venues, is returning this Saturday. The festival’s lineup is full of NZ royalty, heavy hitters and up’n’comers, with the addition of Friday’s The Night Before across 3 Newtown venues, shining a light on local emerging artists. Tasha Tziakis talks to Ben of Eyegum about the festival and what it means to Wellington, the role Eyegum plays in the music scene and how it’s evolved over the years, and the festival landscape at large. 

It’s been a busy two years for Ōtepoti Art Rock trio turned foursome Bunchy’s Big Score: a debut album, a South Island tour, a dramatic line up change and now, a second full length album Wanda’s Bicycle. In the carpark of New World City Centre, Kieran Dodd caught up with Jack, Max, Niki and Reef to talk about the group’s past, present and future.

PC21 is the proposal to change the rules around after-hours noise in Ōtautahi. Newzician supports this, and Sam Elliott explains why.

Heavy, gritty and sometimes disturbing, Ōtepoti duo Night Lunch blend their gothic-industrial sound with humour and catchy lyrics that worm right into your brain. Their unique sound is a result of their unique structure: two Liam’s – one on drums, and one on vocals and a homemade instrument called a diddly bow, which sounds like the combination of an ultra-distorted guitar and bass. The group have been a mainstay of the Ōtepoti scene for some time, with the success of 2021’s ‘House Full of Shit’ becoming a huge hit on the Student Radio Network charts furthering their local reach. The group recently completed a whirlwind tour of China, facilitated by Kristen Ng of Kiwese — a huge expansion of their musical force. Liam Hoffman documented their journey, taking us along with them, exploring new cultures and the unique Chinese underground music scene.