FEATURES

Features
Three Weeks, Three Festivals
Three Weeks, Three Festivals
NEWZICIAN PICKS OF 2025
NEWZICIAN PICKS OF 2025
Community, connection and culture: the Twisted Frequency ethos
Community, connection and culture: the Twisted Frequency ethos
There’s A Tuesday Take On Seoul
There’s A Tuesday Take On Seoul
Initiate yourself with the acts of Doubleslack!!
Initiate yourself with the acts of Doubleslack!!
Three Weeks, Three Festivals
Review Flynn Robson Review Flynn Robson

Three Weeks, Three Festivals

The Newzician team hit the road for three weeks to take stock of what was going on (and have a great boogie while we were at it) taking on three very different festivals. First up Le Currents, full of cowboy boots and Birkenstocks. Twisted Frequency followed, nestled in the Cobb Valley and straddling the new year. Slackbarn!, a bright upstart filled with indie gems in the beautiful Hawkes Bay – and a handy final stop on the road back to Tāmaki – closed things out.

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NEWZICIAN PICKS OF 2025
Flynn Robson Flynn Robson

NEWZICIAN PICKS OF 2025

Aotearoa has been blessed by some incredible moments in music this year. Despite what seems like ever increasing, and insurmountable odds, the scene continues to plow on and build and refine a distinct palate of sounds and spaces that define our place in this chaotic world.

As the year comes to a close, we wanted to share some of our favourite albums, songs, and gigs we have attended this year in Aotearoa music.

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There’s A Tuesday Take On Seoul
Samantha Cheong Samantha Cheong

There’s A Tuesday Take On Seoul

What business did an Ōtautahi indie band have landing a residency in the land of K-pop? Far more than you might expect.

From moshing at a major festival to recording and performing with a K-indie artist, Samantha Cheong followed There's a Tuesday on the 2025 Seoul Residency as they learnt how Kiwi acts can break into the Asian scene—and why South Korea’s appetite for international sounds should never be underestimated.

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Initiate yourself with the acts of Doubleslack!!
Sam Elliott Sam Elliott

Initiate yourself with the acts of Doubleslack!!

For those already intimately acquainted with Awning, Half/Angel, and Oscar Dowling, this Friday’s Doubleslack! is enviable entertainment. But for those unfamiliar, we’ve decided to venture into parts unknown; light journalism and softball questions.

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Fazerdaze - On The Road
Sam Elliott Sam Elliott

Fazerdaze - On The Road

August will see Amelia Murray team up with bandmate Dave Rowlands to play a series of intimate shows in Lyttelton, Wellington, and Auckland. They’ve built a duo show to take on the road, and the three shows serve as a precursor to a US tour supporting Pixies and Spoon.

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JUNK FEST 2025 (and other things alternative NZ music, with Lara Marie)
Rosa Nevison Rosa Nevison

JUNK FEST 2025 (and other things alternative NZ music, with Lara Marie)

“I really want to platform new alternative music because I feel like the legacy has changed. I guess that’s what I’m trying to do. It’s fueled by this ‘build it and they’ll come’ mentality. I want to prove that there’s value in this, so people start to listen.”

JUNK FEST 2.0 is coming up this Saturday, June 7, across Double Whammy, Whammy, and Public Bar. The 2025 festival is stacked with artists from across the country, including Cabinet, Dropper, George Barney Roberts, Girls Factory, HŌHĀ, Office Dog, Pearly*, Ringlets, Salt Water Criminals, Scrambline, and Vera Ellen, with Twine and The Empty Threats making their way from across the ditch. It’s an undeniably good lineup and we’re so excited to boogie the night away. In the lead up to the festival Rosa chatted with organiser Lara to learn more about JUNK and all things NZ alternative music!

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Camp A Low Hum 2024: The final weekend(s)
Jade Lindsay Jade Lindsay

Camp A Low Hum 2024: The final weekend(s)

After a 10 year hiatus, Camp A Low Hum returned for two special weekends for the very last time. Two attendees, Jade Lindsay and Lekhena Porter share their words and photographs from the exceptional weekend(s) filled with music, community and aroha.

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ŌTEPOTI MUSIC COMPILATION
Jordan Irvine Jordan Irvine

ŌTEPOTI MUSIC COMPILATION

There is a quote from Martin Phillipps for the Auckland Star in 1982; “The Dunedin Sound is the sound of honesty.” The Ōtepoti Music Compilation is a representation of that. Organised by Alex Huber of Hystera and Syrup Bois, The ŌMC is a compilation made of independent wāhine and gender queer artists from Dunedin. The compilation aims to shine a light on artists in the scene who do not yet have a voice or need their voices amplified to drown out the noise of the still male-dominated scene of Dunedin.

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A look The Others Way
Review Rosa Nevison Review Rosa Nevison

A look The Others Way

Last Friday Banished Music, Flying Nun and a whole host of other supporters put on the annual The Others Way Festival along Tāmaki Makaurau’s Karangahape Road. For those unacquainted, this festival utilises the many venues along Karangahape Road and its side streets, creating a musical bar-hop to catch as many (or few) artists from the 42-act strong lineup. Rosa Nevison went along to see what all the fuss was about… and you best believe she found out.

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PREMIERE: Sofia Machray’s ‘Crumbs’ Music Video
Flynn Robson Flynn Robson

PREMIERE: Sofia Machray’s ‘Crumbs’ Music Video

Released on her debut full length debut ‘Language of Flowers’, Crumbs unloads a dense emotional outpour at the intersection of indie-pop, heartland rock, and shoegaze. Filmed and edited by Elise Lanigan and assisted by Kerry Pulham, Machray’s latest music video and visualiser is a prime example of the Pōneke-based dream rocker’s ability to build intersectional and creatively cohesive work that bridges sonic and visual artscapes.

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EMILIE: The Trailblazer Wahine in Aotearoa UK Garage
Ella Gibson Ella Gibson

EMILIE: The Trailblazer Wahine in Aotearoa UK Garage

Hailing from Ōtautahi, Aotearoa, the 21 year old Emily Whitnall has already made her mark on New Zealand’s DJing and producing scene. EMILIE describes her own music style as being “very joyful and happy. It’s nothing too serious, just a whole lot of fun.” After hearing the tune Generations earlier this year, Ella Gibson knew she needed to track down the local legend, and hear more about how EMILIE is bringing UKG beats to the shores of Aotearoa.

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LEISURE drops sonic manifesto: Leisurevision
Flynn Robson Flynn Robson

LEISURE drops sonic manifesto: Leisurevision

Since their formation in 2016, the collective have formed an efficacious musical comradery that has accumulated in the release of their musical manifesto, Leisurevision. The album, released on September 28, is the refinement of a sound they have been methodically polishing since the release of their self-titled debut in 2017. Leisure are the sonic equivalent of mānuka honey; sweet, scrumptious, and with a special quality of high international demand. 

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Summer Thieves: Cigarettes in Space
Ben Paanakker Ben Paanakker

Summer Thieves: Cigarettes in Space

Reflected in their name, their tunes are made to be enjoyed in the heat of the sun, with a couple of cold ones. “Cigarettes in Space” is a self-produced effort which is sure to cast a long shadow, well into the final days of the upcoming summer. Ben Paanakker recently caught up with Adam from the band to discuss the latest release, and the band’s upcoming plans.

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ARIELWOSE: 7 day clinic
Coco Lance Coco Lance

ARIELWOSE: 7 day clinic

She’s cool, creative, and cultivating some fantastically charming tunes - arielwose is certainly one to watch. For the release of her latest single “7 day clinic” Coco Lance E-Met with Ariel to discuss among many things, the value of friendship, Ariel’s future plans, and how music speaks to the soul.

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Heavy Chest: Celebrating Pre Heat
Rosa Nevison Rosa Nevison

Heavy Chest: Celebrating Pre Heat

Beautiful crooning melodies, smooth riffs and funky, electric basslines have been reverberating through venues across the motu over the last couple weeks, as Heavy Chest, formerly of Pōneke, now Melbourne/Naarm based, take on a tour of their home turf to celebrate the vinyl release of their first album, Pre Heat.

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Shaun Malloch - Been Long and the Lo-fi Agenda
Sam Bambery Sam Bambery

Shaun Malloch - Been Long and the Lo-fi Agenda

There’s something wildly attractive about a do-it-yourself attitude. The avoidance of an institutional standard and diving into the plunge-pool of simple knowledge and practicality. It’s an approach that is evident in the work of Shaun Malloch. Sam Bambery visited Shaun ahead of a home concert celebrating a new single ‘Been Long’, releasing after 2 years of hiatus from his debut EP ‘Take What You Can’.

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