bar italia – Some Like It Hot (Matador) (13th Floor Album Review)
British indie rock trio bar italia are due to release their latest Matador album Some Like it Hot on October 17th. Inspired by themes from the film of the same name, the band paint a catchy pop infused picture that I haven’t been able to stop staring at.
Bloodsports – Anything Can Be A Hammer (Good English Records) (13th Floor Album Review)
This is Bloodsports’ debut Lp, Anything Can Be A Hammer, and to say I’m excited is an understatement.
O/PUS – Out At Sea, The Water Is Deep (1:12 Records) (13th Floor Album Review)
O/PUS were a discovery when Andew Wilson (DIE! DIE! DIE!) debuted his solo act (AW) Tamaki Makaurau venue Cupid Bar back in 2024, there was joy to behold as O/PUS opened the evening up.
Madi Diaz – Fatal Optimist (Anti-) (13th Floor Album Review)
Madi Diaz’s Fatal Optimist is an album built on restraint, precision, and feeling. Each song seems to breathe in time with her voice, which carries both melody and emotion.
Riiki Reid – Drench (Warner NZ) 13th Floor EP Review
New Zealand singer-songwriter Riiki Reid serves up a course of catchy, summer infused alt-pop tracks in her latest EP, Drench.
Madonna – Veronica Electronica (Warner) (13th Floor Album Review)
More than twenty five years after it was first spoken about in fan circles and record label corridors, Madonna’s Veronica Electronica an alter ego as well as a collection of remixes from Ray Of Light was finally released in July of this year.
Robert Finley – Hallelujah! Don’t Let The Devil Fool Ya (Easy Eye)
At the age of 71, blues and soul veteran Robert Finley delivers an implausible third-act masterpiece with Hallelujah! Don’t Let The Devil Fool Ya. Producer Dan Auerbach once more guides Finley, steering him through a swampy, righteous blend of gospel and deep blues.
Flock of Dimes – The Life You Save (Sub Pop) (13th Floor Album Review)
Jen Wasner takes a soulful, searching look in the mirror in Flock of Dimes’ therapeutic The Life You Save, a slow burn that rewards those who stick around.
Kim Paterson with The Mike Nock Trio – Lake Rd (Thick Records) (13th Floor Album Review)
The ‘Auckland Father of Jazz’, Kim Paterson, has teamed up with lifelong friend and fellow legend Mike Nock, both inductees to the Music Hall of Fame, to produce Lake Rd. Nock brings his current trio players Cameron Undy on bass and drummer Nick McBride playing a collection of standards, a self-penned track and one from an unusual […]
Echomatica – Echomatica (13th Floor Album Review)
Echomatica arrive with a self titled debut album that favours texture over immediacy, building moody, slow-burning songs from synths, reverb and restraint.
Laura Veirs & The Choir Who Couldn’t Say – Live in Angoulême (Raven Marching Band)
For more than two decades Portland based singer-songwriter Laura Veirs has turned quiet observation into iridescent song: rivers, snowfields, the faint tracks people leave behind. On Live in Angoulême she lets those vivid descriptions breathe through a 32-voice French school choir, and the result is both faithful and startlingly new.
James Morrison – Fight Another Day (Cooking Vinyl)
After a 6-year hiatus, James Morrison has returned with his sixth studio album, Fight Another Day. His smoky, gravelly voice resounds with raw power, even more refined than his debut album almost two decades ago in 2006.
Tom Scott – Anitya (Years Gone By) (13th Floor Album Review)
Releasing music for the first time under his name, Tom Scott has made Anitya – born of the blood, sweat, and tears shed with Homebrew, @Peace, Average Rap Band, and Avantdale Bowling Club. The 13th Floor’s Jeff Neems has been listening (and talking) to Tom Scott…
The Autumn Defense – Here and Nowhere (Yep Roc) (13th Floor Album Review)
Wilco off-shoot The Autumn Defense is about to release their long-awaited new album, Here and Nowhere. The 13th Floor’s Rob Jones has had an advance listen…
Dropkick Murphys – For The People (Dummy Luck/PIAS)
Boston Celtic punk band Dropkick Murphys (that’s a Celtic Punk band from Boston, not a punk band made up of the Boston Celtics – I really hope I was the first one to make that joke. Ha!) released their thirteenth album For The People in July.
Biffy Clyro – Futique (Warner Records) (13th Floor Album Review)
We are told that, ‘after storming Glastonbury and Radio 1’s Big Weekend to headlining TRNSMT, Biffy Clyro have kickstarted a new era. Everything leads up to the release of their new album Futique. The 13th Floor’s Mr. Stevens had had a listen and is not impressed.
Nicki Bluhm – Rancho Deluxe (13th Floor Album Review)
Nicki Bluhm sings like someone who has travelled far, but never lost touch with where she began. On Rancho Deluxe she draws on her heartbreak, reinvention and restless travel to ask what it means to find home, community and meaning at times of personal change. This is an album of resilience and reflection, alive with stories that circle nature, […]
Adam and the Hellcats – 9 Lives (Catalyst) (13th Floor Album Review)
Bristol (UK) based heavy rockers Adam and the Hellcats released their third album 9 Lives on Friday. The band, who claim to love music on the heavier and crazier side of life, will be setting off on their fourth UK tour.
Christabel – INTUITION (13th Floor Album Review)
Auckland’s Christabel is a neurodiverse artist whose music is dynamic, lyrically captivating, raw and unfiltered…or so we’re told. We sent The 13th Floor’s Mr. Stevens the album and the “deck”. This is what he sent back…
ives. – Siren (13th Floor Album Review)
There’s something immediately magnetic about ives. and her debut album Siren. The title alone pulls you into mythology: a nod to the part maid, part bird creatures from Homer’s Odyssey, whose songs lured sailors into dangerous waters. But here, the siren call is different. It is not a warning but an invitation. An invitation to sit […]