Captain Festus McBoyle claims to be “NZ rockers and punks who are now producing palatable Family Music which offers More Grit, Less Sugar”. The 13th Floor’s Alex Robertson passes judgement.
Otepoti/Dunedin band Pearly* have certainly made a splash since releasing their debut Pearly*EP in April 2024, and wowing crowds at nationwide festivals including Port Noise (March) and Junk Festival (June) both this year.
Georgia Lines sings with a voice that feels both delicate and commanding, as quiet as a whisper caught between piano notes and as powerful as a line soaring above sweeping arrangements. With The Guest House, she reaffirms her ability to move between tenderness and strength while embracing new textures and greater rhythmic variety.
“I’m high as the heavens and stubborn as hell. I ain’t ashamed, I’m just a hard-headed woman.” Margo Price states her case succinctly on the opening track of this, her fifth studio album, Hard Headed Woman.
From the first fuzzed-up guitar riff to the final jubilant outro, The Beths’ fourth album, Straight Line Was a Lie, reveals a band in full command of its material and entering a new creative phase.
Kathleen Edwards has always been a songwriter who tells stories through the details: a hockey team that cannot win, a car driven across Los Angeles, a door painted pink. Through vivid detail and a deep sense of place, she turns the specific into something relatable and universal.
With The Clearing, their fourth album, Wolf Alice channel every lesson from the past decade into a record that feels elemental in its confidence. This is a band deep in the groove of their own creative force.
A surprising new producer helps Halestorm make a surprisingly great album.
It’s lucky 13 for The Black Keys…well, luckier than last year when they were forced to cancel a tour and fire their management.
Ed Ackman has just released Cocoon: An EP In 4 Genres and The 13th Floor’s Alex Robertson has made some rather startling discoveries about how and why this music was made.