Covered – The Kings Arms (Concert Review)
Covered is a musical evening organized by APRA to celebrate New Zealand songs. So on this cold and rainy Thursday night a handful of Kiwi indie musicians took to the stage to play a few well known (and not so well known) songs written by New Zealanders, along with a few of their own. The […]
Backstreet Boys – Vector Arena
First of all, we need to talk about Kevin. Last time the Backstreet Boys – still the world’s biggest-selling ‘boy’ band – shimmied its way onto the Kiwi stage in 2010, they were without one key component. Original member Kevin Richardson quit the group in 2006, only rejoining three years ago. So the buzz around […]
Spandau Ballet – Vector Arena
80s New Romantics Spandau Ballet brought their Soul Boys tour to Auckland’s Vector Arena just in time for Mother’s Day. The two-hour show nailed all the old hits along with a few new tunes. The lights dimmed at the Vector shortly before 8:30pm. It was an early start, but hey, mum’s gotta be back home […]
Spandau Ballet Spotted at Motley Crue Show!
Check this out, our eagle-eyed photographer Michael Flynn spotted members of Spandau Ballet at last night’s Motley Crue/Alice Cooper show. What are the chances of the band covering Kickstart My Heart when they play at the Vector Arena tonight?
America & Sharon Corr – Vector Arena
Two years after their previous visit to New Zealand and 45 years after they started, soft-rockers America took a stroll down memory lane with a couple thousand fans. The Vector Arena had been chopped down to a more manageable size for the classic rockers, turning it into a more intimate venue. First up was Sharon […]
Suffocation & Decapitated – Kings Arms, 5 May 2015
Last night was the highly anticipated Decapitated and Suffocation show at the Kings Arms, wrapping up a 3-show tour of New Zealand. Doors were super early and once again I was pleasantly surprised with the large turn out; although I think I’m turning into a crotchety old woman, because there were a fuck tonne of […]
Dennis Locorriere – ASB Theatre
Dennis Locorriere kicked off his Dr Hook Timeless World Tour at Auckland’s ASB Theatre treating long-time fans to just about every Dr Hook tune they could think of, along with a few choice tunes from his solo career. If we’re being honest, Dennis Locorriere is not exactly your stereotypical rock star…he looks like an average […]
Demi Lovato – Vector Arena
If we’re being polite, we’ll call Demi Lovato’s first New Zealand concert “stripped down,” if only because it’s more charitable than “can’t be bothered,” which, based on last night’s performance, wouldn’t be entirely fair. In a show that finished well under ninety minutes after Lovato first walked onto the Vector Arena stage to a wall […]
The Dickies – Kings Arms April 26, 2015
It was a gathering of the faithful on this Sunday night in Auckland…the punk rock faithful who turned out to see California’s self-proclaimed bubble gum punk rockers The Dickies at The Kings Arms. In the grand scheme of things, The Dickies, who formed in 1977, haven’t really made a huge impression on the history of […]
Ace Frehley – The Studio
Former Kiss axeman Ace Frehley offered up a set of somewhat generic, mildly entertaining, but ultimately unlistenable hard rock to The Studio in Auckland. To be fair, it wasn’t necessarily Ace’s fault that his music was unlistenable… that charge should be levelled directly at the sound man. Don’t get me wrong, I love a loud […]
Napalm Death and Carcass 23 April 2015
Unless you have been living under a rock somewhere you are likely aware last night was the final show of the Deathcrusher NZ tour, and I have no need of my (blood and booze stained) notebook to declare it gig of the fucking year. The Kings Arms was more packed than I have seen it […]
Sam Smith – Vector Arena April 22, 2015
Despite only releasing one album, albeit one with five singles, 22-year-old Sam Smith played the first of two shows at Auckland’s Vector Arena. Unfortunately the need to accommodate so many fans here trumped his musical needs resulting in his intimate, soulful songs being lost in the big room. But I was possibly the only one […]
Jimmie Dale Gilmore – The Tuning Fork April 20, 2015
Anyone who has spent any amount of time taking in the parade of artists that have played at the Tuning Fork over the past year or so might easily think that literally everyone and his brother who was born and raised in the American South can sing, write songs and pick a guitar. The latest […]
Jakob – The Kings Arms
The role of the artist is a question posed by artist and audience alike, in an attempt to seek the purpose behind creativity and its cultural celebration. Ambiguous in nature, it can be difficult to underpin the exact purpose of the artist in an oversaturated market of “art” for entertainment value- a shallow reading of […]
Soak – Golden Dawn (Concert Review)
18-year-old Irish up-and-comer Soak played a short but spellbinding set at Auckland’s Golden Dawn. And in a little over half an hour she indeed proved to be an artist to keep an eye on. Soak is the stage name for Bridie Monds-Watson, the teenager from Derry who has garnered attention from the likes of the […]
SJD & Voom – The Tuning Fork
Vector Arena’s little sister venue The Tuning Fork may look like a Coffee Club franchise from the outside, but once you’re in the front door the heavy red velvet curtains, scent of whiskey and kitschy sign behind the bar give off a vastly different vibe. Tonight the lit-up sign reads SJD, because Sean James Donnelly […]
Ricky Martin – Vector Arena
Get ready to shake your bon-bon, as Ricky Marty opens his One World tour in New Zealand, with the premiere at Auckland’s Vector Arena. First off, I must admit I can hardly be called a Ricky Martin fan…I can probably name two of his songs and I’ve never seen X Factor, so whatever shenanigans took […]
Mel Parsons – Tuning Fork
Mel Parsons kicked off her 22-date New Zealand tour with a show at Auckland’s Tuning Fork. Parsons has just released her third album, Drylands, and most of the musicians responsible for creating that record were on stage with her.
Counting Crows – Civic Theatre
Two years ago the Counting Crows were forced to cancel shows in Wellington and Auckland at the very last minute due to lead singer Adam Duritz’s health. Fans who turned up to see them in Wellington were particularly peeved as they were notified of the cancellation just minutes before the show was to start. But […]
Paul Kelly presents The Merri Soul Sessions – Powerstation April 12, 2015
Paul Kelly brought his troupe of singers and players across the Tasman to light up the night in Auckland with soulful versions of his own tunes along with a few older classics thrown in for good measure. Paul Kelly’s Merri Soul Sessions is the album Paul Kelly recorded and released last year that finds the […]