Check Out These Stephen Malkmus Concert Photos
Former Pavement front man Stephen Malkmus brought his current band, The Jicks, to The Studio in Auckland last night. We’ll have a review up shortly, but in the meantime,13th Floor photographer Michael Jeong was on the scene and captured these images. Click here to view the Stephen Malkmus photo gallery. Save
Ezza Rose Band – Wine Cellar
It was a dark and stormy night, but that didn’t stop the small but engaged crowd turning up to enjoy the Ezza Rose Band at the Wine Cellar. All the way from Portland, Oregon, and fresh from a tour of Alaska, the eponymous Ezza Rose and the rest of the band is tight, evidence of […]
Shovels & Rope – Tuning Fork 11 March 2015
The stage at Auckland’s Tuning Fork was oozing with down-home South Carolina charm as Cary Ann Hearst and Michael Trent, the married couple who perform as Shovels & Rope, harmonized their way through a set of rootsy songs that held the crowd spellbound. The first thing you notice about Shovels & Rope when they hit […]
Jesus Jones – Kings Arms, 10 March 2015
25 years after recording their hit album, Doubt, English rockers Jesus Jones brought it to life at Auckland’s Kings Arms, playing an expanded and updated version of the classic album, then topping the night off with a few more choice tunes. 24 hours previously the Kings Arms was packed to the rafters with young hipsters […]
Parquet Courts – Kings Arms March 9, 2015
It may have been Monday night, but the atmosphere at Auckland’s Kings Arms felt like a rowdy Saturday night as Brooklyn indie darlings Parquet Courts headlined a bill that featured four bands including the late addition of The Courtneys. “Sold out, bro”, announced the handwritten sign on the door of the venerable rock and roll […]
Mogwai – Powerstation
Sitting down to write this, mind freshly blown by an incredible show, is a bit of a challenge. What we just witnessed was ninety minutes of pure wonder, beauty and sound. Seeing Mogwai play the Powerstation is an event in itself. Seeing them after a 16 year gap since their last visit is another thing […]
Jason Webley – Tuning Fork – 7 March 2015
Armed with an acoustic guitar and an accordion, American musician Jason Webley entertained the folks at Auckland’s Tuning Fork with tales of tragic lives, demi-gods and pet giraffes. Some folks may know Jason Webley from his collaborate with Amanda Palmer…the two of them have performed and recorded together as Evelyn Evelyn and Webley was last […]
The Pop Group – The Kings Arms
Post-punk pioneers The Pop Group finally made their way to New Zealand almost 40 years after forming in Bristol. The band proved that their abrasive, confrontational and political brand of punk is as vital today as it was back in the days of Margaret Thatcher’s England. With the strains of Doctor Zhivago’s Lara’s Theme floating […]
Neneh Cherry and Rocketnumbernine – SpiegelTent, Auckland Arts Festival – 4 March 2015
Here I am queueing outside the venue, so polite for a rock n roll gig. Shout out to the guy behind me who knew Neneh Cherry did an album called Raw Like Sushi, and had a song he loved called Seven Degrees. (ah, Seven Seconds, but sure, bro). Once inside, the room is being pumped […]
Check Out These Judas Priest Concert Photos – 4 March 2015
13th Floor photographer David Watson was on the scene at Tuesday’s Westfest show and collected some excellent images with his trusty camera. Click on any image to view the photo gallery.
More Westfest – Mt Smart Stadium – 4 March 2015
Tuesday afternoon is an odd time for a rock festival. Judas Priest’s closing number — I only caught the end of it; I had to work all day — might have better been titled Rockin’ Before Teatime. Theirs is not music that wants to be performed in daylight. As soon as Judas Priest left the […]
Judas Priest, Faith No More & Soundgarden – Westfest 2015 – Mt Smart Stadium 3 March 2017
It seemed a little surreal…watching the leather-clad Judas Priest in the late afternoon sun as they banged out metal classics like Breaking The Law and Living After Midnight. Later the nearly-full moon (out) shined during Soundgarden’s closing set. But overall Westfest 2015 came across as well-organized, well-behaved and LOUD. I arrived at Mt Smart shortly […]
Conor Oberst & The Felice Brothers – The Powerstation
This was one show you didn’t want to be late for. Openers The Felice Brothers alone were worth the trip to the Powerstation and when it was revealed that they would also serve as Conor Oberst’s backing band, well, that sealed the deal, making this one very special night, indeed. Having said that, I was […]
J Mascis – The Studio
You could have been forgiven, were you not a fan of J Mascis, had you not noticed that he had taken the stage at The Studio last night. As a guitar tech finished off a few final adjustments on a cutaway Gibson acoustic, the house lights still up, a man in jeans and a black, […]
Shakey Graves – Tuning Fork
Preconceptions can throw you off. I expected the audience at Shakey Graves’ Tuning Fork show to be older and more laid back. Instead the sold-out crowd seemed to be mostly in their 20s and ready to party. I also expected the music made by the Austin, Texas-based musician to be a mix of country and […]
Peter Hook And The Light – The Studio, 27 February 2015
Before the Happy Mondays and the Stone Roses, long before Oasis, Peter Hook was a mainstay of the Manchester music scene, playing bass first in Joy Division and then, following the death of Ian Curtis, New Order. But New Order are infrequent performers of late, and its members, increasingly, are solo artists. Bernard Sumner, the […]
Finns at the Zoo – Auckland Zoo 27 February 2015
What do you call seven Finns in a rotunda – a flock, a festoon, a filth or a frolic? This is the question posed by New Zealand’s first family of pop as they wrap up a set of magical songs at Auckland Zoo. Crowds arrive with picnic baskets and beach-chairs and stroll through the zoo, […]
Foo Fighters – Mt Smart Stadium 21 February 2015
We review the Foo Fighters at Mt Smart Stadium 3 February 2018 here. Well, they finally made it. A day after their aborted Town Hall benefit show, Dave Grohl led his Foo Fighters through a two hour and 45 minute set at Auckland’s Mt Smart Stadium in front of tens of thousands of happy fans. […]
Perfume Genius – The Kings Arms 20 February 2015
Who looks like Doogie Howser, sings like Patti Smith, croons like Chris Martin and tore up the stage like an avant-garde hurricane at the Kings Arms last night? Seattle musician Mike Hadreas, AKA Perfume Genius, that’s who – and next time he comes to Auckland he’s sure to be playing on a bigger stage. The […]
Marlon Williams -The Tuning Fork, 20 February 2015
Marlon Williams seems to have made Auckland’s Tuning Fork his second home. Now based in Melbourne, the Kiwi crooner filled the intimate venue just eight months after his previous headlining show. Last time Marlon was at The Tuning Fork he was aided and abetted by Aldous Harding and Australian songstress Melody Pool. This time around […]