Talking To The Autumn Defense (Interview)
The Autumn Defense was formed by two members of Wilco as an outlet for their late 60s/early 70s-inspired power pop and folk-rock tunes.
Catching Up With SJD (Interview)
Taite Prize winner SJD, aka Sean Donnelly, is on the bill at this weekend’s Music At Matua festival along with Trinity Roots, Joseph & Maia and Laughton Kora. This seems a good a reason as any to give Sean a call and see what he’s been up to. As it turns out, quite a bit. […]
Queens Of The Stone Age: "We Got F**ked!" (Interview)
The 13th Floor spoke to Queens Of The Stone Age bass player Michael Shuman just a few days after their truncated appearance with Trent Reznor on the Grammy Awards broadcast. As you will hear, Michael is still sore about the way they were treated by the show’s producer…but he is excited about touring here with […]
Buika – Dreaming With Her Eyes Open (Interview)
Buika is part of this year’s WOMAD lineup that also includes Kimbra, Pokey LaFarge, Femi Kuti, Arrested Development and a host of other local and international acts. Born in Spain, of African parents and now living in Miama, Florida, Buika’s latest album, La Noche Mas Larga, has been getting rave reviews and her live performances […]
Meet The Suicide Girls (Interview)
Missy Suicide, co-founder of SuicideGirls, explains how tattoos, burlesque and Planet of the Apes go together, and reveals whether she thinks whether Bret or Jemaine is the sexiest Flight of the Conchords singer. SuicideGirls is described as ‘the alternative beauty’s largest online community of pinup models’, but the truth’s a little more complex than that. […]
Primate in Auckland
After a punishing Australian and japan tour, Primate arrived in New Zealand amid a earthquake; bringing Kevin’s bad luck with them! A earthquake was a fitting arrival, as they shook the kings arms up and woke Auckland out of its rainy monday night stupor. I interviewed them before the show, and am happy to report […]
Primate Talks To The 13th Floor (Video Interview)
The 13th Floor’s resident metal fiend, Tove Partington, rounded up the five members of Primate for a chat before their show at Auckland’s Kings Arms tonight. Primate is composed of Brutal Truth’s Kevin Sharp on vocals, Mastodon’s Bill Kelliher on guitar along with Mike Brennan (guitar), Dave Whitworth (bass) and Shayne Huff (drums). In addition […]
A Night With Malevolence (Interview)
Malevolence have been a part of the Auckland and New Zealand underground Metal scene for over 20 years now. Playing a style which incorporates Death Metal, Grindcore and crusty punk, they have remained a strong and consistent throughout their existence. Chris Rigby interviews Daryl Tapsell, the man who has been around since the beginning.
Xavier Rudd (Interview)
After performing in New Zealand earlier this year, Australian roots musician, activist and surfer Xavier Rudd is returning to New Zealand for a series of shows at the end of the year. The 13th Floor spoke to the laconic singer-songwriter and asked him about his seemingly unending touring schedule and the possibility of new music […]
Peter Murphy: Bringing Mr Moonlight To NZ (Interview)
Former Bauhaus front man Peter Murphy will be in New Zealand for two shows in December. Murphy is bringing his Mr. Moonlight Tour to these shores, a show where he performs all Bauhaus material. But that doesn’t mean that Murphy’s solo career is on hold. In fact, when The 13th Floor spoke to Peter, he […]
Metric: On Working With Lou Reed (Interview)
Canadian synth-pop band Metric will be in Auckland on December 14th for their first-ever New Zealand show at The Powerstation. The band, featuring vocalist Emily Haines and guitarist James Shaw, will be wrapping up a year-long tour in support of their 2012 album, Synthetica. The 13th Floor spoke to James Shaw just before he was […]
Guitar Wolf’s Top Influences (Interview)
Japanese Greatest Jet Rock And Roll group Guitar Wolf return to New Zealand in support of their new Beast Vibrator album. Guitar Wolf himself, Seiji, took time to tell The 13th Floor about his top influences …. We caught him at a Tokyo planetarium: Can you see that? There is a nebula studded in the night sky […]
Greg Johnson: From LA To NZ (Interview)
Kiwi singer-songwriter Greg Johnson makes his home in Los Angeles these days. But he is about to return to New Zealand for flurry of activity including a nation-wide tour, a live TV broadcast and the release of a career-spanning anthology. With all of this going on it seemed only right to give Greg a call […]
The National’s Bryce Dessner’s Classical Gas (Interview)
In addition to his duties as guitarist for The National, Bryce Dessner is an accomplished classical composer. Armed with a Master’s Degree in Music from Yale University, Dessner has composed four pieces for the Kronos Quartet. Those four pieces make up the album titled, Aheym, which has been released by the Anti- label today. The […]
Robert Been of BRMC Talks To The 13th Floor (Interview)
On July 23rd, 2010, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club performed a stunning show at Auckland’s Powerstation. Less than a month later the band was shaken by the sudden death of Michael Been, father of the band’s Robert Been and former leader of The Call. He had been on the road with BRMC acting as their sound […]
Making Wassaic Way With Johnny Irion (Interview)
Johnny Irion and Sarah Lee Guthrie have been making music together for over a decade. Sarah Lee is the daughter of Arlo and granddaughter of Woody Guthrie, while Johnny Irion can claim a few notables in his family tree including author John Steinbeck. For their latest album, Wassaic Way, the couple has recruited a couple […]
Jimmy Rip: From Mick Jagger To Television (Interview)
Before Jimmy Rip replaced Richard Lloyd as Television’s second guitarist in 2007, he had carved out a career for himself as a session player based in New York City. Over the years Rip recorded and toured with a hundred of artists including Mick Jagger, Deborah Harry and Jerry Lee Lewis. He has also been recording […]
Filmmaker Allan George: Sounds Perfect (Interview)
Chances are, as you are reading this, Allan George is winging his way to North America…and you helped send him there. Allan is an up-and-coming young filmmaker whose short film, Sounds Perfect, is being shown in Toronto and Austin. Thanks to being granted “short film travel funding” from the New Zealand Film Commission, Allan George […]
Willis Earl Beal: Talking To Nobody (Interview)
Willis Earl Beal has made one of the most stunning albums of the year with Nobody Knows (check out the 13th Floor review here). The 13th Floor had the opportunity to speak to Willis Earl Beal and discover that the man himself seems to be just as extraordinary (and outspoken) as his music. Click here […]
Cody ChesnuTT: The Final Frontier (Interview)
In 2002 Cody ChesnuTT was being hailed as the latest saviour of classic soul with his impressive double-disc debut album, The Headphone Masterpiece. He seemed well on his way to becoming one of the biggest acts of the new millennium with a collaboration with The Roots soon after, and even a trip to New Zealand […]