Wondergarden Festival – Silo Park December 31, 2016
After ringing in 28 or so New Years Eves in or around the Coromandel, I thought it befitting that I spend my first New Years Eve in the urban jungle of Auckland at its very first Wondergarden Festival at Silo Park.
Check Out These Laneway Photos!
13th Floor photographer David Watson has been out shooting Laneway Festival artists all day. Here’s the first of his photo galleries featuring images of East India Youth, Shamir, DIIV, Health, Lontalius and more. Click here to view the first of our Laneway 2016 photo galleries.
Lontalius Laneway Interview
The 13th Floor crew is out at Laneway bringing you interviews, reviews and photos throughout the day and into tomorrow. Our first bit of coverage starts with an interview with Kiwi musician Eddie Johnston who goes by the name Lontalius. He and his band were one of the first acts to perform during the afternoon. […]
RIP Paul Kantner
Paul Kantner, founding member of Jefferson Airplane, and later, Jefferson Starship, has passed away at the age of 74. Kantner was one of the most important musical personalities to emerge from the San Francisco scene of the 1960s. He, along with Marty Balin formed the Airplane in 1965, originally as a folk-rock band. With Grace […]
Gillian Welch & Dave Rawlings – Civic Theatre January 28, 2016
Gillian & Dave. For many, this was the show they waited 12 years for. That’s how long it’s been since Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings performed in New Zealand. The vibe outside the Civic was similar to when Nick Cave performed his solo shows there a couple of years ago. Sure, the music was different, […]
The Danish Girl – Dir: Tom Hooper
Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Alicia Vikander, Matthias Schoenaerts, Ben Wishaw, Amber Heard Based (loosely) on real-life events, The Danish Girl sets out to tackle the issue of transgender politics from a very personal perspective, with director Tom Hooper aiming to enlighten, rather than shock his audience. The story…based on a fictional novel but inspired by two […]
Savages – Adore Life (Album Review)
Savages follow up their stunning debut album with another winner. Is it too early to announce the album of the year? The opening track on Savages 2013 Mercury-nominated debut album began with a snippet of dialogue from a John Cassavetes film. This time around, the London-based quartet has set aside their arty proclivities for the […]
Daughter – Not To Disappear (Album Review)
It’s the second full-length album from the London-based trio led by Elena Tonra. Darker and more intense than its predecessor, Not To Disappear is not for the faint of heart. Daughter’s second album finds singer/lyricist Elena Tonra digging deep into her psyche, stringing together couplets that sound as if they were borne either from dreams […]
Lou Barlow – The Kings Arms January 23, 2016
Lou Barlow has been a fairly regular visitor to our shores over the past few years, as a member of Dinosaur Jr and Sebadoh, and as a solo performer. This overfamiliarity may explain the somewhat sparse crowd that turned out on a Saturday night at Auckland’s Kings Arms, which is a shame because Barlow […]
Adam Lambert – Auckland Town Hall January 22, 2016
Adam Lambert, talent-show runner-up and ersatz Freddie Mercury, managed a rather difficult task last night, shoehorning an arena show into a theatre-sized setting. The last time Lambert was in town, a year and a half ago as Queen’s latest jobbing frontman, he played the Vector Arena; his management, presumably, decided that he couldn’t quite fill […]
Viet Cong – The Kings Arms January 21, 2016
It seems January gigs at The Kings Arms hold a special kind of charm. Often the venue is hot, sweaty and jam-packed with fans anxious to start the new year off in a rock and roll frenzy. On this particular evening the weather wasn’t so hot, the room not so packed, but the band was […]
Bassy Bob Brockmann on Bowie (Interview)
Grammy Award-winning mixer and producer “Bassy” Bob Brockmann was in Auckland recently and stopped by The 13th Floor for an interview with Marty Duda. Mr Brockmann is known for his work with the likes of The Fugees, Notorious BIG, Christina Aguilera, Mary J Blige and Faith Hill. As it turns out, Bassy Bob, who is […]
RIP Glenn Frey
Eagles co-founder Glenn Frey has passed away at age 67. Let’s face it folks, this has been a traumatic year for anyone who loves music. The 13th Floor was fortunate enough to speak to Glenn Frey a few years ago when he was promoting his solo show at thew Vector Arena. You can listen to […]
RIP Dale Griffin (aka Buffin)
Dale Griffin, who, known as Buffin, was the drummer for Mott The Hoople, passed away at the age of 67. Buffin was a member of Mott from the beginning (1969) and played on their best-known tunes including All The Young Dudes. When the band reformed in 2009 for a series of gigs in London, Buffin […]
Watch Plum Green’s 13th Floor Video Session
Plum Green is a Kiwi singer-songwriter now based in Melbourne. She was in Auckland briefly to perform at The Wine Cellar as part of her Night Terrors tour with Jennifer Kingwell to promote her just-released EP Karma. Plum Green stopped by The 13th Floor studio to play a few songs…including two from the new EP…and […]
Le1F – Neck Of The Woods January 16, 2016
New York City rapper Le1f (aka Khalif Diouf) performed at Auckland’s Neck Of The Woods last night and photographer Ren Kirk was there to capture the action. Click on any image to view a photo gallery of the show:
The 1975 – Auckland Town Hall January 15, 2016
There is little need for a review of The 1975’s concert at Auckland’s Town Hall last night — I’m not entirely sure an objective review is even possible. The audience — overwhelmingly female, predominantly aged between about 15 and 25 — were not there to engage with the show on any kind of objective, rational level; […]
Plum Green & Jennifer Kingwell – Wine Cellar, 15 January 2016
After orienting myself in a new wine cellar layout – having wondered if the inevitable current gentrification of the iconic St Kevin’s Arcade had spread like a tumour to the unique labyrinthine subterranean recesses of my favorite bar in NZ – I stumbled into a sauna-like space with a paucity of fire-escape options and a […]
Plum Green Performs Karma at The 13th Floor
Plum Green and Jennifer Kingwell bring their Night Terrors Tour to Auckland’s Wine Cellar tonight. Australian-based Kiwi singer-songwriter Plum Green stopped by The 13th Floor to play a few songs and chat with Marty Duda. We’ll have the entire video session posted soon. In the mean time, watch Plum Green perform Karma, the title track […]
Kurt Vile & The Violators St James Theatre January 12, 2016
With a handful of solo shows in the cards for the rest of the country, Kurt Vile treated his Auckland fans to a show featuring his band, The Violators. Not surprisingly Kurt was at his best when he locked in with his three bandmates and cranked up the volume. As I entered the St […]