DICTAPHONE BLUES 'ELASTIC MEDITATION'

Dictaphone Blues (Reuben Bonner) return this winter, lifting the lid on a new EP; a five song offering entitled Elastic Meditation. 

Like a champion sweeper in a curling match dusting the ice smooth, the early singles Bully -which Pilerats described as an “psych/fuzz/blues/pop explosion” - and the futuristic love song When Your Simulation Crossed Mine-  which The Music described as “a bubble of happiness” - have paved the way for a full EP of catchy guitar pop, released on June 29th.

The EP release coincides with the new single Bang Bang Bang and the accompanying video directed by Charlotte Evans.

Elastic Meditation was mixed and recorded by renowned UK producer Dave Eringa, known for his work with Manic Street Preachers and Kylie Minogue, which was the perfect pairing for songwriter Edward Castelow who wanted the EP to sound like something in between both those artists. 

The lyrical content of the EP explores life, love and the universe; Brian Tamaki's blaming the Kaikoura earthquakes on homosexuality; hair; finding love in a life which may be a computer simulation; and the bully you might have known at high school.

To celebrate the release, the band will chime around NZ's four main centres in July, playing the new EP in full, as well as smash hits from their previous releases Mufti Day, Beneath The Crystal Palace, and On The Down And In. The band, made up of Edward Castelow, Barney Chunn, Matthias Jordan and Myles Allpress have played countless shows across NZ and contributed to some of this countries favourite indie bands over the past 15 years, and can’t wait to bring their happy-go-lucky live show to the people this winter.

Joining Dictaphone Blues on all dates will be Eden Mulholland. The multifaceted Perth-based musician renowned for his inventive solo albums; his work with the Auckland Theatre Company; the recent New Zealand Festival 2018 hit Rushes; and being the voice of mid-2000 indie favs Motocade.

Dictaphone Blues - Elastic Meditation release tour
with Eden Mulholland
July 6th, Whammy Backroom, Auckland - with She's So Rad
July 7th, Caroline, Wellington - with Earth To Zena
July 20th, Space Academy, Christchurch - with Emily Fairlight
July 21st, The Cook, Dunedin - with Emily Fairlight

Tickets available from Under The Radar
Wellington tickets from Just The Ticket

CALLUM GENTLEMAN 'CIGARETTES'

New Zealand musician and poet Callum Gentleman has released his first material since moving to America. “Cigarettes” is a stripped back folk inspired track that Callum wrote as a tribute to nights spent with his father. But director Hayley Robertson took a more surreal twist for the accompanying video. She teamed Callum with a temperamental puppet!

The arrangements for both the “Cigarettes” single and forthcoming EP Smoke (due 3rd August) characterize the more moody, atmospheric tone that Callum and his collaborators bring to their live shows. A tone Callum felt was well suited to a song about spending long nights drinking and smoking with his dad. However, Hayley Robertson had a slightly different tone in mind for her accompanying video.

 “I really admire Hayley’s work. It’s always fun and a little enigmatic. I gave her free rein to do whatever she wanted. When she told me her concept I loved it. My only concern was that I was going to get upstaged by a puppet! And that maybe my dad would think the puppet was supposed to be him.” – Callum Gentleman

Having toured his home nation numerous times, and to Australia twice in 2017, this year Callum Gentleman decided to aim a little bigger – he’s moved to America. At the time of writing he’s based in Denver, Colorado.

DEVILSKIN INVITED TO SUPPORT GRAMMY WINNING BAND HALESTORM ON EPIC EUROPEAN TOUR

New Zealand band DEVILSKIN have been personally invited on a massive European tour to support Grammy Award Winning hard rock band Halestorm. The two bands will perform their exhilarating brand of rock in 18 cities throughout Europe. This is set to be one of the most sought after tickets this year.

Both Devilskin and Halestorm will be showcasing newly recorded music throughout the tour. Devilskin are currently working alongside International Producer Greg Haver (Manic Street Preachers, Melanie C, Opshop, Kimbra, Super Furry Animals, Bullet For My Valentine) and are recording in early July.

Halestorm and Devilskin European tour visits:

1st October         Tilburg                                  Netherlands

2nd                          Paris                                      France

3rd                           Antwerp                              Belgium

5th                           Copenhagen                      Denmark

6th                           Arhus                                    Denmark

8th                           Stockholm                           Sweden

9th                           Oslo                                       Norway

11th                         Hamburg                             Germany

12th                         Berlin                                    Germany

14th                         Frankfurt                             Germany

15th                         Cologne                               Germany

16th                         Munich                                 Germany

18th                         Vienna                                  Austria

20th                         Lausanne                             Switzerland

21st                         Zurich                                    Switzerland

22nd                        Milan                                     Italy

24th                         Barcelona                            Spain

25th                        Madrid                                 Spain

“We've been itching to get back to Europe and the UK, so to be asked by our good friends Halestorm to open for them on such a massive tour, through 11 countries is absolutely awesome” beams Devilskin bassist Paul Martin. “They are among the nicest guys in the business and they're huge in Europe so it was an offer we couldn't resist. We had a lot of fun with them when we toured NZ and Australia together, we all clicked and they really loved their time here in NZ. We are all just totally over the moon to be hitting the road again with them.”

Devilskin will then undertake an extra 12 date UK tour from 28th October – 12th November 2018, reuniting the band with their ardent UK fans. Cities will include London, Milton Keynes, Birmingham, Nottingham, Sheffield, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, Bristol, Cardiff, Southampton and Bournemouth.

Devilskin are also pleased to announce an 8 date New Zealand tour to satisfy the demand on the home front.

“Well, we do have a bunch of new tunes that we're really excited about, so we're keen to take them out on a road test.” says Martin, “We've definitely missed our crazy Devil army while we've been locked away writing the next album, so now it's time to get out on tour and rip it up!”

Devilskin NZ tour visits:

31st August                         Union Hall                                           Dunedin

1st September                   The Foundry                                      Christchurch

6th                                           Walter Nash Stadium                      Wellington

7th                                           The Royal                                            Palmerston North

8th                                           The Mayfair                                        New Plymouth

13th                                        Altitude                                                Hamilton

14th                                        The Powerstation                            Auckland

15th                                        Baypark Stadium                              Mt Maunganui

Support throughout NZ from rising stars Written by Wolves (except Christchurch).

Tickets on sale from June 28th 2018 through Eventfinda  www.eventfinda.co.nz 

There will also be a VERY limited number of VIP tickets available at each show priced at $100 each.

Known for their blistering and intense live shows, sold out venues and loyal fanbase Devilskin are offering fans the opportunity for a very special and limited VIP experience at each NZ show, including;

- Early venue entry

- Photo with the band

- Ltd VIP AAA lanyard

- Signed poster

- First opportunity to purchase new range of merchandise

Alien Weaponry’s Album Tū Star Rising in USA

Since their debut album Tū entered the NZ album chart at no. 1 three weeks ago, Alien Weaponry’s (Niel de Jong) popularity has continued to climb worldwide, particularly in the USA.

Kai Tangata, the latest single from the album, has spent six weeks on the prestigious Devil’s Dozen list selected for the Liquid Metal show on New York based Sirius XM – the last three of them at no. 1.

Last week, Kai Tangata was included in the ‘BestMetal Songs of 2018’ published by Loudwire – a US-based webzine with over 1.3 million subscribers.

And yesterday, Revolver Magazine included Tū in its 25 BestAlbums of 2018 so far, alongside the likes of Judas Priest, Ghost and Nine Inch Nails.

Tracks from the album have also been added to over 7,000 Spotify playlists worldwide, including New Blood, New Metal Tracks, Kickass Metal and Thrash Metal Big 4 & Friends.

The thrash metal trio leaves New Zealand next week for a 3-month tour of Australia, Europe and the UK. With the Melbourne show already sold out and European gigs including the world’s biggest metal festival, Wacken Open Air, it seems that Matariki won’t be the only group of stars on the ascendancy in New Zealand this July.

Tū is available in New Zealand through JB Hi-Fi, Marbecks, Real Groovy, Mighty Ape, The Warehouse and other record outlets; and can be purchased through Napalm Records worldwide.

Touring:

05.07.18 AUS – Melbourne / Last Chance Rock & Roll Bar

06.07.18 AUS – Sydney / Bald Faced Stag

07.07.18 AUS – Brisbane / Dead of Winter Festival

26.07.18 SV – Tolmin / Metal Days Festival

04.08.18 DE – Wacken / Wacken Open Air Festival

09.08.18 UK – Walton-on-Trent / Bloodstock Open Air Festival

17.08.18 DE – Dinkelsbühl / Summer Breeze Festival

01.09.18 DE – Hamburg / Welt-Turbojugend Tage

15.10.18 SP – Sevilla / End Of Summer Fest 

REI 'HERSELF'

‘Herself’ is a house/hip hop track influenced by the #metoo movement. This is a dance track with a positive message.

Bilingual artist Rei is excited to bring you his first english language single since the release of his Māori language EP ‘Rangatira’ earlier in 2018.

With writing credits from NZ RnB/Dance legend PTand platinum producer DLove (who have millions of streams under their belts), Auckland based artist Rei  (Ngāti Raukawa) wanted to shine light on the strongwomenin his life. The track was also born from a session with NZ RnB talent MikeyMayz, who wrote the vocal sample heard in the beat.

Although the #metoomovement is slowly changing attitudes towards women’s rights, hiphop seems to be lagging behind. Rei is set out to change this, mixing his empowering messages with club-ready beats and Migos-esque rap flows.

‘Herself’is about a woman who doesn’t dress to impress someone else, she doesn’t dance a type of way for anybody but herself, she does what she does because it makes her feel good. 

With 3 Māori Music Awards, a NZ Music Awards nomination a #1 iTunes Hip Hop album, a #1 iTunes World album Rei is definitely making a name for himself in the NZ music industry. He is also the co-winnerfor BestEmergingManagerat the 2018 MMFAwards.

THIS FLIGHT TONIGHT 'LOVE UNWRITTEN'

The Auckland based music project This Flight Tonight is directed by lead songwriter Ralph Warren Engle and they are delighted to announce the second lead single 'Love Unwritten' just weeks after the first single 'Know this Feeling' was announced this month. This is all part of the build up for a new album project 'Nothing to Declare'. 

The album is being constructed 'block by block' as a reaction to this new age of digital instancy.

A new crowdfunding campaign has been launched to fundraise for a lead music video at Indiegogo: https://www.indiegogo.com/at/thisflighttonight2018/x/18930903

Otherwise fans can "pay as they like" on their Bandcamp page: www.thisflighttonight.com/music-releases or https://thisflighttonight.bandcamp.com

This Flight Tonight has previously caught the attention of Coldplay who plugged their single 'Friendly Fire' on their website. You can hear more on Spotify by searching for the artist "This Flight Tonight".
And also the likes of The Temper Trap whose lead guitarist has guested in previous releases.

This new album however showcases collaboration with some of New Zealand's upcoming session musicians, with Ralphe at the director's seat for songwriting.

APOLLO STEAMTRAIN 'SUPERSTITION (LOOKING IN THE MIRROR)'

TAURANGA ROCK BAND APOLLO STEAMTRAIN (BRENDAN MCCARTHY) ARE PLEASED TO ANNOUNCE THE RELEASE OF THEIR NEW SINGLE “SUPERSTITION (LOOKING IN THE MIRROR)”

“Superstition (looking in the mirror)”is the second offering from a collaboration with international producer Greg Haver. Recorded at Roundhead Studios in Auckland and mixed by TUI Award winning UK based Engineer Clint Murphy, the track is a combination of catchy guitar hook and vocal melodies, layered over power house drums that take the listener on a no nonsense sonic journey. 

“It’s been a pleasure working with Apollo SteamTrain on their new recordings and helping them forge a vision for Brendan’s songs. Their determination to keep the band’s music moving forward is inspiring” – Greg Haver

Written by front man, Brendan McCarthy, the track is based on the theme of becoming addicted to the modern world. Speaking in the 2nd person narrative, the lyrics make statements that “You’re so addicted” and “you have lost your sense of understanding”, but then resolve with the narrator admitting that “You’re not alone” and “I’m here with you”, meaning everyone is in this crazy world together. The theme is loosely extended to the idea that the reflection of ourselves is only what we want to see and not what we really are.  

Apollo SteamTrain was formed in 2016 by singer songwriter Brendan McCarthy, with drummer Les Robinsonand Bass Player Ian Clark providing a powerful rhythmic edge. The band plays solid guitar driven melodic rock delivered over a punching rhythm section, dressed with relentlessly catchy vocal melodies. 

The band have a publishing deal with Songbrokerand have had success with one of their catchy pop rock tracks, “The Electric Sun” appearing in NZ Television show, Shortland Street.

The release of “Superstition (Looking in the Mirror)”will be followed by shows in Auckland, Hamilton, and Tauranga.

JED PARSONS 'TIME'

Kiwi singer-songwriter Jed Parsons (Mel Parsons) paves the way for his debut full-length album, with the release of his third single, ‘Time’.

Listen to ‘Time’on iTunes/ Apple Music/ Spotify

A ‘falling-out-of-love’ song, ‘Time’ is an indie-pop gem, which Parsonswrote after listening “to a lot of 60s good-cheese music”. What resulted was a bit of an indie-Kiwi nod to some of his idols, including The Beach Boys, The Beatles and Frankie Valli.

Recorded with Lee Prebble at Surgery Studios in Wellington, ‘Time’ follows the singles‘Get Lost’, which debuted on Apple’s ‘Best of the Week’ playlist and received radio play from Haurakiand the bNets; and ‘Everybody’s Stupid’, which debuted on Haurakiand also received love from student radio. The song’s video ‘Everybody’s Stupid’ premiered on Tone Deaf in Australia.

All three singles establish Parsons as one of New Zealand’s most intriguing new songwriters and also set the scene for the release of his debut album MIDNIGHT FEAST on July 13.

Parsons has had an action-packed summer playing live, including a coveted spot at one of New Zealand’s biggest festivals Auckland City Limits.

He will tour New Zealand to support the release of MIDNIGHT FEAST.  See dates below:

JED PARSONS – MIDNIGHT FEAST TOUR 2018

Fri 20th July - AUCKLAND RELEASE SHOW / Neck of the Woods

Sat 21st July - WELLINGTON RELEASE SHOW / San Fran

Fri 27th July - CHRISTCHURCH RELEASE SHOW / Blue Smoke

Sat 28th July - DUNEDIN RELEASE SHOW /The Cook

Tickets on sale now from Under The Radar