Otium release ‘Black Mirror’ style music video

Stone Cold Records are proud to present the official music video for Otium's latest single, Dollar for the Man.

Following the release of the song in March, the team partnered with Dave Pirie (Rogue Works) to build a concept for the music video. Dave had the creative idea to connect multiple old CRT screens, and synch them, so each band member was represented digitally in the music video.

The original footage was filmed in the Belltech warehouse in Whangarei. The shots were then passed on to Rogue Works; who edited and programmed the footage so it could play in synch on the stacks of old TVs. This was then installed and filmed in an empty shop front on K’ Road.

Auckland’s Karangahape Road is famous for being home to free personal expression and people who express non-conformist views. It felt incredibly fitting to shoot the Dollar for the Man video there.

The stripped empty store front, piles of antique televisions and the K’ Road setting ensured the themes of isolation, capitalism and obligation in Dollar for the Man were emphasised.

Otium release this video as they head into the studio to lay down their debut album, set for an early 2020 release.

ASHY 'ALL EYES ARE ON ME'

Christchurch-based singer and songwriter ASHY is back with a new pop banger, ‘All Eyes Are On Me’.

Listen on SPOTIFY / APPLE / ITUNES

‘All Eyes Are On Me’ is a fun and feelgood dance-pop anthem, laced with hints of R’n’B. With its soaring vocals, catchy-as-hell beats and production, which packs a real punch, it’s a song designed to light up the airwaves and move the masses.

“The song is about having confidence in yourself. I wanted it to be an anthem of empowerment,” says ASHY. “It’s directed at a boy who I know all too well. I know I've never been his 'type'. But I walk into a party with an unapologetic confidence. And while he changes his mind about me, it doesn’t mean I have to. I don't have the energy to be what he wants me to be. I am who I am!”

ASHY co-wrote ‘All Eyes Are On Me’ in Sydney with fellow New Zealand singer and songwriter Theia and Australian producer Liam Quinn.

“I loved working with Theia and Quinn. It was our first time working together and we wrote this song in a day! It was pretty electric in the room and we had a great dynamic. Theia and Quinn really understood me as an artist and where I want to go and that made the song extra special. ‘All Eyes Are On Me’ feels more 'me' than a song has ever felt.”

In the space of just two years, ASHY has released a string of killer singles, including ‘Jersey’, ‘Over You’ (which reached #5 in the Hot New Zealand Singles chart), and ‘Temporary Crush’, co-written and produced by Kiwi legend Josh Fountain, who is a member of the band Leisure and who’s also behind some of the best known NZ pop tunes of recent times (think Bene, Theia, Maala and Openside!)

ASHY has also participated in some of the country’s most well-known music initiatives, from Play It Strange to Smokefree Rockquest. She recently played to a packed crowd opening for Kiwi four-piece Openside at the iconic Hollywood in Avondale.

ASHY is an artist on the rise and there’s no stopping her!

CELEBRATING THREE EXEMPLARY WINNERS AT THE COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS

The New Zealand Music Industry turned towards Gore this evening to celebrate the winners of the 2019 New Zealand Country Music Awards.

Jenny Mitchell received the Recorded Music NZ Best Country Music Artist | Te Kaipuoro Tuawhenua Toa Tui and Holly Arrowsmith was recognised with the APRA Best Country Song for ‘Slow Train Creek’, and Kerryn Fields won the MLT Songwriting Award with ‘Mama’.

Gore’s very own Jenny Mitchell began her career as a teenager and has since released two albums. Tonight she adds a Tui to her trophy cabinet, which already features MLT Songwriting and Gold Guitar Awards.

In the past 18 months, Jenny’s sophomore album Wildfire entered at #4 on the Official NZ Music Charts within weeks of release. She has toured through the southern coast of Sweden, dozens of cosy Irish pubs, Australian cities, and towns and throughout New Zealand.

With recent festival appearances with Australian Golden Guitar Winners Brad Butcher, Felicity Urquhart and Luke O'Shea, this is just the beginning for the young artist.

Holly Arrowsmith won a folk Tui for her first album For The Weary Traveller in 2016.

Since then, she crowdfunded her second album A Dawn To Remember, which was recorded between a cottage in the coastal town of Colac Bay and The Sitting Room recording studio in Lyttelton, New Zealand with renowned producer Ben Edwards.

This year, she’s the recipient of the 2019 APRA Best Country Song award for her track ‘Slow Train Creek’.

Kerryn Fields won the MLT Songwriting Award tonight as well after performing her song ‘Mama’ against a number of other writers including Tami Neilson, Jenny Mitchell and Kendall Elise Todd.

Recorded Music NZ CEO Damian Vaughan says the evolution of the New Zealand country music scene is a true testament to the raw talent of our Kiwi musicians.  

“There’s a lot of soul across all this year’s finalists, infused into their songs, albums and performances.

“They’re masters of conveying mood and feeling through their music and we’re lucky to have them herald from Aotearoa.”

APRA AMCOS Head of New Zealand Operations Ant Healey says: “Country music in Aotearoa continues to diversify and strengthen every year, with many local artists being recognised in Australia and the US, and more artists heading to Nashville and beyond to collaborate with the world’s best.

“The annual NZ Country Music Awards in Gore are an integral part of this development, providing support and recognition to these many artists who continue to show the rest of the world how to expand the horizons of country music.”

Other finalists for the Recorded Music NZ Best Country Artist were Jamie McDell for her album Extraordinary Girl, and Tami Neilson for her sixth album Sassafrass!

‘Paint On A Sign’ by Jamie McDell, and ‘Manitoba Sunrise at Motel 6’ by Tami Neilson were the other finalists for the APRA Best Country Music Song.

The New Zealand Country Music Awards are hosted by the New Zealand Songwriters Trust and celebrates the best country musicians from Aotearoa and abroad.  

Finalists for Recorded Music NZ Best Country Music Album

·        WINNER: Jenny Mitchell – Wildfires

·        Jamie McDell – Extraordinary Girl

·        Tami Neilson – Sassafrass!

Finalists for APRA Best Country Music Song

·        WINNER: Holly Arrowsmith – ‘Slow Train Creek’

·        Jamie McDell – ‘Paint On A Sign’

·        Tami Neilson – ‘Manitoba Sunrise at Motel 6’

Finalists for the MLT Songwriting Awards

·        WINNER: Kerryn Fields (‘Mamma’, ‘Until You’)

·        Kaylee Bell (‘Used to Getting Over You’)

·        Tami Neilson (‘Used To Getting Over You’, ‘Queenie’)

·        Kendall Elise (‘Slippery Creek’)

·        Jenny Mitchell (‘Lucy’, ‘Tug of War’)

·        Olivia Sutherland (‘Don’t’)

·        Miller Yule (‘Tangled Up’)

·        Ron Mitchell (‘I’ll Be Country’)

KIWI INDIE-POP SINGER MOLLY DEVINE RELEASES DAZZLING NEW SINGLE ‘SOMEONE LIKE YOU’

Emerging Kiwi singer and songwriter artist Molly Devine has released her euphoric new indie-pop single ‘Someone Like You’.

Listen now on iTunes / Apple / Spotify

Catchy and uplifting, with an exhilarating beat, ’Someone Like You’ embraces the heart and soul of the perfect tune, finely balancing the electronic and pop worlds. The song was co-written with and produced by Wellington’s Nik Brinkman (Ladyhawke, The Naked and Famous, Mitch James and Josie Moon).

A song with personal meaning, ‘Someone Like You’ was written about the first time Molly met her boyfriend at a swing dancing ball. “It was classic, I saw him as soon as I walked in and I was like ‘who is that?’, the beat of the song was taking it somewhere very different so I re-imagined it in a club.”

Molly - who is based in Dunedin - travelled to Wellington to work with Nik and says ‘Someone Like You’ came together in only a matter of hours. “Nik and I are a great team. I’m drawn to dark sounds and atmospheric lyrics, then Nik comes in and injects it with his signature infectious brightness.”

With a Master’s Degree in Music from Otago University, Molly Devine has an impressive resume of playing for the Dunedin Symphony Orchestra, singing alongside New Zealand music legends Martin Phillips (The Chills), Shayne Carter (Straitjacket Fits), Nadia Reid and Anthonie Tonnon.

VOX DAWN ‘SACRED SPACES.’

Listening party

limited spaces only

Date: Fri 31st May 2019

Time: 8-10pm 

Venue: 'The 13th Floor' 206 Symonds St, Auckland City

Album Release party

Date: Sat 1st June 2019

Time: 8-10pm

Venue: Creative Waikato 11 Garden Place, Hamilton

Vox Dawn serves up a soul-stirring, earthy, lyrical banquet with the release of her single – ‘It Is Well’ following her first debut album – ‘Sacred Spaces.’ Born of the whenua and breathed to life by a wairua that recognizes the power of a sound, of a sacred space in which this sound comes to life. This Music is for the audience that is WOKE. An audience that knows music has the power to make and change through story telling and the stories told call us to act for those whom justice has not been kind to. Ihumātao is a beautiful example of this. The first single – ‘It is well’ was first written as an outro for the album but along the journey it was re-thought and re-purposed during recent visits to Parihaka. ‘It Is Well’ was written to alter the status quo and to offer a fresh new sound, to introduce a game-changing artist Vox Dawn that represents the present, future and past. 

‘It Is Well’ is currently on all online outlets listen here

This album grew from a place that was journeyed. ‘Sacred Spaces’ is derived from the words 'Wāhi Tapu' in Te Reo Māori. This album emphasizes spaces within the social content, infrastructure, government laws and systems particularly those that have impacted our culture. It speaks of significant times in our history, life, relationships and endeavors. This album emanates from the place where a soul stress meets a rhyme, a space where grace meets gritty. This album features artist such as Marina Alefosia(Spoken word artist), James Brooks aka JB the WAR Villain (Hip-hop artist and producer), Produced by Erik Lopeti aka E-NICE MUSIC, 'Settle Down' Produced by Saia aka S.T.F, Recorded, Mixed and Co-produced by Lance Kingi at Taupiri Sound. With special feature from Kuia Nana Ruhi Ashby.

KENDALL ELISE 'RED EARTH' ALBUM TOUR COMES TO PAPAKURA

In conjunction with The Corner: Creative Space, Kendall Elise is bringing her RED EARTH Album tour to her home town of Papakura.

All funds raised from ticket sales will go towards helping local Papakura community group The Corner continue the great mahi they already do bringing together the Papakura community through the arts.

The Corner will be curating a unique exhibition of local artists, this will be displayed throughout the Hawkins Theatre foyer on the evening with all artwork available for purchase.

Moving effortlessly and seamlessly through a number of styles and genres, from dark country to true country; folk and chilled pop to bluesy rock, Kendall delivers an album packed with mood and personality.

Kendall chose the songs that feature on the album - including first singles already released ‘The Clock Tower’ and ‘Valentine Street’ - because they’re representations of her childhood growing up in Papakura.

Kendall is a consummate performer, who (alongside her band, The Belgraves) has earned a reputation as mesmerising live act, not-to-be-missed! This year alone she has played a string of gigs and opened for Gin Wigmore on her recent New Zealand Tour. In April she supported American roots, rock band Larkin Poe in Auckland.

TOM SCOTT'S AVANTDALE BOWLING CLUB ANNOUNCES AUCKLAND SHOW

To mark one year since its release, Tom Scott’s Avantdale Bowling Club announces a headline date at Auckland’s iconic Powerstation.

Following on from a Taite Prize-winning, number one NZ album and a string of blistering sold-out dates across the country, Tom now brings his full live band experience to the Powerstation this August.

Avantdale Bowling Club's last performance in Auckland sold out within 36 hours.

Tickets will be available from aaaticketing.co.nz at 9am on Friday May 31st.

What the critics are saying:

“Yes, and yes. One of the greatest songs yet made in this country” (on Years Gone By)
Grant Smithies, Sunday Star Times

"Tom's rhymes are deeply personal and affecting and honest. It's one of our favorite albums of the year. "
Jesse Thorn, Bullseye on NPR

“It’s not just the local album of the year, not just one of my favourite records in a decade or more, it’s an event, something bigger, wider, deeper than just an album, than just some raps; it’s pure poetry, incredible writing, it’s a huge learned journey borne of lived experience.”
Simon Sweetman, Off The Tracks

"...he produced an album that makes a statement and stands as a piece of art, and still rocketed up the charts...a remarkable achievement.”
Karl Puschmann, NZHerald

“Avantdale Bowling Club is a brave, worthy and vital keyhole through which to view one man’s perspective observations of life in our city.”
Gary Steel, Metro Magazine

TOP TALENT CELEBRATED AT 15TH ANNUAL PACIFIC MUSIC AWARDS

Her Majesty Queen Sālote Tupou lll recognised as the 2019 Lifetime Achievement recipient

The Pacific music industry was in full celebration tonight as the winners for the 15th annual Pacific Music Awards were announced at the Vodafone Event Centre in Manukau, Auckland.

KINGS and Tomorrow People are quickly becoming Pacific music legends, adding to their previous hauls with four 2019 awards each.

Along with the other guests in the packed arena, they recognised Manukau Institute of Technology Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Her Majesty Queen Sālote Tupou lll - first Queen regnant and third Monarch of the Kingdom of Tonga.

Ruling for 48 years until her passing in 1965 - longer than any other Tongan monarch - she was an avid writer of songs and poems. Her work captured Tongan culture and heritage for the people of Tonga.  In recent times, her work has been shared through a collection published in 2004.

An album of her compositions ‘Lomipeau Aotearoa’ was released in 2017.  These unique recordings were performed by Auckland-based dance group Pukepuke o’ Tonga, breathing new life into the sounds and melodies of ancient Tonga through the late Queen’s poetry.

KINGS took home Best Pacific Male Artist, APRA Best Pacific Song, and the NZ On Air Streaming Award, as well as SIT/MAINZ Best Producer alongside 10A for their album ‘Lov3 & 3go’.  

Tomorrow People picked up Recorded Music Best Pacific Music Album, Pato Entertainment Best Pacific Roots/Reggae Artist, and PMN Best Pacific Group following the release of their 2018 EP ‘BBQ Reggae’. They also received the coveted SunPix People’s Choice Award for Best Pacific Artist.

After falling in love with hip hop dance, Razé evolved her passion into making incredible music. Her single ‘Not About You’ led her to win Auckland Council Best Pacific Female Artist and Best Pacific Soul/RnB Artist.

The brother duo Adeaze had their first appearance in the Pacific Music Awards back in 2005. And now they’re back with their latest album ‘A Mother’s Love’ released to pay tribute to their late mother, which won PMN Best Pacific Gospel Artist this year.

Onehunga powerhouse hip hop group SWIDT were back at it again this year as well, picking up the Base FM NZ & Island Base FM Samoa Best Pacific Hip Hop Artist after releasing their EP ‘The Most Electrifying’.

Hailing from the Solomon Islands, Jaro Local received the award for Flava Best International Pacific Artist showcasing his international hit song ‘Dakini Tangarareh’. Villette’s unique virtual reality music video, ‘Money’, won her the NZ On Air Best Pacific Music Video at this year’s awards.  

Samoan group Punialava’a received the Lifetime Achievement award in 2018. They’ve continued to produce amazing Pacific music in 2018, earning them the SunPixBest Pacific Language award this year. The NZ On Air Radio Airplay Award went to General Fiyah ft Three Houses Down with their song ‘Here to Stay’.

Melodownz was recognised as this year’s recipient for Phillip Fuemana Award for Most Promising Pacific Artist. After releasing his debut EP in 2017, he has been steady building a name for himself both locally and internationally - opening for the likes of YG, Joey Bada$$ and Raekown of Wu Tang fame. At the end of last year, he released a double EP called ‘HIGH BEAMS’ and has big plans for the remainder of 2019 and beyond.

Chairman and spokesperson Rev. Mua Strickson-Pua says: “The 15th celebration of the Pacific Music Awards speaks of past achievements – but, just as important, the future. Humble Pacific music beginnings with global musical ramifications.

“Tonight, we travel with our Pacific Music Awards mindful of the Rangatahi Auatalavou young people the new finalists, the Wahine Toa strong powerful Pacific woman artists presence and Taonga the treasures of our Pacific languages we have been blessed indeed. We acknowledge the first Melanesian finalists malo.

There are new Pacific sayings when traditional Pacific music engages with urban Pacific music. Our Malaga ola, life journey sings of our Pacific unity and new hope.”

The awards provided a showcase of the best in Pacific music – with an incredible line up throughout the night.  Alongside the special tribute performance for Her Majesty Queen Sālote Tupou lll, there were finalist performances by Adeaze, Poetik Melodownz, Razé, Tree, Punialava’a, Jaro Local and Tomorrow People. 

The evening closed with a massive medley performance paying tribute to 15 years of the Pacific Music Awards – a fitting way to close the night’s celebration.