Tim Finn - The View Is Worth The Climb

The View Is Worth The Climb is the latest album from Tim Finn -� which continues to garner praise from fans and media; including the New Zealand Herald who gave it 4.5 out of 5 stars and cited it as “a terrific album.”� The album was produced by the Grammy Award winning Jacquire King (who has worked with Kings Of Leon, Tom Waits, and Cold War Kids) ...

Etta James 1938 - 2012

The Dreamer is the legendary Etta James’ final album, marking her recent retirement after more than 50 years in music, and chosen to celebrate her life which ended on Saturday.

The great Etta James has been a musical force and a major hit-maker since the '50s earning numerous accolades including six Grammy Awards, among them the prestigious Lifetime ...

Anna Calvi

Anna Calvi is an English musician who plays in the band of the same name.�Her debut album “Anna Calvi” was released in the UK on 17 January 2011, where it debuted at number 40 on 23 January. The album was subsequently nominated for the prestigious Mercury Music Prize in 2011.� NME gave the album 9 out of 10 stating, "this self-titled collection of 10 ...

Yusuf 'Roadsinger'

One of the most influential and successful singer-songwriters of the last 40 years, Yusuf Islam [better known to most by his earlier stage name Cat Stevens] has provided the perfect salve for a troubled world-a beautifully nuanced, warm voice shielding us against harsh, turbulent times bringing songs of truth and hope.
His 2009 album Roadsinger epitomizes ...

Amy Winehouse: Lionsess

Lioness: Hidden Treasures is the first posthumous compilation album by Amy Winehouse, released on 2 December 2011 by Island Records. The album features unreleased songs and demos picked by Mark Ronson, Salaam Remi and Winehouse's family, including the first single, "Body and Soul", with Tony Bennett. The album was released in aid of the Amy ...

Dave Brubeck

David Warren "Dave" Brubeck is an American jazz pianist who has written a number of jazz standards, including "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "The Duke". Brubeck's music is known for employing unusual time signatures, and superimposing contrasting rhythms, meters, and tonalities. His long-time musical partner, alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, wrote the Dave Brubeck Quartet's best ...

International Xmas

No feature album this week - instead we're bringing a great mix of international music celebrating the Festive Season !� Enjoy, and have a very Merry Christmas and wonderful New Year!

Gin Wigmore

“I wasn't born a beauty queen but I'm okay with that. Maybe radio won't mind if I sing a little flat" Gin Wigmore�jibes on album opener and first single Black Sheep. She does think of herself as a bit of a black sheep, an artist who doesn't fit neatly in any box, and on her sophomore album she's embraced this ("If I have to fall, then it won't be in your line"). ...

Waiata!

Waiata : Maori Showbands, Balladeers & Pop Stars is a 2011 released 2 cd compilation featuring recordings made from 1955 to 1980 by prominent Maori performers. The album collects many songs which have never been properly acknowledged or recognised. Music archivist Grant Gillanders compiled the tracks as a way of "giving back" to the music and musicians who inspired ...

Jayhawks

Our Feature Album of the Week: The Jayhawks' "Mockingbird Time" released September '11. The Jayhawks are an American alternative country and rock band that emerged from the Twin Cities music scene during the mid 1980s. Their country rock sound was influential on many bands who played the Twin Cities circuit during the 80s and 90s like Uncle Tupelo, The Gear ...

Battle for Seattle

Our Feature Album of the Week is Little Roy's Battle for Seattle. Little Roy launched his career in Jamaica's 1960s rocksteady scene. "Battle for Seattle" was released in September�- an album of reggae reinterpretations of Nirvana tracks. The album's cool - and described by NME as "...just subtle versions of classic songs that actually end up taking them ...

Steve Earle - I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive

Steve Earle released his first novel and fourteenth studio album, both entitled I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive after a Hank Williams song, in the spring of 2011.

The album was released on April 26, 2011 and was produced by T-Bone Burnett. Earle describes it as dealing with questions of mortality and having a "more country" sound than his earlier ...

Hollie Smith and Mara TK

Released on August 1, 2011, through Soundsmith Records, Band Of Brothers, Vol:1 is the first in a series of musical projects spearheaded by Hollie Smith with the intent to experiment with different artists and aspects of production and collaboration. In Volume 1 she joins acclaimed beat maker, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Mara TK (from Electric Wire ...

Pajama Club

Pajama Club are Neil Finn, Sharon Finn, Sean Donnelly and Alana Skyring (formerly of The Grates). Their self-titled debut album was released in September 2011 and takes influence from dub, disco, and funk, and uses motorik-style beats. Finn stated "Some people aren't gonna get it; it's not as 'songy', in a traditional way, as Crowded House...I like what happens when ...

Superheavy

SuperHeavy is a supergroup consisting of Mick Jagger, Joss Stone, Dave Stewart, Damian Marley, and A. R. Rahman.�Jagger wanted SuperHeavy to showcase different musical styles, with music ranging from reggae to ballads to Indian genre.� Super Heavy was Dave Stewart's idea. Inspired by the sounds washing into his home in St Ann's Bay, Jamaica, Stewart urged Mick ...

Kimbra "Vows"

Hamilton-born Kimbra Johnson's debut album "Vows" is our Feature Album of the Week. �Kimbra's first single "Settle Down" was released in 2010 with the music video directed by Guy Franklin. Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton featured the track on his website citing "If you like Nina Simone, Florence & The Machine and/or Bjork, then we think you will enjoy Kimbra - her music ...

The Specials

Our Feature Album of the Week is a blast from the past - The Specials' 1979 debut album "Specials".� The Specials (sometimes called The Special AKA) were an English 2 Tone ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. Their music combined a "danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk's energy and attitude", with a strong anti-racism stance. check out The Specials ...

Avalanche City

Avalanche City is a folk music band from Auckland,�originally a solo project of Dave Baxter; however, after he released his first album Our New Life Above The Ground he assembled a group of musicians.� Baxter's first single Love Love Love debuted at number one on the New Zealand charts, despite little radio play. The next week it topped both the sales charts and ...

PJ Harvey

Let England Shake is the eighth studio album by English singer/songwriter/guitarist� PJ Harvey. It was released on 11 February 2011 in the UK. Work on it began around the time of PJ's previous album White Chalk's release in 2007, though it is a departure from the piano-driven introspection of that album. The album was written over a period of ...

Stephen Marley

Stephen Robert Nesta "Raggamuffin" Marley is a Jamaican American musician and the son of reggae legend Bob Marley and his wife Rita Marley. He is a five-time Grammy award winner as an artist, producer, and member of Ziggy Marley & The Melody Makers. Revelation pt 1: The Root Of Life is his third album, released in May this year. ...

Booker T Jones

Booker T. Jones is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, record producer and arranger, best known as the frontman of the band Booker T. and the MGs. He has also worked in the studios with some of the highest regarded artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, earning him a Grammy Award for lifetime achievement.

Our Feature Album of the week is Booker T's ...

Drive By Truckers

Drive-By Truckers are an alternative country/Southern rock band based in Athens, Georgia, though three out of six members are originally from The Shoals region of Northern Alabama, and the band strongly identifies with Alabama.� The Fine Print is a collection of unreleased material mostly recorded throughout the making of their albums Decoration Day and ...

The Nukes

Out of the beautiful west of Auckland come The Nukes, full of good humour and charm, and a certain something that makes audiences tap their toes, grin from ear to ear, and sometimes even shed the odd tear. This original New Zealand ukulele trio have quickly made a big name for themselves appearing on the Good Morning Show and National Radio, playing Bob ...

Legalize It

Peter Tosh, born Winston Hubert McIntosh (19 October 1944�- 11 September 1987), was a Jamaican reggae musician who was a member of Bob Marley and The Wailers and who afterward had a successful solo career as well as being a promoter of Rastafari. Legalize It was his debut album as a solo artist. The album was recorded at Treasure Isle and Randy's, Kingston, ...

Gomez

Gomez are an English indie rock band from Southport, UK. The band is distinguished for having three singers and four songwriters, employing traditional and electronic instruments. Their sound is versatile and evades typical music genres falling into blues, indie, alternative, rock, folk, psychedelic and experimental. Over the course of their 15-year career, the guys from Gomez ...

Neil Young & The International Harvesters

Neil Young changed guises at a furious pace in the early Eighties. In 1982, he was making vocoder-slathered New Wave; the following year, he staged a rockabilly revival. Then, in 1984, Young shifted gears toward classic country. Touring with the International Harvesters, an eight-piece group of Nashville pros, Young performed both ...

Lanu "Her 12 Faces"

Australia-based DJ Lanu [aka Lance Ferguson] has been making a new for himself as one of the top producers and artists since the early 90s. He's just released his latest record, ‘Her 12 Faces’. The single ‘Fall’, featuring the immensely talented Megan Washington, is a soaring piece of pop that puts most major-label pop to shame. ...

Tales of Highways and Low Roads

This week we feature Tales of Highways and Low Roads - a compilation featuring artists from the Tampa Bay area.� It includes unreleased treasures from Tampa Bay artists with established national followings (Ronny Elliott, Have Gun Will Travel, Rebekah Pulley, the Sleepy Vikings) and up-and-coming new faces.

�Styles range from Indie, Pop, ...

Eddie Vedder Ukulele Songs

You may know Eddie Vedder as frontman of '90s grunge colossus Pearl Jam, but Ed's chilled out and gone acoustic - about as acoustic as is possible!� Ukulele Songs is his new album and yes, it's all played on the Uke. Reviews have been mixed. Pitchfork said "The ukulele might be a great campfire instrument, but sometimes what works best at the campfire should ...

The Adults

The Adults have been referred to as “The first Kiwi Supergroup”, and are headed by Shihad frontman John Toogood. Toogood initiated the project last year, starting with a wishlist of some of his favourite New Zealand artist. The resulting body of work is Released on June 22 through Warners, The Adults includes contributions from Julia Deans, Shayne ...

Liam Finn's FOMO

Liam Finn’s brand new album was released last month. It’s his second full album, and� "FOMO" ("fear of missing out"), shows that he shares his father's talent for simple melodies that linger gorgeously; it also shows his own talent for emotional atmospherics. Working with relatively unknown producer Burke Reid, Liam crafts basic pop-rock songs like "Roll of the ...

House of Shem

The House of Shem live experience is an unforgettable occasion�- a rare mixture of power and beauty. This band’s incredible tightness, heavenly harmonies, conscious lyrics and blend of traditional and contemporary reggae styles will leave you spellbound. Island Vibration is House of Shem’s second album, and our Feature Album of the ...

Gregg Allman

Gregg Allman [who with his late brother Duane formed legendary '70s Southern Rockers The Allman Brothers Band] has just released his first solo album in 14 years. Low Country Blues is produced by T Bone Burnett and features 11 covers of songs from legendary bluesmen Muddy Waters, Otis Rush, B.B. King, Bobby Bland, and Sleepy John Estes.
Gregg's ...

Iron and Wine

Samuel Beam better known by his stage and recording name Iron & Wine, is an American singer-songwriter. He has released four studio albums, several EPs and singles Kiss Each Other Clean is the fourth studio album� released January 2011. The BBC described Kiss Each Other Clean as "fuller and friskier", even "funky" compared to ...

Paul Simon 'So Beautiful or So What"

So Beautiful or So What is the twelfth studio album by American recording artist Paul Simon. The album debuted at number four on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 68,000 copies in its first week, serving as Simon's highest debut on that chart. Upon its release, So Beautiful or So What received general acclaim from music critics, who ...

Fleet Foxes new album, finally

After a long wait, this month saw the release of the Fleet Foxes' second album "Helplessness Blues".� Andy Gill of The Independent gave the album five out of five stars, and states the "group manage to make giant strides creatively without jettisoning their core sound."� Larry Fitzmaurice of Pitchfork Media states the album's "analytical and inquisitive nature never tips ...

The Harbour Union

The Harbour Union is a just-released charity album featuring The Eastern, Lindon Puffin, The Unfaithful Ways and many others - collaborating to assist Lyttleton in the wake of the earthquake devastation.

From the liner notes; "Cause albums, charity records whatever you wish to call them are often fraught affairs. The Grand Gesture is always the hardest to ...

Gareth Thomas Band

We continue our celebration of NZ Music Month with the Gareth Thomas Band's 'Lady Alien'. Gareth Thomas is a multi instrumentalist, singer, songwriter and producer. Well known as the keyboard/bassist who wrote the “sure fire pop hits” of the innovative New Zealand band 'Goodshirt'. His debut solo album ‘Lady Alien’ was released in October ...

Stomping Nick and His Blues Grenade

Week 2 of New Zealand Music Month and we're kicking up a ruckus with Stomping Nick and His Blues Grenade who played Hamilton last month. Stomping Nick's debut album - "Punk Blues One Man Band" is opur Feature Album of the Week. Tune in throughout the week and catch Stomping Nick live on air, and listen out for giveaways!

NZ Music Month 2011 - Barnaby Weir

The musical maverick who lead The Black Seeds, Barnaby Weir has branched out again with the release of his first solo album 'Tarot Card Rock'. Twelve tracks of creamy country rock with an American Roots base -- it's a collection shaped by his travels, his relationships and life in Wellington. This is just Barnaby, stripped back with his own agenda. 'Tarot ...

Destroyer of the Void

Our Feature Album of the Week is Destroyer of the Void by� Portland, Oregon-based experimental folk rockers Blitzen Trapper. They're known for taking stylistic side-roads between albums, and Amercian National Public Radio described their latest by saying "Destroyer of the Void, follows 2008's Furr and 2006's Wild Mountain Nation with another ...

BB King

Riley B. King (born 1925), known by the stage name B.B. King, is a living legend ? one of the remaining true pioneering blues guitarist and singer-songwriters. Over a period of 52 years, B.B. King has played in excess of 15,000 performances. BB King visits New Zealand, at the age of 85, to play a one off gig at The Civic along with Ruthie Foster on April 24. We celebrate ...

Amos Lee 'Mission Bell'

Amos Lee is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His musical style encompasses folk, soul, and jazz. He has released four albums on Blue Note Records, Amos Lee, Supply and Demand, Last Days at the Lodge, and Mission Bell. He has been on tour with musicians such as Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello, Norah Jones, Paul Simon, Merle Haggard, ...

Los Lobos

Los Lobos ("The Wolves") are a multiple Grammy Award winning American Chicano rock band. Their music is influenced by rock and roll, Tex-Mex, country, folk, R&B, blues, brown-eyed soul, and traditional Spanish and Mexican music such as cumbia, boleros and norte�os.

Tin Can Trust is the band's first collection of new original material since 2006. ...

The Decemberists

The King Is Dead is the sixth studio album by The Decemberists, released in January 2011. Described as the "most pastoral, rustic record they've ever made," by Rolling Stone, the album reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard. We detect the influences of The Band, REM and others, and we like it. A lot. It's our Feature Album of the ...

Car Wheels on a Gravel Road

Lucinda Williams is an American rock, folk, blues and country music singer and songwriter. She recorded her first albums in 1978 and 1980 in a traditional country and blues style and received very little attention from radio, the media, or the public. Car Wheels on a Gravel Road presented a broader scope of songs that fused rock, blues, country, ...

Tiken Jah Fakoly

Tiken Jah Fakoly is a reggae singer from The Republic of C�te d'Ivoire [also known as The Ivory Coast]. Tiken Jah was born into a family of griots and christened Doumbia Moussa Fakoly on June 23, 1968 in Odienné, north-western C�te d'Ivoire. He discovered reggae at an early age, assembling his first group, Djelys, in 1987. He became well-known at a regional level, but ...

The Basement Tapes

The Basement Tapes is a 1975 studio album by Bob Dylan and The Band. The songs featuring Dylan's vocals were recorded in 1967 at houses in and around Woodstock, New York, where Dylan and The Band lived. Although most of the Dylan songs had appeared on bootleg records, The Basement Tapes marked their first official release. While some of the ...

Ronnie Wood - I Feel Like Playing

I Feel Like Playing is the 7th solo album from Ronnie Wood�- a legend of British guitar rock - a member of 60s rockers The Birds [not US band The Byrds], The Creation, the Faces [with Rod Stewart], and since 1975 as a member of The Rolling Stones.

Rolling Stone says "The older he gets, the more Ronnie Wood's ragged wheeze makes him sound ...

Fistful of Mercy

Fistful of Mercy is an American rock group consisting of Dhani Harrison [son of the late George Harrison], well-known blues-rocker Ben Harper and Joseph Arthur. They formed in February 2010, when Arthur asked Harper to accompany him in the studio; Harper then asked Harrison, whom he had met at a skate park in Santa Monica, California, to accompany them. Upon ...

The Leisure Society

The Leisure Society is a band formed by Nick Hemming, formerly of early 1990s indie band She Talks To Angels which included actor Paddy Considine, film director Shane Meadows and bassist Richard Eaton.� The Leisure Society have been recipients of considerable critical acclaim since the release of their first single, being dubbed the English answer to popular ...

Tea for the Tillerman

Born Steven Demetre Georgiou in 1948, re-emerging as Yusuf Islam after his 1977 conversion to Islam, his best-loved work was under his stage name of Cat Stevens. A string of early-70s albums saw frequent chart hits, but it’s perhaps his second album, 1970’s Tea for the Tillerman that was the pinnacle of his ...

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly

Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly is the stage name of English artist Sam Duckworth and his band. He is sometimes referred to as Get Cape, Cape, GCWCF and Slam Dunkworth.�According to Duckworth, his stage name comes from a ZX Spectrum magazine. One of the sections of the solution to the Batman computer game contained the header "Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly".

Check out Get ...

Mayan Fox

Mayan Fox are described as an Australian/New Zealand exotic pop/reggae band. The name Mayan Fox is a nod towards band member Maria’s Central American heritage and it is this cultural influence, combined with the rest of the bands cultural heritage (Australian, Maori, Fijian etc.) that permeates the feel of the ‘Mayan Fox’ sound. Check them out on ...

Arcade Fire

The Suburbs is the third studio album by Canadian indie rock band Arcade Fire, released in August 2010. The album's lyrical content is inspired by band members Win and William Butler's upbringing in the suburbs of Houston. According to Win Butler, the album "is neither a love letter to, nor an indictment of, the suburbs - it's a letter from the ...

Old Man River

Old Man River is the stage name of Australian singer-songwriter Ohad Rein, and the name of his band. In 2009, "Sunshine", co-written by Old Man River, won the 'Blues & Roots Work of the Year' category at the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) Awards. Trust is their latest album... “This album is very different in the sense that ...

The Beatles 'White Album'

We see in 2011 with a classic album. 'The Beatles' [better known as 'The White Album'] was written and recorded during a period of turmoil for the group. After visiting the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in India and having a particularly productive songwriting session in early 1968, the group returned to the studio for recording from May to October 1968, only to have conflict and dissent ...

Tribute to the Finn Brothers

To honour the legendary Tim and Neil Finn, some of the nation’s most diverse and favourite talents have pulled together to create He Will Have His Way: The Songs of Tim & Neil Finn. It is the male sequel to 2005’s universally acclaimed She Will Have Her Way and features the likes of Paul Kelly, Jimmy Barnes, Paul ...

So This is Christmas

In 2009, dismayed with the child abuse statistics in New Zealand singer songwriter Monique Rhodes decided to put together 'Merry Christmas Baby', a charity album in support of Plunket. In 2010 Monique has gone one step further creating 'So This is Christmas'- a line up of New Zealand musicians performing ...

Grasshopper City

The Shrugs are a three-piece band from Hamilton, NZ. Geoff Doube is the only remaining member from the band's inception in 2000. His other projects include The Gills. Gordon Bassett's past projects include Nodrog and Phones and Accessories (with Stefan Neville), while Paul Tregilgas drummed in Trucker (with Dolf de Borst), amongst many other notorious Hamilton ...

Matariki soundtrack

Matariki is a 2010 New Zealand drama film set in Otara, South Auckland. The film is told through five interweaving stories all set in the days leading to the rising of Matariki. The film incorporates a variety of languages including, English, Maori, Tokelauan, Samoan, and Cantonese. It features an ensemble cast and is the feature debut for actors Susana Tang and Jason ...

Jeb Loy Nichols

Jeb Loy Nichols is an American-born singer, songwriter, musician, and artist currently living in Wales. His music combines elements of soul, country, folk, reggae and blues. Parish Bar is his sixth album, described by Crawdaddy! as "Nichols delivers his tales in a Boz Scaggs-meets-J.J. Cale tone that’s slyly jazzy and sincerely country, a ...

Belle & Sebastian

This week we're featuring "Write About Love", the new album by Glaswegian indie-popsters Belle and Sebastian. They�are often compared to influential indie bands such as The Smiths, as well as classic acts such as Love, Bob Dylan and Nick Drake, and the new album. Pitchfork had this to say... "Belle and Sebastian have been making records this good, and very ...

Mavis Staples

Mavis Staples is an American rhythm and blues and gospel singer and civil rights activist who recorded with The Staple Singers, her family's band, and artists as diverse Curtis Mayfield, Bob Dylan and Prince.

You Are Not Alone is her brand new gospel album, on which a shimmering, bluesy electric guitar echoes the brilliant playing of the late ...

The Modfather

Paul Weller kicked off his career with The Jam. In 1991 he re-established himself as a successful solo artist, and continues to remain a respected singer, lyricist and guitarist, a fact reaffirmed by his awarding of the 2009 BRIT award for Best Male Solo Artist. On 24 February 2010, Paul received the Godlike Genius Award at the NME Awards. His 10th solo studio ...

Mumford & Sons

Our Feature Album of the Week is Mumford and Sons' 'Sigh No More'. The band formed in late 2007, rising out of London's folk scene with other artists such as Laura Marling, Johnny Flynn, Jay Jay Pistolet and Noah and the Whale. The band's debut album was released in the United Kingdom in October 2009, and February 2010... in the United States. Check it out on

Karen Elson

Karen Elson is a British model, singer/songwriter, guitarist and founding member and performer with the New York City based political cabaret troupe The Citizens Band.� As one of the leaders of The Citizens Band she has performed a variety of songs including well received covers of The Velvet Underground, Kurt Weill, Elvis Presley, Mimi and Richard ...

new Katchafire

For over a decade, Katchafire have been ambassadors of roots reggae music in New Zealand. After three long years since the release of their last offering 'Say What You're Thinking' (2007), their highly anticipated new album 'On The Road Again', was released on October 11.� Check out tracks from the album this week, and stay locked to ...

Stornoway - Beachcomber's Windowsill

Stornoway is a British alternative indie folk band from the Cowley area of Oxford, and Beachcomber’s Windowsill is their 2010 debut album. Named after the town on the Isle of Lewis, which appears on all UK televised weather reports and shipping forecasts, the group incorporates string instruments and keyboards, supported by a typical pop ...

Gotan Project

Gotan Project have forged a distinctive trail by combining the traditional sounds of tango and classic Argentinian folk music with more modern flourishes. Although on friendly terms with the electronica crowd, their style is still very grounded in an Astor Piazzola tradition, which is then augmented in the studio with a varied palette of sounds and guest artists. Their latest ...

Sensacional Soul

Hard hitting Spanish funk, soul, and R&B - we feature volume 2 of Sensacional Soul and it's even better than the first volume! The Spanish soul sound here is rugged and raw, usually with furious drums, gritty, usually Spanish language vocals and punchy bits of horn - some with fuzzed out guitar and organ grooves that give them more of a garagey R&B style. Check it out on ...

new article

Hard hitting Spanish funk, soul, and R&B - we feature volume 2 of Sensacional Soul and it's even better than the first volume! The Spanish soul sound here is rugged and raw, usually with furious drums, gritty, usually Spanish language vocals and punchy bits of horn - some with fuzzed out guitar and organ grooves that give them more of a garagey R&B style. Check it out on ...

Sensacional Soul

Hard hitting Spanish funk, soul, and R&B - we feature volume 2 of Sensacional Soul and it's even better than the first volume! The Spanish soul sound here is rugged and raw, usually with furious drums, gritty, usually Spanish language vocals and punchy bits of horn - some with fuzzed out guitar and organ grooves that give them more of a garagey R&B style. ...

Mariachi el Bronx

Mariachi El Bronx is the fourth studio album by the Los Angeles band The Bronx. It marks a divergence from the band's usual hardcore punk and hard rock sound in favor of a mariachi style. To promote and perform the album the band adopted the alter ego persona "Mariachi El Bronx", and have performed under both identities concurrently. Check out Mariachi el Bronx, and ...

Julia Deans

Known primarily as the front-woman of Fur Patrol, Julia Deans is the possessor of one of modern rock's most interesting voices - able to shift elegantly between soaring falsetto and assured growl. Over the last few years Deans has been branching out from her comfort zone collaborating with different artists, such as Tiki Taane on his multi-award winning album Past, ...

Jack Johnson

On 1 February 2010, Jack Johnson's official website announced that his fifth studio album, To the Sea, was in the recording process at the Mango Tree Studio, with a planned worldwide release during the first week of June 2010. The website also announced an accompanying European, Australian and New Zealand tour to coincide with the album's ...

The Proclaimers

The Proclaimers are a Scottish band composed of identical twin brothers, Charlie and Craig Reid,�best known for the songs Letter from America, and I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles).
Notes & Rhymes is their eighth studio album, released late last year. We're featuring tracks across Weekday Breakfasts, along with other recent feature album cuts by ...

Hannah Howes 'Candy'

Hannah Howes has been touring and wowing audiences at music festivals the length of the country including Toots and Grooves Festival (Horowhenua), Soundsplash (Raglan), Parihaka International Peace Festivals (Taranaki), Rippon (Wanaka), Nelson Arts Festival, Dunedin Fringe Festival, Destinations (Arthurs Pass), Cause (Wanaka), Kaikoura Roots Festivals, Newtown Festival ...

Staff Benda Bilili

Staff Benda Bilili are a group of Congolese street musicians. They live around the grounds of the zoo in Kinshasa, and play music which is rooted in rumba, with elements of old-school rhythm'n'blues and reggae. The core of the band consists of four senior singers/guitarist, who are all disabled (they suffered from polio when they were young) and move around in spectacularly ...

The Open Road

The Open Road is the brand new album from American rock guitarist, pianist, singer, and songwriter John Hiatt. The album is described, on Hiatt’s website, as “A classic Hiatt record, the rockin’ songs sizzle with the heat from two-lane blacktop on a summer’s day." �Hiatt and his touring band ...

Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings are an American funk/soul band, signed to Daptone Records, where the Dap-Kings are the house band. They are spearheads of a revivalist movement that aims to capture the essence of funk/soul music as it was at its height in the mid-1960s to mid-1970s. �"I Learned the Hard Way" is the fourth studio album by Sharon ...

Harper Simon

Harper Simon is an American singer-songwriter, musician and producer, and�the son of musician Paul Simon and first wife, Peggy Harper. After attending Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, Harper moved to London for several years, where he played with and wrote for the band Menlo Park. In 2009, aged 37, Simon released this debut album on his ...

Songlines 2010

Songlines is a British magazine launched in 1999 that covers music from traditional and popular to contemporary and fusion, featuring artists from all around the globe.

Following on from the success of last year's inaugural Songlines World Music Awards, Songlines magazine is delighted to announce the winners of the Songlines Music Awards ...

Eli Paperboy Reed

Come & Get It is Eli "Paperboy"�Reed's third album and his major-label debut. Heavily influenced by late-60s and early- 70s Chicago Soul, the album continues the successful formula that saw Reed nominated as MOJO magazine's Breakthrough Artist of 2009. We'll be giving copies away, so tune in to Weekday Breakfasts and keep an eye on our Facebook ...

New from Crowded House

Intriguer is the sixth studio album by Crowded House, released in June 2010. It is the band's followup to the group's 2007 reunion album Time on Earth, and the first to feature all four current band members, including multi-instrumentalist Mark Hart and drummer Matt Sherrod, on all tracks. We feature Intriguer all week, along with selected tracks from ...

Kirsten Morrell

After 10 years of writing and recording with the multi-platinum band Goldenhorse, Kirsten Morrell is going solo...this week we feature her debut album "Ultraviolet".
�Goldenhorse collaborator Geoff Maddock can be heard of a range of instruments throughout the album, and Jol Mulholland co-produced the album with Kirsten.� The special partnership between ...

Refugee All Stars

We mark International Refugee Day [20 June] with this week’s Feature Album -� Sierra Leone’s Refugee Allstars “Rise and Shine”

Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars are a group of musicians who escaped the horrific violence of Sierra Leone's civil war, landed in a West African refugee camp and formed a band to keep their ...

Watermelon Slim

Bill Homans, professionally known as "Watermelon Slim", is an American blues musician who�has been performing since the 1970s and has been linked to several notable blues musicians, including John Lee Hooker, Robert Cray, Champion Jack Dupree, Bonnie Raitt, "Country" Joe McDonald, and Henry Vestine of Canned Heat.� In 2009,� No Paid Holidays�CD was ...

Mose Allison

82 year old Mose Allison, pianist/singer/ composer, has been a major influence on musicians of the last 50 years and he has been touring and recording for at least that long. His songs have been recorded by many, among them, The Who, Van Morrison, Bonnie Raitt, Elvis Costello, The Clash and Diana Krall. His singular style, a unique blending of jazz and blues, and ...

Anika Moa

Anika Moa is back with her fourth studio album “Love in Motion” and to celebrate will be taking her band around New Zealand to introduce the new songs to audiences as well as play past treasures. Moa plays Hamilton Saturday night - we'll be talking to her on Thursday Breakfast and giving away a double pass!� Tune in too for tracks from all our NZ ...

Triptych Trio

We sign off NZ Music Month and get our groove on with Triptych Trio's 'Round the Bend' - our Feature Album of the Week.� Triptych Trio is a 3-piece, hard-swinging modern jazz group based in Wellington who play a mixture of funky jazz originals and their own interpretations of contemporary Jazz material.� All three players are top NZ session musicians and have worked ...

New Phoenix Foundation

It's all about NZ music this May! This week we feature the brand new album from Wellington band The Phoenix Foundation. Entitled Buffalo, it was released on 26 April, and we've got a stack of copies� - tune in to Weekday Breakfasts for your chance to win a copy.

Katchafire

Local band Katchafire formed in 1997 as a Bob Marley tribute band and later began writing and performing their own songs. They have released three albums: Revival (2003) which featured the highest-selling NZ single of 2003, "Giddy Up"; Slow Burning (2005) and Say What You're Thinking (2007). Katchafire began recording their third ...

New Zealand Music month - week 1

We kick off New Zealand Music Month with “Arrows” - the 2010 debut album by Christchurch band The Eastern, who have played more than 230 shows in the past year alone, including opening for Steve Earle, Jimmy Barnes, Jim White and John Doe, Barry Saunders and more !��The Eastern have played everywhere from Nashville to Timaru and a few ...

Old Crow Medicine Show

Old Crow Medicine Show plays a wide variety of music, seeming to pull influence from any of the many musical forms that would have been available to medicine
shows of the turn of the century to the nineteen-forties, including old time, bluegrass, country, and folk blues. Country Music Television notes the band's "tunes from jug bands and traveling shows, back ...

John Mayall!

Blues legend John Mayall plays Hamilton this week - and you can hear him right here !� We're featuring his latest album "Tough" all week, as well as featuring an exclusive interview with the man who was a cornerstone of the British R&B boom of the early 60s.� Tune in also for album giveaways - during

Joanna Newsom "Have One On Me"

Have One On Me is the third studio album by Joanna Newsom, released on February 23, 2010. It is a triple album that sees Newsom moving on from her previous masterpiece ("Ys") in a more accessible vein, drawing even stronger comparisons with Kate Bush.� Reviews have been outstanding, including such comments as "nothing short of remarkable", ...

Dr John

Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, Jr. (born November 21, 1940), better known by the stage name Dr. John [also as “The Night Tripper”], is an American singer/songwriter, pianist and guitarist whose music combines blues, pop, jazz as well as Zydeco, boogie woogie and rock and roll.� Dr John is currently in New Zealand, and plays at the Tauranga Jazz Festival. ...

Hollie Smith

At last the long wait is over, Hollie Smith is back and has released her second studio album Humour and the Misfortune of Others on 15th March 2010. Humour and the Misfortune of Others is a musical endeavour through which Smith’s sultry voice guides the listener across an eclectic sound-scape of emotion, incorporating elements ...

Johnny Cash Ain't No Grave

From 1993 until 2003, Rick Rubin and Johnny Cash produced a string of ingeniously simple music that set Cash's fathoms-deep baritone against a stark backdrop, turning him loose on grim, death-haunted Appalachian ballads, standards and rock songs of recent vintage.� Seven years after Cash's death, those sessions are still producing great albums. The latest of the Rubin-Cash ...

Rosie Thomas

Rosie Thomas is an American singer-songwriter, originally from Michigan. Her album, These Friends of Mine, was released through her own record label Sing-A-Long Records. What Thomas has always done best is collaborate, and this time around, her collaborations brought her into contact with celebrated contemporary Sufjan Stevens, whose voice and ...

WOMAD 2010

WOMAD returns to Taranaki from 12-14 March 2010 for an exhilarating weekend of rhythms, sights and sounds in the lush surroundings of Brooklands Park & TSB Bowl in New Plymouth. Get ready for a whirlwind trip around the world and discover performances from so many artists - but if you can't make it - tune in to Weekday Breakfasts as we feature WOMAD 2010.� ...

Goran Bregovic

Goran Bregovi� is a Bosnian-born, self-declared Yugoslav musician and one of the most internationally known modern composers of the Balkans. He currently lives in Belgrade, Serbia, where he settled down after the Yugoslav Wars.� Bregovi� has composed for such varied artists as Iggy Pop and Ces�ria �vora. He rose to fame playing guitar with his rock band Bijelo dugme, but ...

Avett Brothers

The Avett Brothers combine bluegrass, country, punk, pop melodies, folk, rock and roll, honky tonk, and ragtime to produce a sound described by the San Francisco Chronicle as having the "heavy sadness of Townes Van Zandt, the light pop concision of Buddy Holly, the tuneful jangle of the Beatles, the raw energy of the Ramones."The band is made up of two ...

Rodrigo y Gabriela

Rodrigo S�nchez, lead guitar, and Gabriela Quintero, rhythm guitar, met in Mexico City while playing in a thrash metal band called "Tierra �cida".

Turning to flamenco they gained a reputation by playing in the pubs and bars of Dublin, and despite their unusual style, gained a cult following. Recent visitors to New Zealand, Rodrigo y Gabriela's new release "11:11" ...

BB King

This week we look back to 2005, and feature B.B. King & Friends' album� "80".� The title refers to B.B. King's 80th birthday occurring in 2005, and the album features duets with Eric Clapton, Van Morrison, Sheryl Crow, The Eagles’ Glen Frey, The Who’s Roger Daltrey, Elton John and many more.

Also new this week - a big swag of great new Kiwi material ...

Eric Hutchinson

Eric Hutchinson has been widely acclaimed for his prowess as a pianist, songwriter, and performer. He has been called "one of the most talented singer-songwriters that Boston has to offer," with comparisons to Jason Mraz, Stevie Wonder, Ben Folds, Cat Stevens, Billy Joel, Squeeze, Neil Finn, and even The Beatles. We feature his recent debut ...

Salsa Around The World

Over the years, Latin music has become part of the fabric of mainstream music, its influences turning up in jazz, rock and pop. As this week's Feature Album demonstrates, it has infiltrated the world’s music as well. On Putumayo's Salsa Around the World one can hear salsa-influenced music sung in Greek, Arabic, Hindi, Papiamento,Wolof, Douala, and ...

Monsters of Folk

Monsters of Folk is an American supergroup, consisting of Jim James from My Morning Jacket, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis from Bright Eyes and solo artist M. Ward. The band was formed in 2004 when the members were on tour with their respective bands and solo projects. RollingStone.com said "Monsters of Folk are already being called this generation's ...

Bloodshot

�

This week we feature the label Bloodshot Records - taking tracks from their current lineup of indie rock and alt- country bands and artists. Bloodshot Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois which specializes in roots-inflected indie rock, and a Chicago brand of outlaw country.� Among the label mates we're checking out are ...

Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are is a 2009 American fantasy comedy-drama film directed by Spike Jonze and adapted from Maurice Sendak's 1963 children's book of the same name. Spike Jonze's ex-girlfriend Karen O, the vocalist of the New York art rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs, wrote the film's soundtrack which is our Feature Album of the Week.� Karen O's ...

Away We Go OST

Away We Go is a 2009 comedy-drama directed by Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes and written by the husband-and-wife team of Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida. The soundtrack features ten tracks by Alexi Murdoch - British singer/songwriter heavily influenced by English folk musicians - notably the late John Martyn. Murdoch's music has featured in many ...

Christmas in the Heart

This week we usher in the Festive Season with a bunch of truly wondrous music from around the planet - featuring tracks from Cuba LA to Johnny Cash, Ensemble Choral Du Bout Du Monde to Teenage Fanclub, Rufus Wainwright to the Willard Grant Conspiracy.�

We've picked something interesting to feature too - � Christmas in ...

Grant-Lee Phillips

Grant-Lee Phillips is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist known for his versatile voice, intense lyrical narratives and dexterity on the acoustic twelve-string guitar, a style that often sees him compared to Neil Young, Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan. On October 13th, 2009, Grant released his latest album of new material titled " Little Moon", ...

Lonely Hearts Dub Band

Following the widespread critical and commercial success of 2003’s Dub Side of the Moon and 2006’s Radiodread, Easy Star Records announces the Easy Star All-Stars’ complete reggae re-imagining of the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band - Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band.��Of the decision ...

Flight of the Conchords

I Told You I Was Freaky is the brand new second studio album by Flight of the Conchords. Made up of tracks from the latest series, I Told You I Was Freaky showcases the Conchords' finely crafted parody skills with tracks such as Fashion is Danger, Sugalumps, and the razor-sharp Hurt Feelings.....

"Some people say that ...

Oh Happy Day!

"Some of secular music's top acts -- among them Queen Latifah, Jon Bon Jovi, Joss Stone and 3 Doors Down -- take a walk on the spiritual side for Oh Happy Day: An All-Star Music Celebration."

Featuring tracks from Clapton's Blind Faith, Stevie Wonder, Curtis Mayfield, Bob Marley and Sam Cooke, Oh Happy Day is a fresh ...

the Pretenders

This week we feature the 9th studio album by the Pretenders - Break Up the Concrete.� Fronted by the irrepressible Chrissie Hynde, the group has had a long and significant career. From their early days to the big hits ["Brass in Pocket"], the Pretenders have consistenly produced fresh and vital rock music. We feature them this week, along with a ...

Elvis is Back

Secret, Profane & Sugarcane is the 2009 studio album by Elvis Costello. It was recorded in Nashville with American songwriter and producer T Bone Burnett,�and released on June 9th 2009 on the Hear Music label. The album features bluegrass, Americana and country music along with Costello's familiar garrulous lyrics. Uncut magazine ...

Gin Wigmore's Holy Smoke

Holy Smoke is Gin Wigmore’s debut full length album, recorded with The Cardinals of Ryan Adams & the Cardinals fame. The first single from the album, "Oh My", debuted on the New Zealand Singles Chart at number twenty-one, moving to number seven the following week. This week her star is shining a whole lot brighter as Gin’s debut ...

Tim O'Brien

Hailing originally from Wheeling, West Virginia, Tim O'Brien is one of the most respected bluegrass musicians and song writers performing around the world today. As well as having "one of the most fluid and recognizable voices in Bluegrass", O'Brien is also a virtuoso player on the Mandolin, Guitar, Fiddle, Banjo and Bazouki. His songs have been recorded by the ...

The Felice Brothers

The Felice Brothers are a folk rock/country rock band formed in 2006 in Upstate New York .They sing songs about love, murder and drinking - and they're putting the outlaw spirit back into country music. Check out their album Tonight at the Arizona, along with classics from The B52s and the Small Faces, Neil Young's latest album ...

7 Worlds Collide

7 Worlds Collide is a musical project by New Zealand singer/songwriter, Neil Finn. The project brings together Finn and other musicians in support of Oxfam. The project's second release, which we feature all this week, is titled The Sun Came Out. The album was recorded in Finn's Roundhead Studios and featured all-new material, with singing and ...

Revolver !

The entire Beatles catalogue has just been re-released in sympathetically and lovingly digitally remastered form. We mark the occasion by featuring the critics’ choice of the Beatles back catalogue�- Revolver. Revolver is the seventh album by The Beatles, released in August 1966. Many of the tracks on Revolver are marked by an electric guitar-rock sound, ...

Louisiana Gumbo!

This week we feature one of the latest releases from our friends at World Music label Putumayo Records - Louisiana Gumbo. This collection is called Louisiana Gumbo because this Creole stew is a perfect metaphor for the blend of musical elements found in the music of Louisiana - the primary ingredient in this southern casserole is the blues, ...

Robert Cray Band

This week we feature multiple Grammy Award winner Robert Cray, and the Robert Cray Band's brand new album This Time .� Cray rose through the Blues scene in the 80s, having by the age of twenty seen his heroes Albert Collins, Freddie King and Muddy Waters in concert and decided to form his own band. More recently he has appeared with many big names ...

Camera Obscura

Camera Obscura are an indie pop band from Glasgow, Scotland. They began as� a lo-fi indie-pop band with heads full of classic pop radio. Over time, they have shifted their emphasis toward crafting classic-sounding songs in various Western pop idioms. We're featuring their brand new release My Maudlin Career -� you'll hear traces of 1950s beach music ...

Tahuna Breaks

In the two years since the release of their acclaimed debut Reflections, Tahuna Breaks has been criss-crossing the country, writing and recording. They celebrate their new album's release with yet another national tour!� This week we feature their new LP - Black, Brown and White - tune in all week for your taste, along with new tracks from Dimmer, ...

Ben Harper

White Lies for Dark Times is the brand new album by Ben Harper and Relentless7.� It was released on May 5, 2009 and is Harper's first album with the Texas-based backing band Relentless7, who have certainly woken Harper from his previous laid-back style of blues/soul. White Lies for Dark Times is a riff-laden Blues workout that will ...

Wilco by Wilco

Wilco was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo. Their music has been inspired by a wide variety of artists and styles, and has in turn influenced music by a number of modern alternative rock acts. The band continued in the alternative country of Uncle Tupelo on its debut album A.M. (1995), but has since introduced more ...

The Bads "So Alive"

Evading all kiwi music stereotypes to present a wonderfully realised and beautifully crafted arrangement of alt-country ballads, The Bads are set to breathe a breath of fresh air into the NZ music scene.� This week we feature their brand new album So Alive, along with other new Kiwi material from Minuit, James Duncan, Liam Finn and Eliza Jane, Pitch ...

God Help the Girl

God Help the Girl is a� film due to be shot in 2010, written by Stuart Murdoch, frontman of Scottish indie pop band Belle & Sebastian. The film will feature new songs written by Murdoch, along with two Belle & Sebastian songs. Murdoch held open auditions in which members of the public could send in videos or audio clips of ...

Steve Earle "Townes"

“Townes” is the new album by American country-rock singer Steve Earle, widely known as "the hardcore troubador", due in part to his well-documented troubles with the law, drug addiction and his uncompromising viewpoints. The album consists entirely of reworkings of songs by his late friend� and country music legend Townes Van Zandt, with whom ...

Rhythms del Mundo Classics

Rhythms del Mundo Classics is the follow-up album of the internationally successful Aabum Rhythms del Mundo, which also fused Western pop and rock artists with Latin-American beats. Classics pairs the Rhythms del Mundo band with The Killers, Amy Winehouse, Keane, Fall Out Boy, The Editors, Cat Power and more.� Check out the results, along ...

Paul Simon

Paul Simon is best known as half of the popular folk-rock duo Simon and Garfunkel�- recent visitors to our shores.� Simon has however enjoyed a prolific solo career, incorporating elements of Jamaican styles in his early releases ["Mother and Child Reunion"], political and social commentary, and deeply personal confessions on celebrated albums ...

Boh Runga

It's all about Kiwi music ! This week we feature “ Right Here”, the new album from Kiwi songstress Boh Runga.� Boh is of course the lead singer and guitarist in New Zealand rock band Stellar, and comes from a very musical family - both her sisters are, or have been, in bands - her youngest sister, Bic, has a successful solo career, and Pearl has ...

The Mamaku Project present their second album, Mal de Terre. Taking inspiration from their homebase on the West Coast of Auckland and from their frequent trips to France, on the simply gorgeous Mal de Terre, The Mamaku Project weave French bohemian roots, Pacifica dub and scents of the Middle East into a captivating musical concoction. A bi-lingual forage into ...

March of the Zapotec

Beirut is an American band that began as the solo musical project of 23-year-old New Mexico native Zach Condon, and later evolved into a band led by Condon. The music combines elements of Eastern European and folk with Western pop music. March of the Zapotec, Beirut's latest release is packaged on CD with Holland by Realpeople, ...

The Very Best of Sheryl Crow

Sheryl Crow is an American singer-songwriter and musician whose music blends rock, country, pop and folk, into one mainstream sound, and she has won nine Grammy Awards. She has performed with the Rolling Stones and has sung duets with Mick Jagger, Michael Jackson, Eric Clapton and Kid Rock, but it's her successful solo career that we feature this week, including her big ...

I Started Out With Nothin and I Still Got Most of it Left

Seasick Steve is an American bluesman, although he prefers to be called "a song and dance man". He plays guitars (mostly personalized), and sings, usually about his early life living rough and doing casual work. I Started Out With Nothin and I Still Got Most of it Left is his third album, released September 2008, and features guest musicians Ruby Turner, Grinderman ...

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