The very first album I bought by Rush, back in the mists of time, was ‘Archives’. It seemed like tremendous value to me as it included the first three albums, ‘Rush’, ‘Fly By Night’, and ‘Caress of Steel’. More than 40 years on, and here is the same concept, with the...

I love Imperative’s press releases, “Beneath burnt orange skies, swamped with thick, grey clouds that move sluggishly across the firmament, propelled by the tired, breathless winds, the remnants of a race crawl amongst the irradiated filth. Against a backdrop of ruin,...

Signal Red may be a newish band, but they can trace their roots back to 2013 when guitarist Steve Grocott was at a loose end due to his band Sevendayz having folded, and he contacted vocalist Lee Small (Phenomena, Lionheart) as he had heard so much about him, mainly...

One of the real finds for me last year was the Wellington-based band In The Shallows, who are based around the core of Danni Parsons and Lance Shepherd (the band is completed by Andrew Bain (Fur Patrol) and Nick Brown (Eb & Sparrow, Vorn)). I was fortunate enough...

Solitary are back with their fourth full-length album, and although they were formed back in the Nineties, the return of bassist Gareth Harrop finds them now with three members from those days, while lead guitarist Andy Mellor has been in the ranks since 2003....

It is probably hard for anyone outside Aotearoa to realise just how important Shihad have been to the NZ music scene, but they have had five #1 albums, including the most recent, 2014’s FVEY, and hold the record for the most Top 40 singles entries by a local band. The...

Tall Folk are a relatively new band, only coming together at the end of last year and feature Dunedin singer/songwriter Lara Robertson and mid-Western import Jack Ringhand, with both providing lead and harmony vocals and acoustic guitar. It really is a coming together...

Blue River Baby, a.k.a. BRBB, are back with the first single from their second album, which will be due out next year. They created quite a stir with their debut release in 2019, hitting the Top Ten on the Official NZ Music charts as well as topping the NZ Indie...