In the first of an occasional new series, GARY STEEL gives the hard word to some aspiring musical artistes.
Albums
The Bads – Losing Heroes (no label) ALBUM REVIEW
GARY STEEL underestimated The Bads. He’s here now to pay penance with his review of their really, really good new album.
Peter Jefferies & Jono Lonie – At Swim 2 Birds (Flying Nun) LP VINYL REVIEW
A lost Flying Nun album finds its feet 30 years after its original release, writes GARY STEEL.
Bored Room Antics
Melodrama? Smell-O-Rama more like, according to GARY STEEL. Witchdoctor’s resident curmudgeon finds fault with Lorde’s ‘universally acclaimed’ second album.
Country Music With Sound Effects
GARY STEEL sends an open letter to Roger Waters on the occasion of his first album in 25 years, Is This The Life We Really Want?
Sgt Pooper
Is The Beatles’ much-celebrated 1967 album Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band an overrated piece of junk?
Whitney – Light Upon The Lake (Secretly Canadian) ALBUM REVIEW
GARY STEEL asks: Why do so many albums sound intentionally awful and artless? Part 2!
Cullen Omori – New Misery (SubPop) ALBUM REVIEW
GARY STEEL asks: Why do so many albums sound intentionally awful and artless?
Poliça – United Crushers (Pod) ALBUM REVIEW
We need more politics in music, but not poor music with a political twist, writes GARY STEEL
These Records Sound Amazing
Is it possible for recordings to sound as good as the musicians when they performed in the studio? RICHARD VAREY has found a record company that do just that.
Music Listening Clubs
DR RICHARD VAREY has been thinking about deep music listening on good equipment with other human beings in the same room!
New Zealand Music Month: Aldous Harding Interview
On the momentous occasion of the release of Aldous Harding’s second album, Party, Gary Steel digs up a revealing interview from his heaving archives.