+Music

Very quietly throughout the last 10 years, contemporary music tastes have been guided by the steady hand of musician and arranger Aaron Dessner. From Sharon Van Etten to Taylor Swift, his production and refined aesthetic has bloomed. Here we take a look at two of his recent productions

There is something kind of cool about having to wait – patience is a virtue and all that. These artists have made us wait nearly five years for their next instalments. Count me excited!

Looking back over the last five years, I can definitely see a bias towards women making the best and most relevant music. At least in my life. I will try to be more gender inclusive and listen carefully to the men this month. They may have something important to say as well

Okay, so here in Hawke’s Bay there’s been some weather. I think there’s been some in Auckland too. I think you can forgive us a little melancholy while we pick ourselves up and rescue the distressed. Here are two queens of the ‘smile upside down’

Last year was supposed to be better than the one before. Hmm. Maybe we best just blank our minds and open our ears to some sweet harmonies – these ones were delivered towards the end of 2022

It’s time again for an end-of-year wrap-up, my favourite 10 album releases for 2022. With apologies as always to all the amazing music released this year, that I am yet to discover. Here are my personal music picks

With not much time left to play out in 2022, it seems fitting to celebrate New Zealand’s foremost popular artists and see what they’ve been delivering this year

Hey New Zealand, how are things? You seem a bit weird this year. Not yourself. Is it that COVID thing, the weirdness of local body politics now mattering, or a sense that we’ve just been a little too long stewing in our own juices? Let’s hear from some of our local musicians on the matter

Soccer Mommy aka Sophie Allison expands into new soundscapes, but with a pleasing nod to the mid-1990s

It could be a bit glum this time of year, acknowledging Te Whatu Ora probably wasn’t built to understand primary care, COVID still hasn’t finished, inflation isn’t 2.8 per cent, and warmer weather still hasn’t found us yet. Here is some high-energy distraction while you wait