RIP Lemmy
Just days after his 70th birthday, Motorhead frontman and bassist Lemmy has passed away. His impact on rock and roll is immeasurable. We are sad to see him go. Read more about Lemmy’s life and death here. Watch Lemmy’s final performance with Motorhead, recorded just a couple of weeks ago in Berlin, here:[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M123gRMtBBM] Save
Tiny Ruins & Hamish Kilgour – Hurtling Through (Flying Nun)
Not quite the follow-up to Tiny Ruins’ exquisite Brightly Painted One…Hurtling Through is a 7-track EP recorded in New York City with The Clean’s Hamish Kilgour. Hollie Fullbrook provides the voice and the songs, while Kilgour sprinkles everything with percussive fairy dust. These seven tracks were recorded over two sessions in Brooklyn, the first in […]
Dave Rawlings: Beautiful Obsolescence (Interview)
Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings are returning to Auckland in January for what is one of the most anticipated shows of the new year. It’s been over a decade since the duo last performed here and they’ve made a lot of great music since then. Their most recent collaboration is Nashville Obsolete, released under the […]
Watch Parabola West’s 13th Floor Video Session
Here’s one last video session before the end of the year, and one that sounds perfect for the festive season. Check out Parabola West as she performs three original compositions and chats with The 13th Floor’s Marty Duda. Parabola, an ex-pat American, now living in Raglan, has released an EP, titled Did You Hear?, and […]
Watch Parabola West’s 13th Floor Video Session
Here’s one last video session before the end of the year, and one that sounds perfect for the festive season. Check out Parabola West as she performs three original compositions and chats with The 13th Floor’s Marty Duda. Parabola, an ex-pat American, now living in Raglan, has released an EP, titled Did You Hear?, and […]
We Have A Winner!
Congratulations to Richard Hume, who was the first person to correctly name The Guardian as the British publication that included Tami Neilson’s album Dynamite! as one of the top releases of 2014. Richard will receive a pair of tickets to see Tami, along with Delaney Davidson and The Warratahs on Saturday, January 2nd at Mangawhai […]
Sol3 Mio – Villa Maria Winery December 20, 2015
“Three lads from Mangere, you say?” “That’s right.” “Singing opera?” “That’s the one.” “In a vineyard?” “Indeed.” “And you want me to review this for The 13th Floor?” “The very fellow.” We’re nothing if not catholic in our tastes here at The 13th Floor. A brace of tenors and a baritone would, ordinarily, fall outside […]
Grace Potter: I Am Not Who I Was Before (Interview)
It’s been a big year for Grace Potter. She’s stepped outside her long-time band, The Nocturnals, and made her first solo album, Midnight, much to the chagrin of many fans who were put off by the overt pop beats found on songs like the lead single, Alive Tonight. The Vermont native spoke to The 13th […]
Check Out These Photos From The Gunslingers Ball: Last Minute Christmas Show, 19 December 2015
13th Floor ace photographer Michael Flynn caught the Gunslingers Ball: Last Minute Christmas show at Auckland’s Wine Cellar last night. The show featured sets from Will Wood, Reb Fountain, Hopetoun Brown and contributions from Dave Khan, Tom Cunliff and Thomas Landon-Lane. Micheal claims the sold-out show had a great atmosphere and the finale was a […]
Jessica Pratt – The Tuning Fork December 17, 2015
San Francisco-based singer-songwriter Jessica Pratt cast her spell over Auckland’s Tuning Fork, just 11 months after she did the same at the Golden Dawn. In the interim she has released a new album and picked up an additional guitarist.
Out of Pride: The Unapologetic Story of Melting Pot Massacre
by Dedee W Melting Pot Massacre were an Auckland-based Asian feminist punk band, active from 2011-2013. Their documentary ‘Out of Pride’ was made after they disbanded, and tells their story on their own terms. Having not yet seen it, I imagine it will provide more insight into the message behind their music and where they […]
Save Our St James: Here’s The Story!
Here’s Dedee with a report on what went down at the recent Save Our St James event: On Friday December 11th 2015, eight months after the St James had reopened its doors, a few hundred of us gathered to watch a stellar line up on a small stage in the foyer. It was called ‘Save […]
AC/DC – Western Springs Stadium December 15, 2015
The last time I saw AC/DC it was 1978. They were playing in upstate New York, opening for Blue Oyster Cult, on their journey to the long way to the top. 37 years later, and a lot has changed both within and outside the band, but one thing remains constant, Angus Young’s connection to […]
Watch Ciaran McMeekan’s 13th Floor Video Session
As promised earlier, here is Ciaran McMeekan’s complete 13th Floor Video Session. In addition to playing a tune from his latest EP, Screaming Man, Ciaran introduces two brand new songs and talks to Marty Duda about moving from Dunedin to Auckland. Save
French Toast & Kurt Vile (Interview)
It’s a beautiful, sunny autumn day in New York City as I make my way along Broadway in Brooklyn. I have an appointment to meet with Kurt Vile at a café in the trendy area of South Williamsburg to discuss his new album, B’lieve I’m Goin’ Down, which was just released a week or two […]
Ed Sheeran – Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland, 12/12/2015
Ed Sheeran, perhaps to make up for the fact that his show comprised only one musician, packed the undercard at his tour-ending show at Auckland’s Mount Smart Stadium last night. Or perhaps, given that this would be the last performance in, as he repeatedly reminded us, a four-and-a-half-year tour, he was minded to depart with […]
Unknown Mortal Orchestra – St James Theatre 12 December 2015
Ruban Nielson and his bandmates took their fans on a fanciful musical journey that took quite a few unexpected detours as Unknown Mortal Orchestra played to a sold-out crowd at Auckland’s St James Theatre. There was a good energy in the old St James tonight, perhaps left over from the previous evening’s Save The St […]
Mono – Kings Arms December 10, 2015
The music did the talking last night at the Kings Arms as Mono played a blinding set proving that you don’t need a vocalist to tell a story when it comes to music. Before the Japanese quartet took the stage, a couple of Auckland’s finest got things started. Unfortunately I missed Greenfog’s set, but arrived […]
Ratatat – The Studio December 10, 2015
Ratatat – onomatopoeic moniker for a duo of rock-tronica musicians from Brooklyn NYC – is in my view an apt emblem for their beat-powered brand of instrumental neo-prog-experimental-rock. Ratatat started from humble beginnings, two guys – Evan Mast and Mike Stroud – started making music in their Brooklyn apartment just after the turn of the […]
Watch Will Wood’s 13th Floor Video Session
Fresh from a four and a half month tour of Europe, Will Wood stopped by The 13th Floor to talk about his adventures overseas and his upcoming show at Auckland’s Wine Cellar. The show…”Gunslinger’s Ball Presents…Last Minute Christmas…will find Will sharing the stage with Hopetoun Brown, Reb Fountain, Dave Khan, Tom Cunliffe and others for […]