Marmalade Goes “Sober”

Indie darlings Marmalade brought the magic to our Monday night with a listening party for their debut EP ‘Sober’. A cosy crew of friends and contributors munched on focaccia and cookies made by Jemilah. The ethos of the evening was to celebrate the moments before rat-racing on to the “next big thing”, and in the whirlwind of industry burnout this is a sentiment I hold close. With home brewed strawberry kombucha in my left hand, and a stunning lyric sleeve (featuring the photography stylings of Flora Driessen) in my right, I settled into the couch for my first listening experience of ‘Sober’.

It begins with the surfy wash of “Bright” – a track pondering on the elusiveness of rockstar status. Marmalade have managed to capture the sound of nostalgia through their production – something in the wash of the sound brings me back to wondering about my future. The room claps for Liam’s guitar solo, and there are a few who can’t resist singing along to the chorus they’ve come to love through the release of ‘Bright’ as the debut single. Perhaps my favourite thing about the track, and Marmalade’s sound as a whole, is the contrast between the smooth sound of Jemilah’s voice and the gravel in Koen’s.

‘Awkward’ begins with a soundbite, which we’re told is taken from a real conversation that happened at MoveSpace. I’m not sure whether it’s the experience of listening for the first time with friends, but there is something social about Marmalade’s sound. The content in ‘Awkward’ is delightfully relatable for a city-slicker with memories of overcommitting. I’ve always loved this track live, but the production allows me to take in the joy of the arrangement. A highlight for me is the layered chorus at the end with group vocals, followed by an abrupt (perhaps awkward?) ending.

‘Houston’ drops a more serious layer onto the EP, as the band addresses the barrier stopping so many of us from reaching out when help is so clearly needed. There’s something moving about the line “somebody help me out” being yelled by a group of friends and flatmates at the end. I think it reminds us that everyone feels isolated sometimes; I can picture the band sitting in their respective rooms with the same need for connection. After listening to ‘Houston’ I made a mental note of who I’d like to reach out to this week.

You can’t beat the rhythm section in ‘Caffeine High’; it’s just so fun. Hearing Jemilah reflect on her time as a barista once again brought me back to my early 20s, and all the fleeting connections made over the top of a till. ‘Caffeine High’ is an ode to the third space. The lyrics are fun, the production swings between funky and dreamy, wrapping up with the signature Marmalade vocal layers.

One mindblowing revelation for the evening was that Koen is not only a talented multi instrumentalist, songwriter and producer, but he is also a gifted bird impersonator. ‘Cigarette Habit’ begins with a highly convincing bird song, count in, and a generous instrumental section. Koen and Jemilah reflected on the length of the introduction – an anomaly to our tiktok trained ears – but I love it as a pensive end to this dreamy EP. It’s the perfect end to this 20-something experience of a collection.

A special shout out to some of the friendly faces that I know stamped their mark on this EP in one way or another – the Auckland music scene is alive and vibrant.

KiwisRetrospective – “Almost Natural”

Acoustic, Easy Listening, Folk, Singer Songwriter, Uncategorized

Almost natural is a hidden gem from 2021. I stumbled upon this album by accident, by being familiar with Jonathan Meyer from the multitude of bands he plays in (Underscore, the late Odds & Ends, Club Ruby, Max Earnshaw, and more, so many more). Jono is usually shredding an electric guitar or keeping the band in line with funky grooves from the bass, but with his solo project he takes a more gentle approach.

The journey begins with eerie guitar and soft saxophone with the intro track Warm. Soft BVs with crunchy harmonies ease us into what is a much more vulnerable and intimate piece of work than what Jono usually is involved in. The album touches on the usual subjects of love with “3AM” and “Foreign”. 3AM features a 10/10 guitar pop pre chorus and some seriously tasteful guitar licks and a big echo chamber solo. Foreign takes a different approach with a very Jack-Johnson-like funky guitar groove. The lyrics are a clever spin on the trope of describing a girl as an angel fallen from heaven (i think) but much less cheesy.

Throughout these songs and much else of Jono’s work we get a strong influence from the 2000s alt rock era. Open stringed chords and octave riffs make this apparent. And this influence comes strongest with the acoustic ballad “Smile”. Smile could’ve been the acoustic hit single on any emo album from 2000. Though I’m not sure of the influence of this track the lyrics are poignant and really hit home the power of a positive outlook.

“Never made it home” is a personal favourite. It tells the tale of a young soldier who snuck onto a boat in the US to join the war effort in Europe in WW2. I’m not sure if this track was inspired by a grandfather figure or just a take on a not so unfamiliar story, but the tale is captivating none the less, and the chorus pops into my head every few months.

A common discussion point I hear from musicians is that the real beauty of art can come from the true authentic moments, the organic little mishaps that can happen and create someone with real human charm. People can strive to create this artificially in the studio, but I don’t think this really comes through unless you have a one take recording that doesn’t try to polish anything. “A song from my dad” combines the charm of getting your father in to help on a project with this kind of magic. It’s a beautiful piece of instrumental piano music that is simple, but effective, and adds a lovely point of distinction to the album as a whole.

“All I needed” is the finisher. The song is built on dreamy synths and lullaby guitars that could sit on an early Bon Iver cut. The lyrics could go either way representing love or a spiritual side of Jono not really delved into yet at this stage in the album. It’s a beautiful finisher either way.

Overall the album is a lovely piece of work. Very unique from the usual projects Jonathan is involved in. It’s a great showcase of his songwriting with interesting lyrical ideas, cliche free harmonic progression and very emotive singing. I’ll be keeping this album in regular rotation.

KiwisRetrospective – “The Tapes Etc”

bedroom pop, indie pop, Pop

I’m a sucker for sad boy music. When I need to indulge in my sad boy feelings and have overplayed Cavetown, Wells* is a good fill in.

Wells* is the moniker of producer/songwriter/keys for hire Josh Naley. If you’ve seen Robinson or Navvy on tour you may have noticed a friendly bowl cut bobbing on the ivories making tasty synth sounds.

I first heard Wells* music through his Tapes series, an annual drop of a single with some supporting tracks which always had the steeziest artwork (credit to Matthew Twyman). These small bodies of work eventually were compiled with a few other tunes into the album “The Tapes Etc”. Each track brings you closer to the acceptance of a break up, with all the petty emotions along the way.

The album kicks off with “Back To You”, a massive sounding track with constant developing layers. The first chorus chord is very leading, like it’s asking the question in the lyrics which some nifty word painting. The song seems to be a gesture of good will to an ex, but mostly its a solid pop bop. Though it didn’t grab me at first, I’ve found over time this track has the most replayability in the album.

“Anytime soon” is a more low energy track about waiting for an impending break up. The lyrics in here are quite humanising and direct, I like the lyrics “you find it hard to work when you want to have a dinner party”. I vibe with that.

“Jealous” drops in with a very distinctive synth lead, and slowly builds with the percussion to a big heavy stomp clap groove. The lyrics are petty, but sometimes that’s how you feel. All the sounds and timbres in this song are really interesting, a stand out on that front.

The next tune “Night and Day” is a bop with a latin feel. This would go off in a club, all about being available for a rebound anytime, classic. I like the high pitched record scratch part way through, a lovely bit of ear candy.

I’m a sucker for implied tension in songs, where the bass is just held off for ages, and you know it’s coming, but the song holds off until the breaking point where it finally hits. “You’re never coming back” does this excellently with its distorted vocal bridge which drops into a massive chorus, well worth the journey. It’s also the first song which seems to address the grief of a break up which feels like a bit of maturing in the story of the album.

Wells* goes full Ken after this and pulls out a guitar for “Baby that’s you”. The acoustic start is a reprieve for the ears after heavy production so far and Josh get’s to showcase his ability to write distinctive vocal melody’s and interesting chord progressions in a classic singer songwriter style. Production elements are still toyed with with some autotune at the end of chorus lines. The synth solo at the end is a lil quirky.

“The Worst Optimist in the World” is my favourite track on the album, it’s just so raw. When I listen to it, I feel like I’m reading someone’s journal after they’ve just had the worst year. “It’s a bad day when I wake up” is a tough line. Wells* does a heartbreaking vocal performance on this and builds up into a groove by the end which lets you transition back into the fuller sound at the back half of the album.

I think I lied, “Depressed” is my favourite song on the album. At least it’s the one I’ve played the most. The guitar and bass are fat and the drum fills are big and it just makes you move. It’s a classic sad-lyrics-but-a-bop vibe with an underlying tone of optimism which feels like a response to “The worst optimist in the world”. “Depressed” was released with Wells* first music video (shout out Molawin Evangelista for the stellar direction here, the video is tight). Highly recommend.

“Therapy summer” kicks off with a chorus of Wells* singing. This builds with a heavy groove and beautiful shimmery synths through the chorus. This song just sounds beautiful, I think it’s the best production on the album. Molawin Evangelista directed another stunning video for this with Wells* performing in an empty theatre surrounded by a large screen, the visuals are as beautiful as the synths, the full whited out screens are particularly striking.

“Quitter” seems to have more of an element of acceptance to previous tracks talking about how “we both messed it up in our own way”. The track seems to have a comical view of a obsessive ex just not being a “quitter”. A fun take,

“The End” provides a solid coda saying “goodbye to my highschool sweetheart”. It’s a fitting end to the journey through the breakup and wraps things up nicely.

Wells* has been a bit quiet since the release of his debut album, and hopefully will be back soon. It will be interesting to see what new musical direction his music could take. In the meantime, I recommend “The Tapes Etc”

Release of the Vengeful Millennial

Electro Rock, INDIE, Indie Rock, Rock

Pop in your air-pods and grab your avo-toast, Hazza Making Noise’s Debut EP Vengeful Millenial is here, and it’s solving the housing crisis.

Harry Platt, the face behind Hazza Making Noise, has been releasing a string of singles since 2018. Each track takes a unique spin on re-imagining the grunge era through electronic music. Singles such as Do You Wish To Print A Receipt cracked the algorithm to break into a hallowed Spotify editorial playlist. Regular single release shows with backing band, The Ellice Road Boys, have helped build up a loyal fan base eager for the first debut EP.

NoMoreGaps is the opening track of the EP, and it starts tentatively. A mellow take on the lead riff begins to fade in with samples taken from the countdown self-checkout aisle, a subtle node to an earlier single. The track then swells in with its catchy synth lead and builds to a fast pasts chorus with off kilter rhythms and shouted vocals. “The duelling riffs in the verse is probably one of my favourite things I’ve stumbled into” says Harry, “The bass and guitar really groove out, and the beat just sews it together”. The track continues bouncing between ambient verses and bridges and its “bipolar punk rock chorus” which talks of liberating oneself to all sorts of vice to fill the gaps.

Boomers is Disguise is a punk rock football stadium chant that comes in hard straight out of NoMoreGaps. The track previously came out as a single with artwork showing ol’ Winnie Peters sporting a fantastic pair of Groucho glasses. The track goes hard with mellow verses teasing the reckless pace and chanted vocals of the chorus. The track came from an old flatmate who dared Harry to write a “rock-opera about baby boomers”. This becomes clear in the bridge where the chorus fade back for a chorus of Harry’s to slowly sing the mantra “Blame the Baby Boomers, Blame the Goverment, Blame the Baby Boomers, It’s all their fault”. Its a hard hitting tune, definitely slaps.

After the two fast paced singles, we’re lead into a reprieve with a slightly western guitar riff over some ambient instrumental loops. Harry starts with introspective lyrics with self doubt and wistful thinking of the past. This builds with a heavy kick groove then proclaims the track title, Rewind Time, Return Desire, in true stadium rock fashion. The instrumentation does a fantastic job of setting the tone of pining for a passion now lost.
“How can a treasure become a monotonous curse?
We follow each other’s lives like two satellites orbiting different Earths””

The ambient instrumental loops begin to speed up as a the bass guitar takes the lead in A Ship Came Into Harbour. The catchy riff is backed up by a soft guitar with a delay that almost makes it sound like a robotic cello. The track takes a twist on the drinking game, describing people as ships struggling to retain control in the ocean, holding the precious cargo of their hopes and dreams. The track builds into a big guitar solo distinctive with its heavy delay, which gives way to a strings led bridge with a final iteration of the chorus in a hard hitting half time.

The music suddenly drops into a menacing groove with the same guitar tone with heavy delay, electric drums and a soft piano line, reminiscent of Gorillaz. NoMoreCows is a scathing critique of people ignorant of their privilege and selfishness from a self proclaimed “Doctor Truth”.

“The diagnosis is not looking good,
with medium to high chance you’re an ignorant fool
Roaming around this stolen land,
All that bastard freedom, can you not give a helping hand?
But alas it’s the divine meritocracy,
a product of your own making that you foolishly believe”

The track also includes some self reflection considering Harry’s own privelege stating he is “Riding [his] bike in a tailwind”. After proclaiming that “this race must be rigged” the track drops, and lets anticipation build. This finally drops into a filthy heavy riff which takes the prize as THICCest groove on the EP.

Vengeful Millenial was a switch up from HMN’s usual exploratory singles to form a cohesive body of work. “I always wanted to do a project where each song blends into the next” says Haryy “I like the sense of journey that is created when the record doesn’t break between songs, and there is relationship between them… I mean it’s probably a f*cking terrible idea in the age of streaming and the dominance of single tracks and playlists … but sh*t sometimes you gotta just do want you want first.”
Personally I’m a big fan of through album listening. It’s good to finally have a cohesive bit of HMN to delve into. Here’s to many more.

Listen in to Vengeful Millennial and Follow Hazza Making Noise on Spotify, Apple Music, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

Never Coming Back – Underscore

Indie Rock, Uncategorized

After an enticing build up for their new single on Tik Tok, Underscore have finally released their sophomore single Never Coming back, and oh boy it slaps like a prima donna.

Unlike their first release Dirty Word, Never Coming Back hits hard and heavy with a lumbering blues groove that finishes on a crunchy chromatic descent. Front man Jonathan Meyer describes the track as a “bitter breakup song that draws on progressive rock influences”. Never Coming Back builds on this idea switching between sarcastic verses and emotionally charged choruses. A soulful solo leads into a fast paced bridge that carries the song into a final heavy iteration of the tracks iconic riff.

Underscore features Hon Manawangphiphat on bass guitar, Josh Johnston on drums, and Jonathan Meyer on guitar and vocals. The trio started playing music together as students at the University of Auckland, and have performed shows throughout Auckland ever since. While Jonathan is the principal songwriter and guitarist, the whole band brings together their backgrounds in pop, rock, metal, and jazz to create the one-of-a-kind sound Underscore is known for.

This track was a lot of fun to listen to, and we’re keen to see where Underscores following releases take them.

Make sure to follow them on Spotify, Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok.

Finally some dirty words from Underscore

Indie Rock

Underscore has been kicking around the pop school indie rock scene for a while, playing shows, reviewing sandwiches and rebooting the Skype soundtrack. Despite this varied experience they’ve never had an official release until now, with Dirty Word.

The track starts with an infectious indie rock riff that Franz Ferdinand could’ve been proud of, and some juicy chords that could’ve taught them a thing or two. Underscore keeps you interested with constant rhythmic mix ups, changes in tone, and a cheeky lil modal shift in the chorus that gets the nerdy musos raising an eyebrow and nodding in approval. The bridge of the track lets lead singer Jono really open up his pipes and put on some gravel to belt out some big notes.

Despite my juvenile hope that the word in question would’ve been more dirty, I feel that Underscore has skilfully brought an important message into a fun and energetic song to improve awareness of mental health, and letting us all know it’s okay to ask for help. It’s really a message we as a community can’t hear enough of.

We look forward to hearing more from Underscore! And hopefully an EP will be on the way. Keep tabs on them on Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.

Disappear – Lorenzo Hazelwood

Acoustic, Rock, Singer Songwriter

It’s easy to disappear into the beautiful soundscape that Lorenzo creates in his acoustic lead follow up to his Single Pharos. The track is slow and lumbering with rich baritone vocals reminiscient of 90s grunge (but the vocalists who could sing more vowels than urrrr). The soundscape is dark and smokey which is a diversion from Lorenzo’s usual performance with his band Close to the Bone.
Singer Lorenzo was inspired to tackle his solo project with lockdown and managed to self record the three songs released under Lorenzo Hazelwood in his home studio. These were picked up and worked on with Toby Lloyd from Tiny Triumph Recordings and Mastered by Luke Finlay from Primal Mastering.
Lorenzo plans to release more music during the year so make sure to follow him on Facebook, Instagram and Spotify to catch more broody dirges! Hopefully another lockdown isn’t required to draw out more creativity.

Isolated – Nick Dow

Acoustic, Singer Songwriter

Nick Dow is back, and immediately sending shivers down my spine.
Isolated, is an eerie and ethereal piece that belongs in an abandoned ruin of a concert hall. The sound builds on echoing arpeggios with a rough falsetto that soars through the spacious soundscape reminiscent of Radiohead. This is one of the simpler songs Nick has released steering away from earlier complex works, but I believe the beauty of this song comes from it fully utilised stripped back arrangement, a delicate touch on the keys, and flawless harmonic progression. The song appears to be topical with 2020’s isolating lock downs worldwide, striking a chord with many of us pent up inside isolated from the world around us.

Isolated is the first we’ve heard from multi-instrumentalist Nick Dow since his well received debut album “Layers” quoted as being “about as good as debut albums get” which charted in NZ and set Nick off playing shows around NZ. Nick has built up a reputation around Auckland as a formidable musician, with talent as a vocalist, pianist and violin player, playing for musicians such as TEEKS.

Catch Nick Dow playing in Auckland on the 31st of October with BEING. and Chris Wallace at the Wine Cellar.

Keep up with Nick Dow on Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.

Villette – Curious

Funk, R'n'B

Award-winning singer, songwriter and producer Villette is back with a bang on her new single ‘Curious’ – the first track from her upcoming EP. The single immediately grabs you with a brisk beat and chorusy guitars straight out of a Mac Demarco track. The song develops into an upbeat R’n’B groove with hints of disco and funk that could’ve come straight outta Michael Jackson’s catalogue.

‘Curious’ is an ode “to the girl that’s on a mission but enjoying the journey,” explains Villette. “It’s a tale of enjoying the ups and downs of life and venturing further down forbidden paths”. Produced by Ben Malone and co-written with Max Gunn and Jono Boyle, ‘Curious’ signals “a new chapter” in Villette’s journey. She describes her upcoming EP as “upbeat and exciting”, a diversion from her usual smokey slow jams of the past. “The writing style and content is reflective of where I’m at in life as well, and that is mirrored in the whole EP,” Villette says.

Villette’s release of curious has been coupled with an official music video, which is filled to the brim with nostalgia, kiwi summer, and infectious good vibes. Don’t miss it! Watch below.

Born and raised in New Zealand, Villette has cultivated her sound through experience singing, producing, DJing and songwriting. Her music has taken her on tour across NZ, Australia and the USA with her last mixtape “Drip Crimson“. Earlier works had her putting together a one of a kind 360 Music Video, Money, which took her visual performance to a whole other level.

Make sure to keep up with Villette on Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.

Chris Pidsley – Cinnamon & Berryhead

Acoustic, INDIE, Indie Rock, Singer Songwriter, Singer Songwriter

Chris Pidsley has dropped a couple of tasty indie-rock tracks recently which we can’t get out of our heads! Cinnamon & Berryhead show Chris Pidsley’s increasing talent as a song writer and mastery of creating a relaxed, happy soundscape.
Cinnamon has an intro that’ll be sampled into a chill-hop track any day now. The track moves into classic up-beat indie rock vibe with retro synths, chorused guitars and lazy vocals. Chris uses rhythmic flourishes and tasteful layering to keep us listening throughout the track. The track is about “the excitement and emotions you feel when you kiss someone for the first time.”
Berryhead is the sleepy b-side to Cinnamon. The song is a beautiful lullaby reminiscent of Jose Gonzalez, Cavetown or Syd Matters that would sit perfect on the “Life is Strange” Soundtrack. Chris has beautiful strings and synths to accompany his multi-tracked vocals the combines into a beautiful elixir that washes over the senses to put you at ease. Chris wrote Berryhead “…whilst on holiday in Torquay. On a walk to Berryhead I saw a bench dedicated to a couple who said that spot was their favourite spot in the world. I based the lyrics on this idea of a couple growing old there and the beauty they saw in each other as well as the location.” Berryhead might be my personal favourite track from Chris Pidsley so far.

Make sure to check out Chris Pidsley over on Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.

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