Dead Favours - Gig Review: Dead Favours @ Valhalla, Wellington - 03/06/2021
06 Jun 2021 // review by tonymcdonald
In the sweaty snake pit that is Valhalla I was ordering a Fireball when two feet appeared next to me at the bar. Looking up I discover it’s the one and only Jared from Dead Favours.
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Devilskin - Gig Review: Devilskin with Shepherds Reign @ San Fran, Wellington - 08/10/2020
11 Oct 2020 // review by tonymcdonald
Even during a period of uncertainty in New Zealand with Covid-19, Devilskin and support act Shepherds Reign managed to fill San Francisco Bath House in Wellington. In fact, I have not seen a queue outside on the street for quite some time.
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Apollo SteamTrain - Single Review: Phone Box of Life
02 Mar 2020 // review by tonymcdonald
This upbeat Summer rock song really took me by surprise, and in a very good way.The latest single from Apollo SteamTrain takes the listener on a journey back to the 80’s.
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Devilskin - Gig Review: Devilskin @ Hunter Lounge, Wellington - 24/10/2019
27 Oct 2019 // review by tonymcdonald
24th October @ The Hunter Lounge in Wellington and Black Smoke Trigger emerge to a packed out venue. Flashing lights, smoke, the smell of alcohol and a vocal crowd were there to greet them.
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Dead Beat Boys - EP Review: Very Live
14 Jul 2019 // review by tonymcdonald
This five-song live punk EP from the Dead Beat Boys is packed with plenty of talent and energy. I was expecting to hear the crowd clapping and screaming, but there is none of that on this EP which was surprising.
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The Diamond Dead - EP Review: Becoming
20 Mar 2019 // review by tonymcdonald
Having already reviewed the song and video for Track 1 No Revolution, and absolutely loving everything about it, I jumped at the chance to review this small 3-song EP by The Diamond Dead. In my previous review, I described No Revolution as the female equivalent of Marilyn Manson in song sound and video style, an absolute classic and one you must check out.
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The Diamond Dead - Single/Video Review: No Revolution
16 Jan 2019 // review by tonymcdonald
Wearing little more than a red bra the female equivalent of Marilyn Manson is trapped inside a chaotic room. This crazy thought-provoking video tries and succeeds to crawl under your skin.
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Darryl Baser - Gig Review: Darryl Baser @ Moon, Wellington - 18/08/2018
19 Aug 2018 // review by tonymcdonald
Unfortunately, Moon wasn't rocking this Saturday night in Newtown. The crowds may have been watching the All Blacks in a nearby bar.
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The Whiskey Show - Single Review: Vengeance
12 Oct 2017 // review by tonymcdonald
This is a classic old school rock song with a modern 'Black Keys' style drum and bass feel thrown in. Dene's vocals are great for this genre, and Scott's guitaring is stunningly good.
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Openside - Single Review: I Feel Nothing
28 Aug 2017 // review by tonymcdonald
Thumping bass and drums overlaid with great effects and keyboards make this 80’s retro PowerPop single really stand out. I Feel Nothing is a very catchy tune and it's certain to be a hit especially in the lead up to summer.
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Unknown - EP Review: Suck
10 May 2017 // review by tonymcdonald
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Pitch Black - Album Review: Filtered Senses
12 Sep 2016 // review by tonymcdonald
Pitch Black, the duo from Christchurch are back after nine long years with a brand new dub album, Filtered Senses. It’s dark and mysterious with a laid back lounge club feel.
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Broken Season - EP Review: Wake Up The Fallen
28 Feb 2016 // review by tonymcdonald
The intro features a speech from the film 'The Great Dictator' starring Charlie Chaplin. An interesting speech about war which is a classic, very clever and leads on nicely to Bullets (Fuck The System), the second song which is more like what I was expecting from Broken Season.
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Shepherds Of Cassini - Album Review: Helios Forsaken
02 Aug 2015 // review by tonymcdonald
Helios Forsaken is a 5-and-a-quarter-song album from Auckland's Shepherds of Cassini, and it's going to hit you hard. Mirrors Have No Memory is a 45 second song, hence the quarter.
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Armed In Advance - Single Review: Shallow
20 May 2015 // review by tonymcdonald
The cover for Armed In Advance's (previously known as Stitches) single Shallow is so professionally crafted and polished, I was quite honestly dreading listening to the single in fear that it wouldn't live up to the gloss.  I'm extremely happy to report that it is pretty god damn brilliant, and I am now a fan of this Auckland trio.
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Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra - Gig Review: WIUO @ James Cabaret, Wellington 05/12/14
06 Dec 2014 // review by tonymcdonald
After touring New Zealand, the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra finished off their trip in the best possible place - Wellington. The venue was James Cabaret, which if you haven’t already been, must be described as; unglamorous, dark, terrible bar selection of food and drinks, and out of town.
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Bunnies on Ponies - Heat Death of the Universe Album Review
20 Oct 2014 // review by tonymcdonald
Bunnies on Ponies is such a cool name I had to review this album. Then when I found out that it’s Samuel Flynn Scott of The Phoenix Foundation, I HAD to review this.
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I Am Giant - I Am Giant @ Bar Bodega - 25/07/2014
27 Jul 2014 // review by tonymcdonald
After watching I Am Giant in Wellington at Bar Bodega in January, I simply couldn’t let the opportunity pass me by. In January the gig was amazing as you can tell from my review.
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Popstrangers - Fortuna Album Review
10 Jun 2014 // review by tonymcdonald
Firstly, this is one hell of a dreamy powerful indie band. It approaches on rock from time to time, and I love this album.
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Ginny Blackmore - Holding You Single Review
18 Apr 2014 // review by tonymcdonald
This is certainly not the genre that I relish, which is exactly why I wanted to review this EP. I have had the pleasure of meeting Stan Walker on two occasions and he is a charming man.
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Mamuku - Twigs of Gold Album Review
18 Feb 2014 // review by tonymcdonald
Twigs of Gold is a very quirky album with an array of brass, bass (deep man), reggae, jazz and space invader type sounds thrown in. The album kicks off with a song called Berlin, which sounds very much like a Kiwi styled James Bond movie theme song.
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I Am Giant - @ Bar Bodega, Wellington 25/01/14
27 Jan 2014 // review by tonymcdonald
Razor Wire, City Limits, Purple Heart, Let it Go, And We’ll Defy; were taking control of my inner brain and senses within the first 30 minutes at Bar Bodega. Most of these tracks are from the 2011 album The Horrifying Truth and to be honest even if they don’t release another studio album anytime soon I am more than happy to keep listening to these songs on repeat.
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The Favoured Few - The Favoured Few EP Review
28 Nov 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
I have listened to a lot of Kiwi music over the years, however being from the North of England (Sheffield, home of the Arctic Monkeys), I have a great appreciation of different styles. The Favoured Few are a cross between Arctic Monkeys and The Killers and this becomes very apparent on the opening track of this EP, See the Sun.
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Fat Freddy's Drop - Gig Review: Fat Freddy's Drop @ Opera House, Wellington - 20/09/2013
21 Sep 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
The bass is humming, the seats are vibrating, the crowds are anticipating something huge. Yes Fat Freddy's Drop are on the stage.
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Bulletproof - #Listen Album Review
15 Aug 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
After only one week of listening to this album, I will DEFINITELY be keeping it on my iPod. A perfect blend of light drum and bass and pop is a hit with me.
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The Symphony of Screams - Radio Candy Album Review
31 Jul 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
Ok, I'm officially scared in this turmoil of hatred. Only joking, or am I?
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Jan Hellriegel - Lost Songs Album Review
16 Jun 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
Well Jan has definitely uncovered some gems in this Lost Songs album. It is certainly a female classic rock collection and as Jan explains in the CD sleeve the songs were left behind because she didn't want to be pigeon holed into this female rock genre.
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The Bats - By Night EP Review
23 May 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
Already owning two of The Bats albums Fear of God and At The National Grid I was excited to be able to review their latest EP By Night. The Bats fans will remember this as being their first EP released on vinyl in 1984, so it's not exactly a "new" release.
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Tattletale Saints - How Red is the Blood Album Review
11 Apr 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
The first thing that struck me about the album How Red Is The Blood was the attention to detail on the CD packaging and artwork, very professional and a pleasure to receive. Tattletale Saints have an array of traditional instruments such as Double Bass, Mandolin and Harmonica to name a few and are very old school in performance style.
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Theseonyas – Extended Pleasures EP Review
03 Mar 2013 // review by tonymcdonald
Theseonyas are a guitar focused indie rock band which appealed me to straight away and are certainly NOT your run of the mill band. The CD I reviewed was a 7 song EP called Extended Pleasures, which was a nice play on acronyms.
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