What is the best gig you have ever performed at, and why?
Cannan Downs Festival.
Great vibe, amazing crowd
What is your favourite NZ venue?
Too many to mention.
What NZ musicians or bands would you like to see more of, and why?
P-Money and Module - his transition in his music style is amazing and I believe he does what he really wants to do rather than what people expect him to do.
What is your most embarrassing on tour/gig moment?
When my laptop started beeping for battery warning so I turned the main power on but I actually turned off whole system during the performance.
How did you come up with the name Rare Shot Blue?
I like to be RARE. I like to shoot my dream down to reality, therefore SHOT. I am scared of RED when I'm having a mental breakdown, therefore peaceful Blue.
How do you describe your music?
My music is my mood and is like writing diaries. I make everything from down to up-beat. This album in particular, I focused mainly on the Downbeat/triphop part of my mood.
What can we expect to see from Rare Shot Blue over the next year?
I will keep on travelling through my thoughts and mood and write tunes accordingly.
Also I'd like to keep releasing music videos and keep playing live. I am starting to work on next installment which is funky and beautiful so far.
What advice would you like to give to other aspiring musicians?
The human history is made at night. When I'm stuck at the beginning of writing a track, I use headphones rather than speakers to come up with some good ideas and images.
Website Links
Muzic.net.nz Profile
MySpace Profile
Amplifier Profile
Rare Shot Blue's debut album 'When I Was Born' is out now!
West Coaster Mel Parsons is kicking off 2009 with the release of her debut album ‘Over My Shoulder’ and subsequent nation-wide tour with her band TheRhythm Kings. Mel’s optimistic outlook is reflected in her songs and also her plans for 2009. Gaging the vibe from the tour Mel plans to perform moregigs in NZ and beyond, and further collaborate alongside her favourite NZ music mentors.
Focusing on the release tour at present is keeping Parsons busy with plenty of rehearsals and travel, but the excitement of future possibilities is bubbling away all the same “If there is one thing for certain about music, and I guess life in general it’s that you never quite know where things are going to end up. A lot of doors have been opening up lately for us with the album and I feel like there are more good things to come for sure."
Website Links
Muzic.net.nz Profile
Official Website
MySpace Profile
Amplifier Profile
Mel Parson's debut album 'Over My Shoulder' is out now!
Accolades Spread Evenly at the Vodafone MTV Australia Awards 2009
P!nk, Jessica Mauboy, Nesian Mystik, Katy Perry, T.I. feat. Rihanna, Fall Out Boy, The Ian Carey Project, Britney Spears and Sneaky Sound System triumphed at the Vodafone MTV Australia Awards 2009, winning one Moon-Man apiece.
The Awards kicked off with a spectacular live performance of Spaceman by The Killers and, putting rumours to rest, host Pete Wentz was joined by a surprise guest wife Ashlee Simpson-Wentz. The newlyweds proved they were still very much in the ‘honey moon period’ up as they got hot and heavy live on stage - and the surprises didn’t stop there as guests were treated to an old school jam of Ice Ice Baby with iconic wordsmith Vanilla Ice (Rob Van Winkle) and Wentz.
Congratulations to Nesian Mystik for winning the best Kiwi award.
S3 Pacific Music Awards 2009
It’s that time of year again to give some big ups and mad respect to the talented Pacific artists in New Zealand.
The S3 Pacific Music Awards are back and as fly as ever; set to take the stage at Manukau City’s TelstraClear Pacific venue on May 23. The finalists will be announced on April 16 with an event at the Manukau City Council Civic Centre.
The world class event is full of swagger and style, including live performances together with the awards presentation making for one of Manukau City’s biggest nights out.
Now in their fifth year, the Pacific Music Awards acknowledge the success of Pacific artists in New Zealand, celebrate and promote excellence in Pacific music and encourage young Pacific musicians to aspire to higher levels of achievement.
EP Release for 29 Blackbirds
29 Blackbirds celebrate the release of their debut EP '2AM' on Saturday 25 April with a Masquerade Ball and live performance at Auckland's hottest bar, The Pony Club.
Featuring accomplished musicians from outfits Stylus (Painkillers & Gain Control), Tomorrow Comes In Silence (The Calm That Lies Beneath) and 5 Star Fallout (Say Goodnight), 29 Blackbirds bring to you a fresh and exciting approach to the scene. With a combination of soul, jazz and good old fashioned rock, and known for their audience pleasing performances, this band deliver their debut EP.
2AM is six songs that pulse with the highs and lows of the city and is engineered and produced by Tui-award winning Dave Rhodes. These songs will take you from dark anticipation of the night, to dancing in underground bars at 2am wishing the night would go on forever, to squinting in the sunrise on the rooftop when the time comes to give the city back to the dayshift.
Site of the moment: NZ Musician
With everything from CD and instrument reviews to all the latest news and views, NZ Musician is the magazine to get for all your NZ music needs. The best thing about this magazine is that it's free.
This is the official website for NZ musician which has content from recent issues and back issues; plus special online features including a musicians' help forum, music news, gig guide, and online producer/engineer and music teacher directories. Check it out today!
New Artists
The following musicians were added to the muzic.net.nz website recently. Check them out:
Locean | Tracking Shilo |
Harbour City Electric |
Competitions
Congratulations to the following winners:
- G. Lauchlan (Waitakere), A. Young (Gisborne) and A. McBride (Ohakune) are the lucky winners of the latest album from the Ragamuffin Children - 'The Seahorse Emporium'.
- A. Singh (Waitakere) and F. Anderson (Pukekohe) have had their names placed on the door list for a double pass to Spazzy's Congaline Party in Auckland.
There's heaps of prizes up for grabs at the moment, so don't miss out on your chance to win the following prizes:
Please note - you must be logged in to enter competitions.
The brand new album from Evermore, featuring their current hit single 'Hey Boys & Girls'. | |
Presented by Bassdrop.co.nz and Empathy Recordings, 'Rumble in the Jungle 09' is a mix by 2008 Rumble in the Jungle battle winner, Christchruch based DJ Import. The compilation features his mix of the finest selection of Drum and Bass tracks from top local and international producers. | |
With the “hellectric” energy still in the air from the 07 sell out show @ The Kings Arms, Ultimate Tribute Promotions are proud to announce: THE ULTIMATE METAL TRIBUTE 4! Win a double pass to either show (Auckland, Hamilton and Wellington). | |
The follow up to 2005's 'Moves On' was recorded over the last three and a half years at Red Bull Studios and The Lab, with mixing duties performed at bandleader Andrew Spraggon's home studio in Pt. Chevalier, Auckland. | |
Fresh from recording in the isolated and windswept west coast cave of Whatipu, An Emerald City have emerged with an adventurous and sonically eclectic debut album. Entitled Circa Scaria, their debut long player is finished and ready for release on April 6th. We've got two copies to give away! | |
Win a double pass to Recession Night (Auckland), thanks to The Murder House. |
Reviews
Check out our latest reviews:
- Rare Shot Blue - 'Where I Was Born' album review
- The Mint Chicks - 'Screens' album review
- 'Rumble in the Jungle' album review
Tour Features
Every feature we have ever had on the site can be viewed here.
Vodafone Homegrown 2009
We sent John along to Vodafone Homegrown recently, armed with his trusty camera. Check out his photos below (click on any photo to see the full gallery):
Information about muzic.net.nz newsletters
The next muzic.net.nz newsletter is going out on
26 April.
We have space available in our newsletters from 26 April onwards. You can request a date in advance that suits you, or feature in the next available newsletter. There is currently a lot of interest in newsletter features, so if you would to have a newsletter feature within the next 2 months you should contact Lisa as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. We can feature you/your band even if you have already been featured in a newsletter from a previous year.
Don't forget, if you want some extra promotion during May by featuring in one of our New Zealand Music Month issues you will need to get in touch today! These newsletters will be going out on 10 and 24 May, please state which issue you want to be in.
With our newsletters being sent out to over 7620 members and this number growing every day, featuring in our newsletter provides awesome exposure for you or your band. And, as the people who receive our newsletters have subscribed to them, they are more likely to read what you have to say.
If you would like to advertise your next album release or tour in our newsletter and/or gig mail out email Lisa. It is 100% FREE to feature or advertise in our newsletter and gig mail outs! We also offer advertising on the muzic.net.nz website for very competitive rates.
We can also feature record labels, venues, music websites and anything else that has something to do with NZ music.
Our next gig mail out is going out on 19 April.
- The muzic.net.nz team
NZ MUSIC MONTH IS COMING!
May 2009 is just around the corner and muzic.net.nz is the place to go if you want to celebrate the 8th NZ music month in style.
With the largest online NZ gig guide, which already boasts over 100 gigs for May, there is definitely no shortage of live music gigs to go and see.
There's something for everyone!
Don't have time to check out the gig guide? You can sign up to receive our gig guide mail out in your inbox each fortnight - just edit your profile in the 'members' page after logging in.
Can't get out of the house to get to a gig? There's heaps of music to listen to for free on our downloads page, or you can check out our artist pages and listen to music on their MySpace pages.
You can also keep up-to-date with all your NZ music month news on our home page, scroll through the charts and check out other NZ music websites on our links page.
Website Links
NZ Music Month Official Website
NZ Music Month on Twitter
NZ Music Month on MySpace
NZ Music Month at The NZ Music Commission
Want to promote your music during May?
Muzic.net.nz would like to help you with your NZ music month promotion and we have several options available for you, including;
Feature in this newsletter!
During NZ Music Month there will be 2 newsletters going out, one on the 10th and the other on the 24th. With our newsletters being sent out to over 7620 members and this number growing every day, featuring in this newsletter provides great exposure for you and your band.
We can also feature anything that has something to do with NZ music, including record labels, websites, venues and more.
There is currently heaps of interest in newsletter features, and you should get in touch with Lisa today if you want to avoid missing out.
Promote your gig or tour!
During NZ Music Month we will be sending out 3 gig guide mail outs (3rd, 17th and 31st May) and we can include either a poster or press release for your gig or tour. Although not as popular as the newsletter, the gig guide mail out currently goes out to over 730 members.
If you're on tour during May, we can feature your tour on our gig guide page. This means, that instead of having to look through the gig guide to find your tour details, people who visit muzic.net.nz can view all the details of your tour in one place. As our tour features are the first thing you see before entering the gig guide, they can provide a lot of promotion for you and your tour.
Give away CDs, tickets and other merchandise!
Muzic.net.nz has a very popular competitions page and it is on this page that we can give away CDs, tickets and just about anything else for you. This is an awesome way to get your music known as prizes can be given away to anyone, from your greatest fan to someone who has never heard your music before.
We can also arrange for your latest album, EP or single to be reviewed.
Advertising
We can also offer you advertising at some very competitive rates, and while there is a cost to advertise on the site, it is free to advertise in our gig guide mail out or newsletter.
Want to know what else we can do for you? Check out this forum post!
If you are interested in any of the above, or just want to contact us for a chat, e-mail Lisa today!