Archive

The Best Places to Cry Around Uni: A Critic Investigation

Posted 6:50pm Thursday 2nd May 2019 by Phillip Plant

Those of you who know me, and that’s hardly anyone, will know that I am a master of rating things. As a serious investigative journalist, I have tirelessly devoted the past fortnight to unravelling the mysteries of crying places, otherwise known as “wet spots”. Also, I had a whole Read more...

Scarfie Flats of Dunedin with Sarah Gallagher

Posted 9:46pm Thursday 25th April 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Flatting while studying is one of the most important parts of student life and flat names are a big part of Dunedin flatting culture. Near campus, there is an abundance of named flats, each with their own history. From Pink Flat The Door on Clyde Street, to Legendairy on Duke Street, each named flat Read more...

Students to Watch | James Heath

Posted 9:43pm Thursday 25th April 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

You may have seen his iconic black puffer jacket around campus, or his face on some election still in the Richardson building, but who is James Heath? Is he the vigilante hero we all need? Or is he secretly the admin behind UoO: Meaningful Confessions? Surprise! James is actually the President of Read more...

Thank You For Not Smoking: University of Otago Inspired Vape Flavours

Posted 9:23pm Thursday 25th April 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

We’re back with yet another vape article. Honestly, vaping is my favourite past time at the moment. When I was an avid smoker I thought I’d never be caught dead ripping a phat vape. But I’ve seen the light of day; now you’ll never catch me without my Smok Novo in hand. Vaping Read more...

Pole Dancing: Like Dancing, but on a Pole

Posted 9:14pm Thursday 25th April 2019 by Sophia Carter Peters

When I think ‘pole dancing’, I think a combination of  ‘strip club’ and those insane videos from ‘Somewhere’s Got Talent’, that defy the laws of gravity and human flexibility. What I ended up experiencing was somewhere in that spectrum, but also Read more...

Straight Out the Oven Cooked: King REX

Posted 9:09pm Thursday 25th April 2019 by Oscar Francis

The first time I saw King REX play live was at Inch Bar. The thing about Inch Bar is that I haven’t been to many good gigs there. Most of my memories of the venue are of sitting around, bored out of my mind, as greying men pluck away at ukuleles haphazardly and beat congas halfheartedly. King Read more...

Māori Meets Metal: Alien Weaponry

Posted 1:23am Friday 12th April 2019 by Sophia Carter Peters

The D&B that usually fills the Octagon is infiltrated by the intense throbbing of heavy metal as Alien Weaponry begin their set at 50 Gorillas. The seemingly flimsy double doors give way to a wave of deafening drums, intense riffs and language-swapping vocals. Packed to the rafters, Read more...

Students to Watch | Tanya Findlater: Thursdays in Black

Posted 6:06pm Thursday 11th April 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

CW: Sexual assault     Tanya Findlater is a Willowbank loving, third year Media Film and Communications student here at Otago. Aside from her studies, Tanya is also the head of Thursdays In Black at Otago, as well as a board member for Dunedin Pride. For Tanya, community Read more...

Which Degree has the Most Big Dick Energy?

Posted 6:01pm Thursday 11th April 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Let’s make this clear; no degree is better than another because they’re all shit. However, some do tend to have more Bick Dick Energy than others. So what is Big Dick Energy? Many people have tried to find a definition for this ambiguous term but, for most, it simply means the Read more...

Students to Watch | Zoë Hayes and Anna Hendry – Rape Crisis

Posted 2:13am Friday 5th April 2019 by Oscar Francis

Zoë Hayes and Anna Hendry both wear a lot of hats. They both maintain a busy workload as they work towards their respective Masters degrees. They also work at Rape Crisis. Anna’s role is that of financial administrator. She’s studying full time towards her Master in Applied Read more...

Queers Do It Better: What We Can All Learn From Gay Sex

Posted 9:05pm Thursday 4th April 2019 by Anonymous

It's easy to think that being queer is all tragedy all the time, but it has upsides too. Being free from mainstream expectations around sex has made my life a whole lot better — and even if you're straight, it can help yours too. As a bisexual trans man, I've been pretty damn Read more...

Endo is My Safe Word: Having Sex With Endometriosis

Posted 9:00pm Thursday 4th April 2019 by Katie Plant

I didn’t expect that I’d be writing this directly after being excellently shagged by my incredible partner; thankfully I didn’t have to use my safe word. See, I have a problem. I love fucking my partner, and he loves fucking me, but my endometriosis loves fucking me over. While Read more...

Are You In A Relationship?

Posted 8:54pm Thursday 4th April 2019 by

Have you slept with them? In my dreams (1) Once or twice (2) A few times but wouldn’t say often (3) At least twice a week (4)   Do you stay the night? Definitely not - that’s a no go (1) Sometimes after a night on the piss (2) Most times but I leave Read more...

A Shitfest On Wheels: I Went For A Ride On On Te Roopū Māori’s Party Bus

Posted 11:40pm Thursday 28th March 2019 by Tukukino Royal

Soon the days of being acceptably trashed on a bus will be gone. According to my shit sources (Whatu and Zaine), these shitfests on wheels may be served the same fate as law camp. For years Te Roopū Māori (TRM, the Māori Students’ Association) have been running their bus trips Read more...

Students to Watch: Emily and Sophie Martin (AKA the Tasty.Twinsss)

Posted 11:36pm Thursday 28th March 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Emily and Sophie Martin are two third year students at Otago. However, most people know them best as popular food Instagrammers Tasty.Twinsss. In their first year of Uni, Emily and Sophie created an Instagram account to share their love of food and places to eat around Dunedin. Now with 7,000 Read more...

Milpool

Posted 9:41pm Thursday 28th March 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Have you ever wondered what it would sound like if Kate Bush covered Modest Mouse in a semi-ironic emo way? That is how the Dunedin band Milpool best describes their sound. Comprised of Adelaide Dunn on vocals, Tom Monaghan on guitar, Josh Howley on bass and Hamish Morgan on drums, Milpool has been Read more...

Ko Roimata, ko Hūpē ngā kaiutu i ngā patu a Aituā

Posted 9:38pm Thursday 28th March 2019 by Tama Tū

Kua heke iho a Roimata rāua ko Hūpē, kātahi ka puawai te aroha ki runga i te whenua nei. Ehara i te mea, he māmā noa te wiki kua pāhure mai nei. E tohaina ana āna kino, āna hūngeingei, āna mauāhara e Hātana i waenganui i te hunga ora. Read more...

Ketamine

Posted 9:37pm Thursday 28th March 2019 by Anonymous

Ketamine, You are a friend. A somewhat confusing friend. Your effect brings me everything and nothing, both the riddle and the answer for every question I never asked. You are different every time and every line, but in all these differences I find one similarity. The feeling I was searching Read more...

Too Ruff Too Tuff: Dunedin’s Bootleg Toy Maker

Posted 9:35pm Thursday 28th March 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Abram Hunter has always been drawn to sci-fi and fantasy, and has been a collector of toys and action figures his whole life. But being a collector while studying is no cheap thrill, given the amount of money that figures can cost. He was at a crossroads. “Do I want to be one of those dudes Read more...

Towel Folding Tutorial: Penis

Posted 1:22am Friday 22nd March 2019 by Nina Minogue

If you rate your rolling ability, have started watching Marie Kondo on Netflix or just want to try something new, then I highly recommend you try towel folding. Through my extensive research, I’ve found towel folding a great way to relax, an excellent flat bonding activity and an impressive Read more...

Students to Watch | Cameron Jardell

Posted 6:55pm Thursday 14th March 2019 by Owen Clarke

Like most students at uni, Otago third year Cameron Jardell admits he just loves “getting high”. But Cameron isn’t taking bong rips out in the back room of his flat while eating nachos and playing Fortnite. He’s climbing mountains (though he might also be taking some major Read more...

The Top 10 WatchMojo Top 10 Videos

Posted 6:41pm Thursday 14th March 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

I have a confession to make. I watch at least one WatchMojo video every day. WatchMojo, a YouTube channel with over 20 million subscribers, is the pinnacle of shitty clickbait. Their videos focus on aspects of popular culture and analyse them through top 10 countdown lists. Their videos are Read more...

Pike ake, kake ake ki Te Māhia e!

Posted 6:37pm Thursday 14th March 2019 by Tama Tū

(brackets are Māori translations)     My head and body break the cloudy surface. A fear of drowning brings me up quickly. Blurred vision, and a salty gasp of air. I dive and I dive. Something erupts inside me and I roar triumphant! Flesh is goosebumped and muscle is defined Read more...

Best Study Cafes Around Here

Posted 6:14pm Thursday 7th March 2019 by Florence Dean

Sometimes when you’re studying, the concrete jungle called “central library” just doesn’t cut it. I don’t know about you, but I can’t study without noise. I’m not talking about people talking obnoxiously loudly (I’m looking at you second years on the Read more...

I Am Hope Was Weird

Posted 6:09pm Thursday 7th March 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

This year, Mike King was announced as Kiwibank’s New Zealander of the year for his work as a mental health advocate. New Zealand has one of the highest suicide rates in the OECD, and one in six New Zealanders are diagnosed with depression or anxiety, and having someone like King, who is Read more...

A Non-Political Chat with Chlöe Swarbrick

Posted 6:08pm Thursday 7th March 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Chlöe Swarbrick – Green MP, advocate for mental health and drug reform, and just a great chat. Chlöe’s rise to fame came after she came third in the 2016 Auckland mayoral election. Following this, Chlöe began to work for the Green Party, becoming the youngest MP in New Read more...

Students to Watch | Rosette Hailes-Paku and Phoebe Lee

Posted 5:54pm Thursday 7th March 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Rosette Hailes-Paku and Phoebe Lee have been selected as finalists for the iD Fashion International Emerging Designer Awards. Alongside thirty-three applicants from around the world, they will be showcasing five garments from their graduate collection during Dunedin’s iD Fashion Week. Read more...

The Shambles: For the Last Time

Posted 8:12pm Thursday 28th February 2019 by Esme Hall

The announcement that homegrown Dunedin band The Shambles are breaking up came as a shock to many people, but lead singer Max Gunn told Critic it’s an exciting evolution in the musicians’ careers. “The band is breaking up for very positive reasons,” said Max. Read more...

Students to Watch | Ala Ghandour

Posted 8:11pm Thursday 28th February 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Community involvement has always been important to Ala, a Law and Genetics student here at Otago. “I have always been actively involved in the community in any way I could, in high school I was heavily involved with Amnesty International and since then I have been involved in heaps of Read more...

Psychedelia Brings You: Earth Tongue

Posted 8:10pm Thursday 28th February 2019 by Nina Minogue

Wellington couple Gussie Larkin and Ezra Simons are heavy-psych band Earth Tongue. After touring much of Europe, shooting music videos in their Wellington living room and writing their album set for release this June, there is no sign of slowing down for the psychedelic fuzz duo. Critic sat down Read more...

A Chat with The Chats

Posted 8:17pm Thursday 21st February 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Queensland shed-rock icons and smoko legends The Chats are coming to New Zealand for the first time. Playing seven dates around the country, The Chats are hitting Dunedin right before O-Week. With hits like “Smoko” and “Bus Money,” the band has taken the world by storm. I Read more...

Your One Stop Guide to Making a Ripper Playlist for Your Party

Posted 8:15pm Thursday 21st February 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Let’s be real, there’s nothing worse than a bad party playlist. You see, the music you choose to play makes or breaks the atmosphere of your party. As a host, it’s your responsibility to serve the crowd some bangers ‘n’ mash. Making the perfect playlist for your party Read more...

How to Look Cool on a Lime

Posted 8:13pm Thursday 21st February 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Limes. The sensation that has been taking Dunedin and the world by storm. The country’s latest mode of transport allows users the chance to unlock motorised, electric scooters that can hoon you around at a whopping 30kms an hour. Although they have caused some controversy regarding their Read more...

Alice Toomer: The Hyperrealistic Lolly Artist

Posted 8:11pm Thursday 21st February 2019 by Henessey Griffiths

Alice is a 21-year-old hyperrealistic artist based in Wellington, who specializes in painting some of New Zealand’s favourite lollies. Daughter of the renowned New Zealand artist John Toomer, Alice has been painting since she was 12 years old, and always had an eye for Read more...

Tōku haerenga ki te rohe o Catlins

Posted 2:19pm Monday 8th October 2018 by Tama Tū

I haere māua ko tōku hoa ki te rohe o Catlins. Ātaa- hua rawa te wāhi rā. Kīkī te whenua ki ngā oneroa, ngāhere, horowai hoki. E rua ngā rā e tipi haere ana māua ki reira. Ko tōku tūmanako, ka whāia te kaituhi e au. Read more...

Hold My Hand Lover It Is Weed Time

Posted 2:16pm Monday 8th October 2018 by Critic

Tonight we take gather here to partake Weed is our captain, its smoke is our guide Oh no, Erin is scared, she does not want to smoke the weed Please don’t listen to Erin A weed is a Good time, every time Everyone get Some weed Out of all the people on this Fair earth We who Read more...

The Top Five Dunedin Sounds of 2018

Posted 6:39pm Thursday 4th October 2018 by Henessey Griffiths

Ah yes, the Dunedin sound. A pivotal part of Dunedin’s brand identity, as we are a town that is inclusive to all new bands (so long as you’re a male and play surf rock). It’s been a great year for the Dunners music scene. Ed Sheeran came to visit, Coyote defaced The Chills mural, Read more...

The All-Girl Band Making Waves in the New Dunedin Sound

Posted 6:36pm Thursday 4th October 2018 by Jessica Thompson

Lacuna consisted of three (now two), musicians Mackenzie Hollebon, Bexy Shingleton, and Grace Cook, who has recently left. After a short hiatus from their previous band The Burps, the girls returned to each other, forming Lacuna. After countless gigs in Dunedin, they are ready to release an EP and a Read more...

Photos From the Intersectional Feminism Exhibition

Posted 10:05pm Sunday 30th September 2018 by Lydie Schmidt

This was a two week long traveling exhibition put together to commemorate the 125th anniversary of New Zealand suffrage. The project adopts intersectional feminism as its framework, taking into account how issues of class, race, disability and sexuality intersect with feminism and how this has been Read more...

Who is Mommas Boy?

Posted 12:34am Friday 28th September 2018 by Jessica Thompson

An anonymous tagger known only as Mommas Boy has been leaving his mark all over North and Central Dunedin. Jess Thompson tracked him down.      The moral of meeting Mommas Boy: Never talk to your heroes.  A close friend of mine managed to get me in contact with the Read more...

He Māori ahau. Me pēwhea tēnei e mōhio ai?

Posted 5:45pm Thursday 27th September 2018 by Rico Mita-Watene

Tēnei au ka noho i te tua o tōku manu. Ko wai atu i taku manu? He manu hoka ki ngārangiwhāwhātanga o tōku ao Māori, hei waha i tōna korepe roa. Ko wai atu i taku manu? He manu tirikohu ki te retōtanga o tōku ao Māori, hei tātari i tōna Read more...

Sons of Zion

Posted 7:29pm Thursday 20th September 2018 by Sophia Carter Peters

Tucked under Union Hall, music bleeds from the vents at around midnight, occasionally interrupted by screams of scarfies. The stage is filled by six band members, belting out reggae-rock-R&B fusion. The energy is electric, with booze flowing and everyone letting loose. Sons of Zion has been Read more...

Worlds Apart: Growing up Bi-Culturally in New Zealand

Posted 6:49pm Thursday 20th September 2018 by Jasmine Weaver

I was born in 1996 in Auckland to a Filipino mother and a Pakeha father. At the time, 68.69% of the population identified as Pakeha and 4.08% of the population were Asian. I grew up as a bi-cultural child, a person 50% of ‘colour’, in a European-dominated society, and this would affect Read more...

How Robbie Nicol Became White Man Behind a Desk

Posted 6:47pm Thursday 20th September 2018 by Esme Hall

Comedy isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think politics. Unless, of course, you’re Robbie Nicol. His webseries and live show White Man Behind a Desk satirises New Zealand politics while tackling some big topics like child poverty, immigration and racism. Robbie admits Read more...

East Coast Calipso

Posted 6:46pm Thursday 20th September 2018 by Zoe Taptiklis

Red macrocapa lamppost Cloth cupped breast Appease thy lord, hailing Mary to Matawheuka Guitar pangs at Marae piss ups Rewind dialogues, lolloping gramaphonics Yellowed lace legacies Church yard agapanthuses And the bell chime calls cows home Full cream colonialism Stuff Read more...

Jaggers X Lines

Posted 6:46pm Thursday 20th September 2018 by Jessica Thompson Carr

Jaggers X Lines are a couple of alt-pop weirdos from Dunedin who started making music together in early 2017. Made up of vocalist Eliana Gray and producer Morgan Smillie, they released their  first EP, Letters, after after just two weeks of jamming together. Following this,the band Read more...

Critic Interviews Devilskin

Posted 11:14pm Thursday 6th September 2018 by Victoria Ransom

Devilskin is a Kiwi metal band from Hamilton. They recently kicked of their New Zealand tour in Dunedin on the 31st of August. Just before their Dunedin gig, Victoria Ranson caught up with Paul Martin, the bassist and founding member of Devilskin.    Critic: You’re about to go Read more...

Not Innocent

Posted 9:52pm Thursday 6th September 2018 by Marlee Partridge

The chime of the clock rang – A broken call forth to arms All the same broken. He called Out to the great crowd by the overgrown lawn In the courtyard and shouted pleas to the chief. But her ears remained closed behind doors Corrupt with greed and callous Read more...

How Breakaway Is Reinventing Dunedin Party Culture

Posted 9:51pm Thursday 6th September 2018 by Jessica Thompson

Breakaway is a collective lovingly put together by four creative individuals who are dedicated to putting on festival-spec parties and shows in Dunedin backyards, clubs, and renegade venues.  Born from the ashes of their dissatisfaction with Dunedin's nightlife, at their last big party Read more...

Review: P!nk Rocks, Crowd Does Not

Posted 11:14am Thursday 6th September 2018 by Claudia Muldrew

This is not a P!nk review - she put on an amazing show, and if you don’t believe me you can read the ODT website and find the literal torrent of reviews. Rather, I couldn't help but take note of the goings on within the crowd. I don’t know if you’ve ever had to down a Scrumpy Read more...