Mali Mali

Posted 1:24pm Sunday 19th May 2013

Mali Mali is a North Shore alternative trio fronted by singer-songwriter Ben Tolich. They have just released their debut album Gather ’round the Gooseclock (reviewed in the last issue of Critic), and are about to embark on a tour of the country. Critic caught up with Ben over the phone recently to Read more...

Mali Mali

Posted 2:26pm Sunday 12th May 2013

Rating: 3.5/5 Despite a lack of diversity or adventure, Mali Mali has produced an impressive debut. Mali Mali is a North Shore trio fronted by singer-songwriter Ben Tolich. Drawing influence from artists such as The National, Sigur Rós and Bon Iver, Tolich writes acoustic, vaguely folky Read more...

Jurassic Park 3D

Posted 2:26pm Sunday 12th May 2013

Rating: 5/5 As you may or may not have heard, Steven Spielberg’s seminal Jurassic Park was recently rereleased in theatres in 3D to celebrate the film’s 20th anniversary. Though many films that were shot in 2D and later converted into 3D look like shit (Clash Of The Titans being the classic Read more...

James Blake - Overgrown

Posted 4:00pm Sunday 5th May 2013

Rating: 3/5James Blake is an electronic producer and singer-songwriter from London. In 2011, he released his debut album. It was called James Blake. A number of critics and music listeners collectively lost their shit over it. I did not. Not that I didn’t find James’ mix of post-dubstep and Read more...

Akron/Family - Sub Verses

Posted 4:00pm Sunday 5th May 2013

Rating: 4/5Any fan of contemporary psychedelic rock will surely know the name “Akron/Family.” Michael Gira of Swans once described them in the following manner: “There are no inverted commas in the world of Akron. They’re inside the music, grinding it, fighting it, chewing it, digesting it, then Read more...

Aerosmith

Posted 3:14pm Sunday 28th April 2013

To call my experience at Aerosmith’s gig last Wednesday night a surreal one would be an understatement. Due to the incompetence of and poor communication between the staff scattered around the Forsyth Barr Stadium, it was not until final support act Wolfmother had wrapped up their set that I Read more...

The Veils - Time Stays, We Go

Posted 3:14pm Sunday 28th April 2013

The Veils are one of those cult bands I always wanted to get into, but never bothered to properly investigate. Though the number of people aware of the London-based indie rock outfit is seemingly small, what I have heard of them has been almost unanimous praise. Not counting a couple of promising Read more...

Eternity

Posted 3:14pm Sunday 28th April 2013

Eternity is a Kiwi sci-fi thriller written and directed by Alex Galvin. Set in the near future, it stars Elliot Travers as Richard Manning, a Hong Kong-based police detective who makes a right mess of things in the film’s tense opening sequence. His only shot at redemption is to travel to New Read more...

The Knife - Shaking The Habitual

Posted 5:13pm Sunday 21st April 2013

For the uninitiated, The Knife are a Swedish electronic duo consisting of Karin “Fever Ray” Andersson and her younger brother Olof. The siblings splice together an eclectic array of genres including synthpop, industrial, world music, and ambient to create a technicolour sound that defies mimicry or Read more...

Astro Children

Posted 5:13pm Sunday 21st April 2013

Astro Children are a Dunedin shoeglaze/spacepop band comprised of childhood friends Millie Lovelock and Isaac Hickey. Recently they have been enjoying huge local success, with latest single “Jamie Knows” topping Radio One’s song chart for seven weeks running. Critic caught up with the duo recently Read more...