WHAT WOULD KARL CHOOSE?
When I was young I never really listened to New Zealand music at home. As the mysterious workings of my young brain would have it local music went on up the road at a handful of venues, but the neighbourhood record shops and radio stations were very much the turf of bands from overseas.
I’m glad to say that has changed, and one of the most rewarding things about recording “The Kiwi House” for Kiwi FM is getting the chance to discover a whole wilderness of local music that I missed as a duckling.
10 NZ tracks that I’m particularly enjoying right now are:
1. The Swingers, “Certain Sound” (this band were so so good, and have some of the best videos of the 80’s in my opinion),
2. Tyson Tyler, “One and Only” (from his lethal debut album ‘Reality Cheque’ out this month),
3. Tape Man, “Kaikoura UFO” (a sci-fi instrumental loaded with p’twang), 4. Los Hories, “Fumes” (a natural born killer from their new EP ‘Don’t Bother Us’).
5. Bic Runga “Captured” (like Luke Skywalker, when Bic strays to the dark side her powers become unimaginable),
6. Blam Blam Blam, “Dr. Who” (yep, the theme tune…oooeeeoooo…),
7. Cyphanetik, “Blaze Em” (a great beat and a valuable lesson to all rappers who can’t cook),
8. Tom Watts, “The Holographic Loveship” (Tom is a Wanganui College student and his music is like Parliament meets Nina Hagen. I love it!),
9. Disasteradio, “Digital Pop” (which turns its listener instantaneously into the star of a John Hughes movie),
10. Rochelle Vinsen, “I Wanna Swim With Him” (just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water -a bizarre standout from the compilation “Here Come the Kiwi Girls [The Sixties]”).
Wrap your ears around that lot and you’ll never look at your fellow countrymen the same again!