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foto.graffito, Wellington (2026)

16/05/2020

Savage | Homegrown | Wellington | 2013

14/05/2020

Kody Nielson w/ The Mint Chicks | CSC | Wellington | 2007

At the beginning of the millennium, from what felt like out of nowhere, Auckland based noise-rock-art-punk four piece The Mint Chicks materialised, injecting new life into a stagnating live scene. Welcomed as a much needed reprieve for party-goers sick of our nation’s full-blown obsession with dance music, the band carved out a well-deserved name for themselves and were quickly signed to endearing indie favourites Flying Nun.

I took this photo of lead singer, Kody Nielson, on the main stage at The Cuba Street Carnival around the time they released their sophomore effort Crazy? Yes! Dumb? No! Using an old Jedi mind trick to get backstage (aka I was lucky enough to know the sound engineer), I managed to capture a few great shots of what was a brilliant and flawless performance. All but ignored by the mainstream until that point, their second album felt polished and very different to previous offerings.

Polarising critics with their aggressive, visceral sound and live persona, you either loved them or hated them; I’ve yet to meet anyone who sits on the fence in regards to an opinion. Kody’s theatric onstage performances epitomized the punk rock ethos of yesteryear; whether he was writhing on the floor like a pained Boa constrictor, hanging upside from a stage rig like a crazed bat or sporadically smashing and breaking whatever was in arm’s reach in mad fits of semi-controlled rage.

As a punk rock, hip hop kid, I had given in to the alluring temptations of Jungle in the late 90’s, and while never dismissing my roots altogether, I admit I was fashionably late to The Mint Chicks party. I heard a handful of offerings though including their debut EP Octagon, Octagon, Octagon which on first listen instantly conjured memories of early era At The Drive-In. Not a bad thing in my opinion.

Sadly, after a decade of producing great music, burning with the power of a hundred suns going supernova, they left us as abruptly as they arrived. A parting message, left on their website the day after they split read “start your own fu***ng band.”

***ngband

12/05/2020

Alister Parker w/ Bailterspace | Powerstation | Auckland | 1995

Born from the ashes of hugely influential band The Gordons, Bailterspace are the undisputed New Zealand pioneers of shoegaze. This three-piece sonic orchestra (consisting of Alister Parker, John Halvorsen and Brent McLachlan) have been creating their signature spatial, multilayered soundscapes together in one form or another, for the best part of forty years.

I first heard The Gordon’s at primary school and have fond memories of pogoing around the living room to Adults and Children, so it came as no surprise to me that my first live Bailterspace experience would be close to biblical (spot the fanboy). I was maybe 18 when I took this photo of Alister while the band were touring their fifth studio album Wammo. The whole show was sonic bliss. While we often use comparisons to explain life’s experiences, at the time, I simply didn’t have one. At a complete loss for words, I remember walking home down Symonds Street in contemplative silence.

Make no mistake, although these lads were eventually signed to Flying Nun (and often lumped in with Dunedin Sound), they were distinctly divergent to the rest of the catalogue. Uncaged in a live environment, they were a different beast altogether. Characteristically louder (much louder) with a more adaptive use of feedback and distortion, their origins can in fact be traced back to the early eighties Christchurch Sound.

Never courting anything resembling commercial, a number of albums have seen the NZ charts, albeit always dancing the fringes. Regardless, the band has grown a well-deserved cult following over the years, jointly releasing work on Flying Nun and infamous American indie label Matador Records from their inception (and in later years on Turnbuckle Records, Arch Hill Music and Fire).

Their last album Trinine was released almost seven years ago now. I can only hope and pray this wasn’t the last we’ll hear from this great New Zealand band.

11/05/2020

Barnaby Weir | St James | Wellington | 2009

Most recognisable as the frontman for New Zealand stalwarts of dub The Black Seeds and the ever-changing supergroup Fly My Pretties, my next featured New Zealand Music Month artist is none other than the musical chameleon Barnaby Weir. Like so many Wellington musicians I’ve known over the years, he remains approachable, humble and dedicated to the mastery of his craft.

I’ve seen Barnaby perform countless times over the past twenty years, alter-ego appearances as Flash Harry, DJ sets, solo performances, fronting the Seeds and Fly My Pretties. Each performance exceptional. Never an off night, never a dull moment, always on point. A consummate professional. I photographed a lot of these events but I chose this picture because to me it encapsulates the essence of this great performer. A born leader and storyteller, he is just at home in the limelight, leading the charge as he is in the shadows, playing a supporting role. Maybe it has something to do with maturing in a big band environment? In this shot he’s hardly even on the stage at all, hiding at the back in the dark, letting someone else take the spotlight.

The Black Seeds, along with the likes of The Hairy Lollies, B**g Master and (the evolution of last said band) Fat Freddy’s Drop would lead the charge in helping to create the big band dub resurgence that would later simply be called the Wellington sound. Over a 20 year career, the band have garnered global platitudes and are renowned for their boundary-crossing fusion of big-beat funk, dub, soul, mixed with vintage roots-reggae. At one point Rolling Stone Magazine even described them as the best reggae band in the world.

Barnaby would go on to work with anyone and everyone in the New Zealand music scene via his super session band/collective Fly My Pretties. Somewhere along the way he found time to release a couple of solo albums as well, just for good measure.

I tip my hat to you good sir. Thank you for your contribution to New Zealand culture.

10/05/2020

The Chills | Shed 6 | Wellington | 2016

A founding father of the Dunedin sound and one of the first bands signed to the seminal New Zealand record label Flying Nun, The Chills (and by default Martin Phillipps) have done more for New Zealand music throughout the years than many would care to admit. Touring the international circuit prolifically through the 80’s and 90’s, Martin took his jangly, psychedelic pop sound to the world and in doing so opened the hearts and minds of a global audience hungry for more of what New Zealand had to offer.

I first heard The Chills (a little earworm called I Love My Leather Jacket) when I was maybe 7 or 8 and I was all at once in love with the sound, however I wouldn’t come to understand its importance until later in my teenage years. The Chills and by extension the entire Flying Nun catalogue would become an integral filter on how I viewed the world of music throughout my formative years.

OK, it’s confession time. I took this photo of Martin touring The Chills album Silver Bullets as part of The New Zealand Festival in 2016. The resulting image is a bit naughty. I had no press pass. I ended up getting a smack on the hand but managed to keep the shots I got. So thank you and at the same time sorry to the NZ Festival. I couldn’t help myself.

Throughout their 40 year history, Martin Phillipps has been the backbone of The Chills. Remaining the only constant band member, he has been joined by at least thirty talented musicians from the NZ indie scene. While pretty much every album The Chills ever released made the NZ music charts, it was their sophomore album Submarine Bells that made it to number 1 in 1990.

The story of The Chills reads partly like a Shakespearean tragedy (albeit with a somewhat happy ending) from the meteoric rise to near-global infamy, a fall from grace to reemergence and reinvention. We all live with regrets and battle our own personal demons and in a touching tribute to this Kiwi icon, the recent music documentary The Chills: The Triumph and Tragedy delves into and answers many of the burning questions plaguing fans for years. Released just last year, I rate this a must-see for any Chills fan.

09/05/2020

Marlon Williams | Mighty Mighty | Wellington | 2012

Next up is singer, songwriter, actor and national treasure Marlon Williams. His velvety, ethereal voice has often been compared to that of the late great Roy Orbison. Regardless of artist comparisons, simply put, Williams possesses one of the most distinctive voices of his generation. In a career spanning more than a decade, he has evolved his universally appealing sound, from humble school choir boy, through 60’s tinged alt kiwi country to the sound we know and love today.

I took this picture of Marlon performing with Delaney Davidson at the one and only Mighty Mighty (RIP) on Cuba Street in December of 2012. Their performance was captivating and otherworldly. The unlikely pairing of Davidson’s gravelly junkyard blues stylings with Williams’ angelic golden tenor was like nothing I’d experienced. Before this duo disbanded in 2013 they managed to effortlessly take out best album and single at the NZ country music awards with their trilogy of works Sad But True: The Secret History of Country Music Songwriting.

Marlon’s debut self-titled album was released in 2015 to critical acclaim, peaking at number 7 in the NZ music charts. Making a deliberate move away from his country roots, his sophomore album Make Way For Love, released three years later in the summer of 2018, became an instant bonafide classic. Consuming the hearts and minds of our little island nation it spent 17 weeks in the charts, deservedly taking out the number 1 spot. The single Nobody Gets What They Want Anymore (featuring Aldous Harding) won the 2018 APRA Silver Scroll award for best song.

To celebrate his third album, Live at The Auckland Town Hall (a recording of his sell-out 2018 show) Marlon will be releasing a video of the live performance for the first time tomorrow, Sunday 10 May 2020, free to air via his page. Be sure to tune in.

08/05/2020

Lisa Tomlins | Capital E | Wellington | 2011

Next up in the NZ Music Month series I’d like to pay homage to one of the hardest working, most enduring session vocalists in our country’s history. An unsung hero of the NZ music scene. The one and only Lisa Tomlins. With a career spanning more than twenty years this versatile and charismatic performer has lent her enchantingly powerful and sultry voice to almost everyone. She has worked with the likes of Rhombus, Hollie Smith, Twinset, Deva Mahal, Shapeshifter, Fat Freddy's Drop, Trinity Roots, Little Bushman, Iva Lamkum, Ebb, Lord Echo, Fly My Pretties, Neil Finn and The Eggs (and I’m only just getting started here). It would probably be easier and much quicker for me to give you a list of NZ bands she hasn’t performed with.

I first saw Lisa sing as part of Ebb in the late ‘90s and the experience was sublime. Since then I’ve been fortunate enough to have witnessed her perform on countless occasions, each time as memorable as the last. I took this photograph of Lisa playing with Lord Echo at Capital E late in the summer of 2011. The event was called Alphabet Street, a school holiday programme facilitated by our mutual friend Lily Chalmers to educate and entertain children through music and craft. As an educator herself, Lisa was in her element and she had the kids (and the adults) in a dream-like trance the whole time she was on the mic.

Back in 2015, an old colleague Simon Sweetman did a phenomenal podcast interview with Lisa, which gives so much depth and insight into this very private soul. Simon sums up Lisa’s musicianship perfectly in the introduction “…she has a way of lifting a track, a certain something in her voice and when you watch her perform live there’s an energy about the way she conveys a song that’s pretty hypnotic, pretty intoxicating.” The interview is still accessible via Simon’s blog, Off The Tracks. I highly recommend you check it out.

Early fans can find a sneaky copy of Ebb’s Plush Bomb EP on Lisa’s Soundcloud, which includes So True (an early remix of Some So True) by the talented DJ Mu of Fat Freddy’s Drop.

And if you’re looking for something to do with your Friday evening, Lisa is performing tonight at 8pm on The House is Open: Live from Wellington alongside poet Tarns Hood, comedian James Nokise and musicians Ingrid Saker and Sea Mouse. This is a Zoom event and tickets are $10 via www.eventbrite.co.nz

07/05/2020

Soane | Liquid Lounge | Hamilton | 2003

Today I’d like to acknowledge and celebrate the life and music of yet another great New Zealand musician taken from us too soon. Tongan born DJ and dance producer Soane Watkins (formally Filitonga) infiltrated dancefloors the world over with his funky, infectious deep house groove. His career saw him DJ with and remix local acts such as Otara Millionaires Club, DLT, Che Fu and King Kapisi and open for international house greats like Mark Farina, Chez Damier, Phil Asher and DJ Q.

I took this picture of Soane in the winter of 2003 at the infamous Liquid Lounge on Hood Street. A fantastic, intimate venue, it played host to most of the best New Zealand house DJ’s of the era. With a capacity of only 150-200 people the place was packed to the rafters. I remember people dancing on the pool table, sweat dripping from the ceiling and my camera lens continuously fogging up. The after-party was a haze, but from memory, it went on until sometime the following evening. Originally shot on colour negative film which has since been lost to the annals of time, this old low-quality digital copy is all that remains of that epic night long ago.

Soane made the move to Sydney in mid-90’s where he forged his signature sound. He returned to Auckland two years later and landed a residency at Calibre on Auckland’s Karangahape Road. It was here that he befriended visiting DJ/producers from Manchester’s Paper Recordings and Blackpool’s Shaboom Records.

Soane would go on to release three singles that made the UK charts over as many years, Go Master, Herringbone and Saxy Beast (made with Dick Johnson). As a member of Troffman, with Dick Johnson and Ben Davis their track, Le Saucier, was a huge dancefloor hit in the UK at the turn of the millennium.

Around the same time Soane’s track Big Al G became a massive underground hit in clubs around the country (anyone remember that tune?), but due to an uncleared sample by Al Green it sadly never made the transition from the dancefloor to vinyl.

Soane’s first full-lenght album Tongan Chic was released by In Music in 2004, it spent 4 weeks in the NZ music charts and peaked at number 23.

A small collection of his very last originals and remixes can still be enjoyed on Soundcloud including a touching tribute to his daughter and a stellar remix of Shiverman by Fat Freddy’s Drop.

06/05/2020

Darcy Clay | Albert Park | Auckland | circa 1996

Gone far too soon, this hero of the kiwi number 8 wire ethos forged a cult following in the New Zealand music scene in the mid-‘90s with his no-fi, do-it-yourself, one-man-band mentality. Darcy Clay (born Daniel Bolton) appeared out of nowhere with his hit single Jesus I Was Evil, a song recorded on a four-track tape in his bedroom. His music has been described as country-fried punk rock; an unpolished, raw and stripped back sound forged by a myriad of influences from hair metal to Beethoven. Call it what you will, his sound is infectious and timeless, as enjoyable and accessible today as the time it was released.

I was maybe 17 when I took this candid snap of Daniel playing the bFM Summer Series in Auckland’s Albert Park. And while a number of well-known bands took the stage that day, it felt like everyone was there to see the enigma that was Darcy Clay. He only played five or six live shows in his short career, and I managed to catch him twice (the second time was opening for Blur at the North Shore Events Centre in October of ‘97). To this day, Jolene remains my favourite cover of a Dolly song ever recorded.

Clay only produced one 6 track EP in his lifetime which etched its way into the fabric of our audible culture. Jesus I Was Evil went to number five in the national charts and Darcy posthumously won Most Promising Male Vocalist at the New Zealand Music Awards in 1998.

More than twenty years after his death, his inspiration still ripples through the kiwi underground. And while he has influenced many, there will only ever be one Darcy Clay.

05/05/2020

Jon Toogood w/ Shihad | Town Hall | Wellington | 2008

Here in New Zealand these lads are as kiwi as gumboots, marmite or pavlova. The most enduring and hard-working name in kiwi rock history, Shihad recently finished a sold-out 30th anniversary tour of NZ, Australia and the UK.

The night I took this picture of Jon was epic on so many levels. The resulting image was taken on my last ever roll of Neopan 1600 (for photo geeks in the know; the most beautiful high-speed black and white film ever made). Having just dropped their 8th studio album (Beautiful Machine), Wellington’s favourite sons were playing their local Town Hall for the second time. The show had sold out in less than a day and the atmosphere was nothing short of electric. Shihad are best enjoyed live because they are, without a doubt, one of the best sounding live bands this country has ever produced. Hell, I’ve seen a few bands in my time. I’ve probably been to more gigs than I’ve had hot dinners and for me personally, they’re in the top 10 live acts of ALL time.

During their recording career, Shihad has produced five number-one studio albums, holding the title for most number one records for any New Zealand artist. At the 2010 New Zealand Music Awards Shihad won the Legacy Award and were inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame.

The band consists of Jon Toogood (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Phil Knight (lead guitar, synthesiser, backing vocals), Karl Kippenberger (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Tom Larkin (drums, backing vocals, samplers). They truly are the nicest bunch of guys you could ever meet and have remained humble and human, apparently untouched by the negative trimmings that fame can often imbue on those thrust into the limelight.

If you’re looking for things to watch at the moment, a documentary film about the band, Shihad: Beautiful Machine (released 2012) is well worth viewing.

***ngrock

04/05/2020

Ladi 6 | Summerset | Wellington | 2007

My next featured guest for New Zealand Music Month really doesn’t need an introduction. She’s Aotearoa hip-hop royalty. Her distinct lyrical flow and conscious hip hop stylings fused with angelic soul captivated the hearts of her listeners from day one.

I took this photo of Ladi6 (with her on and off-stage partner Brent Park) late in the summer of 2007 as the rain began to fall on the crowds gathered at the Basin Reserve in the heart of Wellington. In true Wellington fashion, this didn’t stop the fans from getting their groove on. And get their groove on they did. Ladi 6’s stage presence is spellbinding.

Fast forward to 2020 and Ladi 6 has 3 full-length albums under her belt, a number of EP’s, and she’s showing no signs of slowing down. Of note, her second album The Liberation Of... (which spent 36 weeks in the NZ top 40 charts; peaking at number 6) took out the 2011 Taite Music Prize and in the same year she won five New Zealand Music Awards including best female solo artist, best urban/hip hop album and best Pacific female artist.

Karoline Tamati aka Ladi 6 started her musical career in Christchurch in 1999 at the age of 16 as part of the hip-hop group Sheelahroc. Signed to Footnote Records, the group released the hit track If I Gave You Th’ Mic which saw Ladi nominated for Best Vocalist/MC at the 2003 bNet Music Awards. After the group disbanded in 2002, Ladi 6 formed Verse Two (the band consisted of Brent Park, her cousin Scribe and almost half of Shapeshifter). Before releasing her debut album in 2008, Karoline had lent her voice to some of our finest acts collaborating with the likes of Scribe, Fat Freddy’s, Shapeshifter, Fly My Pretties and 4 Corners to name but a few.

03/05/2020

King Kapisi | Newtown Community Center | Sydney | 2001

New Zealand born Samoan Bill Urale aka King Kapisi was at the forefront of the second generation of hip-hop in Aotearoa, fusing Pacifica beats with contemporary hip-hop elements to create a sound uniquely his own.

I took this photo in Sydney, Australia in 2001 when Bill was touring his debut album with Manuel Bundy. He later signed a copy of the print “Sic photo uso, respect, King Kapisi.”

Respect to you Bill. Thank you for your contribution to our music, our culture, our way of life.

Bill began rapping under the name Bran Muffin in the 90’s with Wellington crew Gifted and Brown, which had some success and a number of singles. One of which, So Much Soul ended up on the soundtrack of a little wee kiwi flick you may have heard of, Once Were Warriors. In the late 90’s he moved to Auckland where he was part of Token Village. It was at this point Bill changed his stage name to King Kapisi and started working on his own material with DJ/producer Andy Morton (aka Submariner).

Bill’s second single Reverse Resistance won the APRA Silver Scroll in 1999, making King Kapisi the first hip-hop artist to ever win this award. In 2000 he released his critically acclaimed debut album Savage Thoughts which peaked at #9 on the national charts.

A celebrated veteran of the hip-hop community with a career spanning more than 20 years, Bill, through reinvention, has more than proven himself again and again to be one of our finest, most versatile musicians. Stepping back from the microphone in recent years, Bill has taken on the new moniker Mr Majesty which has allowed him to explore his passion for DJing and producing dancehall and reggae.

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