Blackout Music NZ

28/08/2026

New Single Release👏

IRISH SINGER-SONGWRITER DÓNAL GUNNING DROPS NEW SINGLE ‘BREATHING’ – AN ANTHEMIC CELEBRATION OF LIFE

Dublin-born, Aotearoa-based artist Dónal Gunning is gearing up for the release of his debut album NO OTHER OPTION this October, with new single ‘BREATHING’, offering the first taste of what’s to come.

https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/dnalgunning/breathing

Since moving to New Zealand in 2022 to pursue music full-time, Dónal has been steadily building his place in the local scene – releasing two EP’s and a string of singles, touring nationally twice, and his debut international tour of Ireland.

‘Breathing’ is a song about wanting more out of life. It’s about escape, connection and those moments when you’re looking for something – or someone – to make you feel fully alive again.

Imbuing a restless, carefree and fun energy, ‘Breathing’ has the vibe of an unforgettable road trip with celebratory champagne-fuelled nights and the feeling that there’s always something happening just around the corner. With a catchy, anthemic chorus, the song turns the simple act of breathing into a metaphor for letting go, reconnecting with yourself, and finally being able to breathe. There’s a pure pop sensibility to the melody, while the song also carries the grit and attitude of Dónal’s rock and grunge influences.

If you’ve seen Dónal live, you’ll know that the energy doesn’t stop when the record does. He’s a natural performer with a knack for bringing a room together – part Irish charm, part rock ‘n’ roll mischief, and a whole lotta fun. Dónal and his band THE BUCKS, will be hitting the road across New Zealand this summer, bringing ‘Breathing’ and the new album to stages around the country.

After a few years of finding his feet in Aotearoa, Dónal Gunning is ready to make some noise, and ‘Breathing’ is an excellent place to start.

NEW SINGLE ‘BREATHING’ OUT TODAY

DEBUT ALBUM NO OTHER OPTION OUT TUESDAY 27 OCTOBER
Donal Gunning

Blackout Music NZ

Stream and Pre-save Breathing - Distributed by DistroKid

27/08/2026

New Music Release

After a difficult seven years away from music, Ōtautahi-based artist KARLESHIA breaks their silence with ‘Holy Low’, the first single from their forthcoming debut EP CHURCH TRAUMA, set for release Friday 30 October.😍

https://snd.click/q6z5

Crossing genre divides between indie, alt-folk and dark-ambient song-writing, Karleshia creates immersive emotionally driven music that blends intimate lyricism, cinematic atmosphere, and a raw, potent vocal presence.

An emotionally unflinching track, ‘Holy Low’ introduces an artist who is making a return to music following a life-altering and devastating break with the church. The former worship leader has emerged years later, having processed and turned their trauma into a powerful body of songs exploring faith, identity, sexuality and the difficult work of finding your way back to yourself.

‘Holy Low’ is a beautifully visceral track, showcasing Karleshia’s soaring and otherworldly vocal. The lyrical content speaks to a complicated and highly personal reckoning of their faith, and the chasm between what they was taught to believe in, and the treatment they eventually experienced within that community.

‘Holy Low’ is the first glimpse into a body of work that emerged from that cognitive dissonance of their faith, and is the first track off their upcoming debut EP CHURCH TRAUMA, four brutally honest tracks that strip back the searingly painful realities of losing the faith you have built your life and identity around.

With their identity in music firmly aligned with their involvement in church, ‘Holy Low’ serves as a searing critique of the structural patriarchal bias, hierarchies and contradictions they experienced from church leaders after spending over a decade devoted to and immersed in, their church community.

The single reveals the painful realities of religious exploitation, written from Karleshia’s first-hand experience of feeling used by a church movement at too young an age to realise it.

Says Karleshia: “‘Holy Low’ is about the perils of being invested in a church movement so young that I did not realise I was being used. Lines like "Here's your pedestal, in my image" are a blatant reflection on all the hard work I felt I had put in, only for some married man to be seen as better than me and that all my work, faith, and effort was in vain”.

‘Holy Low’ is not simply a song about leaving a church. It is the sound of someone taking back their voice back after being told they no longer had a place to use it. And after seven years of silence, KARLESHIA now has plenty to say.

‘HOLY LOW’ is available on all major streaming platforms from today.

KARLESHIA - debut EP CHURCH TRAUMA

Stories About Leaving, Healing, And Coming Home To Yourself.
Due out Friday 30 October

Karleshia Blackout Music NZ

27/08/2026

26/08/2026

HEAVY ALT-METAL ROCK OUTFIT HAAST HUNTER ANNOUNCE DEBUT ALBUM PLASTIQUE 👏

https://music.drm.co.nz/plastique

Formidable Kirikiriroa / Hamilton four-piece HAAST HUNTER, today release their debut studio album PLASTIQUE, ten tracks of heavy-hitting hard rock and powerful metalcore that blurs the line between crushing heaviness and haunting atmosphere.

PLASTIQUE is the sonic home for a string of recent blistering singles from the band, including title track ‘Plastique’, ‘Soul(e)Scape’ and ‘Dead Moon’, and featuring album focus track ‘Chrysalis’ – watch the new video from Ten Of Swords HERE.

Blending visceral riffs, cinematic production, and emotionally charged storytelling, the album marks a defining moment for the ferocious quartet, with the introduction of a new vocalist Sinaea Elizabeth alongside founding member James Harper (vocals/guitar); Chris Gudsell (bass); and Mitch Walker (drums).

With renowned Producer Scott Seabright at the helm, together Elizabeth and Harper create a dynamic vocal contrast, both moving effortlessly between vulnerability and aggression to give the album an emotional weight that feels both intimate and panoramic.

PLASTIQUE is more than an emotionally charged collection of songs - it’s a concept album set within Haast Hunter’s dystopian ‘Post System’ universe. Every track contributes to a larger narrative, taking listeners from deep feelings of internal conflict to the triumph of eventual transformation.

Examining identity in an age of performance and pretense, PLASTIQUE considers the psychological cost of modern life, and the search for meaning after personal and societal collapse. Themes of mental health, addiction, transformation, grief, and hope are woven through towering riffs, ambient electronics, soaring melodies, and crushing breakdowns.

Since emerging from New Zealand’s underground heavy scene, Haast Hunter have steadily built a reputation for emotionally resonant song-writing and cinematic live performances, combining modern alt-metal with contemporary metalcore.

This is a fast-rising band who unapologetically craft songs that are as immersive as they are explosive, and PLASTIQUE is an album that firmly cements Haast Hunter as one of Aotearoa’s most exciting and compelling new heavy acts.

PLASTIQUE will be available worldwide on all major streaming platforms from August 27, 2026

PLASTIQUE Track Listing:
1 ‘Plastique’
2 ‘Soul(e)scape’
3 ‘Reflections’
4 ‘Chrysalis’
5 ‘Dead Moon’
6 ‘Then Why’
7 ‘World I Knew’
8 ‘Lost Now Found’
9 ‘Bleed And Release’
10 ‘Curtain Fall’

Haast Hunter
Blackout Music NZ


A youtube fan comment for the video out today 😀
This goes incredibly hard 🔥🔥 gonna be listening to the album on repeat all day and then again for the rest of my life 🖤🦅

Written by Haast HunterProduced by Scott SeabrightVideo produced...

26/08/2026

One for the dads.

7 & 8 Nov | Auckland Spark Arena

07/08/2026

26/07/2026

On behalf to TEG Live Blackout Music NZ announces...

SYSTEM OF A DOWN ANNOUNCE MONUMENTAL NEW ZEALAND STADIUM SHOW FOR 2027 WITH SPECIAL GUESTS
FAITH NO MORE 👏

Following the massive sell-out success of their recent EU/UK Summer Stadium Tour (with back to back sell outs in Paris, London, and Warsaw), GRAMMY Award-winning rock icons SYSTEM OF A DOWN will return to New Zealand for their first headline tour in over a decade. Bringing with them FAITH NO MORE, this event will celebrate two of the most influential and uncompromising bands in rock history.

Following on from an Australian run of stadium shows, the only New Zealand performance is scheduled for Waitangi weekend at Wellington’s Hnry Stadium on Sunday 7 February.

Tickets go on sale to the general public on Friday 31 July 2026 at 11am NZST, via https://systemofadown.ticketek.com.au/
following the Artist Presale, which begins 28 July for those opted into the SOAD and FNM mailing lists.

Few bands have defined heavy music like SYSTEM OF A DOWN. Since emerging onto the global stage with their self-titled debut, the four-piece have become one of the most distinctive and impactful bands of the past three decades. With era-defining albums such as their seminal release, Toxicity, the band have sold over 42 million albums worldwide. Renowned for their ferocious performances and inimitable musicianship, seeing SOAD live is an electrifying experience; equal parts chaos, catharsis and celebration. New Zealand fans can expect an enormous career-spanning set packed with the songs that have become the soundtrack to generations of rock and metal fans around the globe.

Joining them are the incomparable FAITH NO MORE, whose fearless fusion of alternative rock, metal, funk, punk and experimental music forever changed the landscape of heavy music. With classics such as “Epic” and “Midlife Crisis”, the band's influence continues to reverberate through countless artists across multiple genres.

Together, these two colossal acts promise unforgettable performances packed with culture-defining anthems in what is set to become one of the biggest live music events in New Zealand history.

The one-off show in New Zealand is proudly supported by the Government’s Events Attraction Package. “This is exactly the kind of concert that demonstrates the value of investing in a broad range of international, showstopper events. SYSTEM OF A DOWN is a globally renowned band in the rock and metal genre, and their passionate fan base is expected to draw visitors from around the country and beyond, delivering real benefits to Wellington's hospitality and tourism sector,” says Tourism and Hospitality Minister Louise Upston.

WellingtonNZ GM Events & Experiences, Heidi Morton says: “We’re amped to welcome this New Zealand exclusive to Wellington - Aotearoa has a great rock and metal fanbase, and we’re confident of a sell-out crowd at Hnry Stadium. With the concert over Waitangi weekend, visitors can enjoy more of Wellington. One night you're headbanging, the next you're grabbing a b**r on Cuba Street, browsing for vinyl, and swapping the band tee for boardies while getting sun at the beach. That's a great Wellington weekend, and we're looking forward to welcoming people from across the motu.”

For tickets and more information, visit https://teglive.com.au/

16/07/2026

Great read and album review from Simon Sweetman Substack about the upcoming Joe Jackson NZ tour.
Thanks!

Destroy All Lines

Friday is about music — so links and playlists. Today, I’m so excited about Joe Jackson. Is He Really Going Out of His Way to Play In New Zealand Again? YES!