The Famous Elsewhere Questionnaire
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THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE WOMAD QUESTIONNAIRE: David Krahe of Los Coronas
4 Mar 2014 | 1 min read
Guitarist David Krahe of the Spanish band Los Coronos wants to make one thing very clear, “We are not a flamenco band”. Certainly not. These guys kick in with twanging surf-influenced rock'n'roll with a Fifties/Sixties attitude and a distinctively Spanish sound woven through. Since forming in Madrid in 1991 they have released four albums, toured widely in... > Read more
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Pokey LaFarge
3 Mar 2014 | 2 min read
American roots musician Pokey LaFarge sounds considerably older in his music than his 31 years. He reaches back to the days of Woody Guthrie in the Dustbowl Days, early ragtime, Western Swing, oldtime country blues and folk ballads for his inspiration. And with clicked back hair and the lean demeanor of Hank Williams he also looks the part. But he insists his is not a retro... > Read more
Central Time
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Will McGrath of Jackal
26 Feb 2014 | 2 min read
Late last year Auckland band Jackal released their fourth album since 2009 (fourth!) and again offered it as a free download from bandcamp. Because Elsewhere took a well-earned break around that time, that new album Castle in the Air (also available on limited edition green vinyl) went right by us . . . but the band's drummer Will McGrath is a man of infinite patience and politeness... > Read more
Big Top
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Stephen Heard of Clap Clap Riot
24 Feb 2014 | 2 min read
New Zealand band Clap Clap Riot have had -- for two terrific albums now -- a mainline into edgy pop which works around those core values of energy, economy and indivduality. Their debut album Counting Spins was one of the most impressive albums of 2012 and their new one Nobody/Everybody sounds like its heading for the same list at the end of this year. So let's just cut to the chase,... > Read more
Sweet Patricia
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE JAZZ QUESTIONNAIRE: Phil Davison
3 Feb 2014 | 7 min read
Phil Davison tells a funny story of his first performance at the Tauranga Jazz Festival. It was 1976 and he was just 17, and into playing free jazz with a small ensemble. However the band broke up just before the festival and he decided to literally go it alone. He hitched to Tauranga and played a free form solo set. "In my performance I do my best to channel Coltrane, Albert... > Read more
Can I Get a Witness
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Sean, Grant and Devon of Ocean Full of Fins
22 Jan 2014 | 2 min read
Quite how and why the rocking Canadian three-piece OFOF would tour New Zealand (see dates below) and play for free is an interesting question. But not one we need trouble ourselves with. Because they are playing for free. And there just isn't enough free stuff in the world. It is said they are gathering material for an album to be entitled Three to Kiwi (their previous one is... > Read more
Killing Floor
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Shaun Kirk
21 Jan 2014 | 2 min read
Young Australian blues musician Shaun Kirk comes with very good credentials -- he's played half a dozen festivals in the past 18 months alongside the likes of Robert Plant, Bonnie Raitt and Ben Harper -- and he has an impressive wee discography also. His latest outing is the Giving EP on which a new song Give to the Needy shows his heart is also in the right place. In fact a portion of... > Read more
You Don't Know Me
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE JAZZ QUESTIONNAIRE: Reuben Bradley
9 Dec 2013 | 2 min read
The name of drummer/arranger Reuben Bradley has appeared many times at Elsewhere, but because Elsewhere can't be everywhere we missed one major mention this year. He masterminded, played on and produced the album Mantis; The Music of Drew Menzies which was a tribute to the life and music of the late Menzies and which pulled jazz and classical threads together by employing jazz and string... > Read more
Meeting at Union Square
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Joe Sampson of T54
28 Nov 2013 | 2 min read
One of the most exciting new bands on Flying Nun, T54 take their name from a famous series of Eastern European battle tanks which began being manufactured at the tail end of World War II. Why? Doesn't matter, but they do come at you with real firepower . . . although this trio from Christchurch also know when to pull back, which makes their debut album In Brush Park (reviewed here) such a... > Read more
AC Parade
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Arli Liberman
25 Nov 2013 | 3 min read
Because Elsewhere has long had a fascination with music from the Middle East region -- we tell you repeatedly to never judge a bellydance album by its cover -- the self-titled album by Israeli-born rock guitarist Arli Liberman, now resident in New Zealand, was always going to stand out from the pack. According to his bio, Liberman has appeared on some pretty big stages in his time, notably... > Read more
Dizengoff
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Kelly Joe Phelps
14 Nov 2013 | 3 min read
Although The Edge from U2 is on record saying, "Kelly Joe Phelps is a great example of what the modern blues is all about" there's a lot more to the man than that, as his answers below illustrate. From Washington state, Phelps started out in jazz as a bassist for 10 years but then worked his way into various kinds of roots music when picking up slide guitar. He must be one the... > Read more
Sometimes a Drifter
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Charlotte Ivey and Harley Williams of The Tiny Lies
12 Nov 2013 | 3 min read
The Tiny Lies who are based in Lyttelton but are currently touring (see dates below) describe the music on their debut album The Oaks They Wil Bow as "alt-folk-country-noir". At Elsewhere we'll buy that. But we'll also call it very good indeed (see review here). The Tiny Lies are Charlotte Ivey (vocals, harmonica, piano) and Harley Williams (Vocals, guitars) and for their... > Read more
The Walls Came Down
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Matthew Bannister
10 Nov 2013 | 3 min read
Matthew Bannister has some serious form, as they say. A founder member of the singular Flying Nun band Sneaky Feelings, he then formed Dribbling Darts of Love when SFeelings folded, and subsequently founded the Weather and has also recorded as One Man Bannister. Oh, and there was also the Changing Same. He is a Beatles fan from childhood -- he said the Sneaky Feelings photo on the... > Read more
And Your Bird Can Sing
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THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Rhian Sheehan
28 Oct 2013 | 3 min read
New Zealand electronica artists Rhian Sheehan has steered an astute path between experimental and ambient, orchestrated and elemental music, and as a result has been picking up acclaim from the main thread of electronica artists and also for his soundtrack work. One of his works, We Are Astronomers, is used by Britain's National Space Centre and is played in digital planeteriums around the... > Read more
Rhian Sheehan: Places Between
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Eddie Rayner
21 Oct 2013 | 3 min read
For the briefest moment Elsewhere considered adding "of Split Enz" after Eddie Rayner's name at the top. But that goes without saying and, in many ways, is far too limiting. Since the heyday of Split Enz, the keyboardist without portfolio has built up an impressive CV which includes work with artists as diverse as Paul McCartney and The Orb, Crowded House and the Exponents. He... > Read more
Stuff N' Nonsense
THE FAMOUS ELSEWHERE QUESTIONNAIRE: Nick Raven
13 Oct 2013 | 3 min read
Young New Zealand singer-songwriter Nick Raven says something about his debut album Love and Lomography which piques Elsewhere's interest immediately: it's not only available on download but also on vinyl . . . and cassette. That's a kind of when-worlds-collide scenario -- done in what he calls "a fit of nostalgic and tactile madness" -- but the 19-year old is serious. He's... > Read more
Talk
THE ELSEWHERE SONGWRITER QUESTIONNAIRE: Apra Silver Silver Scroll 2013 nominee Pete Wadams
5 Oct 2013 | 2 min read
The annual APRA Silver Scroll award acknowledges excellence in songwriting, so at Elsewhere we modified our Famous Elsewhere Questionnaire and tailored it to be specifically about the craft of songwriting for this year's five finalists. These five were decided by the 10,000 strong APRA membership – all songwriters or composers themselves – who voted for their champion for... > Read more
THE ELSEWHERE SONGWRITER QUESTIONNAIRE: APRA Silver Scroll nominee 2013 Aaradhna
4 Oct 2013 | 2 min read
The annual APRA Silver Scroll award acknowledges excellence in songwriting, so at Elsewhere we modified our Famous Elsewhere Questionnaire and tailored it to be specifically about the craft of songwriting for this year's five finalists. These five were decided by the 10,000 strong APRA membership – all songwriters or composers themselves – who voted for their champion for... > Read more
THE ELSEWHERE SONGWRITER QUESTIONNAIRE: APRA Silver Scroll nominee 2013 Joel Little
3 Oct 2013 | 3 min read
The annual APRA Silver Scroll award acknowledges excellence in songwriting, so at Elsewhere we modified our Famous Elsewhere Questionnaire and tailored it to be specifically about the craft of songwriting for this year's five finalists. These five were decided by the 10,000 strong APRA membership – all songwriters or composers themselves – who voted for their champion for... > Read more
THE ELSEWHERE SONGWRITER QUESTIONNAIRE: APRA Silver Scroll nominee 2013 Cy Winstanley of Tattletale Saints
2 Oct 2013 | 2 min read
The annual APRA Silver Scroll award acknowledges excellence in songwriting, so at Elsewhere we modified our Famous Elsewhere Questionnaire and tailored it to be specifically about the craft of songwriting for this year's five finalists. These five were decided by the 10,000 strong APRA membership – all songwriters or composers themselves – who voted for their champion for... > Read more