Great Rock and Roll doesn't just happen. It's made. With sweat, swagger and the swilling of alcohol. And Zed makes rock the way it should be made. Loud guitars, a dose of whiskey and a middle finger. San Francisco Bay Area's Zed takes it cues from the greats like Zeppelin, Sabbath and AC/DC, and mixes them with their other musical influences such as Clutch, Rage Against the Machine and Queens of the Stone Age.
Midnight Youth are a New Zealand rock band formed in 2006. Their debut album, The Brave Don't Run, was released in 2009 in New Zealand and Australia. The band have subsequently toured and played festivals across Australasia, the United States and Asia. Their second studio album, World Comes Calling, was released in New Zealand in November 2011 and independently worldwide (exc. Australia).
David Dallas (born August 28 in Papatoetoe, Auckland) is an award winning New Zealand rapper and producer, formerly known as Con Psy, signed to P-Money's Dirty Records. He released his debut EP Something Now in 2008, and then his debut solo album, Something Awesome, was released in August 2009. His second next album, The Rose Tint, was released in May 2011 and featured appearances from Freddie Gibbs, PNC and Buckshot. He is also half of the award winning duo Frontline, who were the recipients of the New Zealand Music Awards Best Hip Hop Album award in 2006 for their album Borrowed Time.
The Brunettes were formed in Auckland, New Zealand in 1998 by musical couple Jonathan Bree and Heather Mansfield. They were a paradox from the beginning - creating boy/girl melodramatic pop inspired by 70s New York punk and 60s girl groups but surrounded in an Auckland scene of opiate-infused garage rock 'n' roll. Inspired by his dreams of domestic bliss while a teenager living in rat infested junkie flats, and in direct rebellion to the messy hair...
Gliding vocals dance over the top of guitars picked and strummed, and harmonies weave amongst the beauty of it all. Banjos, a bass, and a minimal drum kit complete the picture and the songs soar and fall, sometimes evoking sad feelings, sometimes stirring the heart with a gravelly punch. Where do you put Flip Grater? Somewhere along the lines of an alt-country songstress experimenting with indie music, and the grittier side of pop.
There are two bands called The Phoenix Foundation; one from New Zealand and a lesser-known act from Finland. New Zealand's The Phoenix Foundation formed in Wellington, New Zealand by founding members Conrad Wedde, Sam Scott and Luke Buda in 1997. They were joined by Tim Hansen (bass), Richie Singleton (drums) and Will Ricketts (percussion) in 2001. After playing for several years they released the China Cove EP.
Anika Moa (born 21st May 1980) is a singer-songwriter from Christchurch, New Zealand. While still at school in Christchurch, Moa entered the 'Smokefree Rockquest'.
She received a record deal with Warner Music in New Zealand and Atlantic Records in New York. The record company had big commercialized plans for her - which conflicted with her brash down-to-earth personality. Overall Moa did not enjoy her time in America and returned to base herself in New Zealand. Her first album was released in 2001.
Surf City first came in to existence when bored friends Davin Stoddard and Josh Kennedy met at a party in Mt Roskill, Auckland, New Zealand in 2004. Tired of the heavy avant-garde music that was prolific at the time Stoddard and Kennedy teamed up with Josh
The Clean were an influential band that formed in Dunedin, New Zealand in 1978, inspired by punk filtering through to the relatively isolated New Zealand, as well as the classic '60s influences. Led through a number of early rotating line-ups by brothers Hamish and David Kilgour, the band settled down to the well-known line-up with bassist Robert Scott. Early incarnations of the Clean included Peter Gutteridge, later of the Chills, Snapper and others, and who wrote "Point That Thing"...
Samoan artist King Kapisi aka Bill Urale was the first Polynesian hip-hop artist to receive the prestigious APRA Silver Scroll Award for Songwriter of the Year for his single Reverse Resistance in 1999. King Kapisi has released three albums, Savage Thoughts (2000) and 2nd Round Testament (2003) and Dominant Species (2005) they were released in Australia with local sales hitting the gold status mark. The award-winning artist was nominated for 13 awards at the 2001 New Zealand B.Net Awards and took home seven of the prizes including Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Music Video.