FEATURE | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Polly Wenlock (she/her) | @p0lly2001 on Substack | Contributing Writer Local music surrounds us constantly, though it may not be in forms we tend to celebrate or even acknowledge. I’m not just talking about your classic Kiwi chilled-out-summer-vibes garage-band, though they too deserve their accolades… I’m talking seasonal mall carollers, your optimistic main-street busker, the man who plays the bugle at your l

AUT VENTURES | ISSUE FOUR/20 | RONGOĀ / DRUGS When you think about the local music scene, your mind probably jumps straight to packed gigs on Karangahape Road, Spotify wrapped stats, or the latest releases shaping Aotearoa’s soundscape. You probably don’t picture a nasal congestion device. But sometimes, the way we connect to sound happens completely by accident, especially when it collides with everyday innovation. Enter Goodair® Nosebuds. Born from AUT research led by Dr. D

TE AO MĀORI | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Skye Lunson-Storey (she/they/ia) | Whakatōhea, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Tūwharetoa | @uku_rangi | Arts, Culture, and Te Ao Māori Editor I like to think of te hau, the wind, as one of life's first voices. As I close my eyes, I imagine the sounds of Tāwhirimātea singing through the mountainous landscapes of Aotearoa. Breathing mauri through all that te hau touches. From a young age, I have been captivated by th

COLUMN | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Ricky Lai (he/him) | @rickthelai on IG & Letterboxd | Columnist Music and movies pair together like Marlborough wine and Eltham cheese. For this issue’s film column, I’ve plucked out three song lyrics from present-day Aotearoa and partnered them with films that, to me, evoke those words. Yojimbo (Akira Kurosawa, 1961) Song: Avantdale Bowling Club, Friday Night @ The Liquor Store (2022) The lyric: “The best of We

INTERVIEW | QUEER ARTIST'S TREE | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Interview by Maebh McCurdy (she/her) | @leighapparently | Trans Music Aotearoa Interview with A.V Des Forges (she/her) | @vraikalzre | Musician, producer, & animator Welcome to the first edition of Queer Artists’ Tree. A column where I sit in a tree (not really) with a queer artist based in Tāmaki Makaurau and talk to them about their craft, and how their queerness interacts with their artistry. Thi

COLUMN | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC By P. Walters | Contributor I never liked getting my haircut as a child. I don’t remember when that started, maybe 5 or 6. I don’t know why - I just didn’t like it. The whole thing. The drive there. Getting out of the car. Walking into whichever cursed place, Salon or Barber. It need not matter - for my crown is sacred. I never minded growing my hair out - but no one asked me what I wanted. This is the first time in my lif

FEATURE | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Darian Serrano (he/him) | @gumvoid | Contributor Photos by y Sandy Hughes | @spacecadetsandy Hardcore music is a heavier subgenre of punk that also has influences from metal and hip-hop. It emphasises heavy breakdowns, screaming vocals, and faster tempos, while discussing a variety of topics, from the personal to current geopolitical issues. The genre is also known for its violently high-energy shows and unique,

COLUMN | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Luke Fisher (he/him) | @lukefish7__ | Sports Columnist This piece is set to be a bit of a boomer-esque grumble, so I thought I’d bring in the big guns. The other day, I messaged my dad (he’s very tech-savvy) asking him what he thought about music at live sports events. Having heard him consistently moan about it throughout most of my childhood, his response was somewhat predictable: “Shit, except for Bumble belti

FEATURE | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Ethan Worthington (he/him) | Contributing Writer Awning - Seeing a band live eight times in one year could be seen as insane or financially stupid. But you see, Awning isn’t just a band; they’re a portal to a sonic wonderland where I escape from everything. Every time I see Awning play live, I shut my eyes and mentally swim through their magical compositions. Poetic lyrics, layers upon layers of mystically tuned

INTERVIEW | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC An Interview with Maebh McCurdy (she/her) | @leighapparently | Contributor Interviewed by Finn Johansson (he/him) | @finnjohansson2006 | Contributor Transcribed and edited by Tashi Donnelly (she/her) | @tashi_rd | Editor-in-Chief In this interview, Finn Johansson sits down with Maebh McCurdy to talk chaotic songwriting, buried punchlines, and the strange alchemy of turning dreams into music. Find yourself a nice tree to

FEATURE | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Jey Min Lam 林洁敏 (they/them) | @_jeymin | Contributing Writer It becomes exceedingly tough to live in true tandem with your culture, the one that feels like home, when you find more belonging in the Western sphere than you ever had in your place of origin. I can’t go home without feeling like I no longer belong, yet I am no doubt still an outsider in New Zealand. I don’t know its ins and outs, its unspoken rules,

TE AO MĀORI | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Ivy Lyden-Hancy (she/her/ia) | @tekaraipiture | Contributing Writer There has been a wave of new sounds, aesthetics, and lyricism that is reshaping how we, as a nation, see music. Artists nationwide are stepping into their artistry, showing us what the future sound of Aotearoa is. I am privileged to be in spaces surrounded by these talented artists. People I call my friends and family have shaped how I see m

CULTURE | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Te Atamea Boynton (she/her) | Tūhoe, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Ruapani | @tayatamea Contributing Writer When I hear a waiata, my taringa lock in. I catch a sound and want to know what it is. What instrument, how it’s been made. I jump on the rorohiko and start searching, moving from track to track, going down a rabbit hole of endless buzzy hardware until I’m somewhere completely different from where I started. Mu

NEWS | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Written by Liam Hansen (they/them) | @liamhanse.n | Associate Editor Marlon Williams - Image courtesy of Independent Music New Zealand The Taite Music Prize has held stature as Aotearoa music's scrappiest little award show for over a decade and a half. With New Zealand Music Month just around the corner, indie musicians packed into the intimate Q Theatre, celebrating the incredible records of 2026 whilst keeping all award win

INTERVIEW | ISSUE FIVE | PUORO O AOTEAROA / LOCAL MUSIC Interview with Arabella Devine (she/her) | @_ringlets | Interviewed by Mads Bradley (she/her) | @shutupmads Debate Mag: What’s something about the music industry that’s surprised you since being part of the scene and growing as a band? Arabella: Oh, there’ve been a few surprises for sure. One thing I’d been made aware of recently is how people want to assume that if there’s one female member in the band, then she must b