New Zealand Music News — New Music

Soft Plastics / Photo by Lewis Ferris On the eve of their performance at Tāmaki Makaurau's Others Way Festival, Pōneke-based indie outfit Soft Plastics (Sophie Scott-Maunder, Jonathan Shirley, and Laura Robinson) have released a new track - 'Easy To Forget'.  "'Easy to Forget' was our attempt at writing a happy indie-pop song", says lead vocalist Sophie Scott-Maunder. "The song is about being in a long-distance relationship, discovering how to be alone without forgetting who you left behind.""I came up with the intro and verse riff while I was falling asleep. I brought it to Sophie and we wrote the chorus and pieced...

Princess Chelsea and Jonathan Bree / photo via Lil' Chief Jonathan Bree and Princess Chelsea have reunited to celebrate Lil' Chief Records' 20th Anniversary with a new song - 'Destiny'. The song takes strides away from the whimsical world of 'The Cigarette Duet' and the sunshine pop of 'Kiss My Lips' to dive head-first into darker, more minimal waves that feel colder than usual  - yet as fun as ever.    The pair's hushed vocals infectiously fold amongst pulsating bases and sweet, melodious synths. Bree and PC singing the words together, as label mates and ex-lovers, paints the song a deeper shade of blue, the track's 80's pastiche glossing it all over...

Tūrangi-based electro-punk aficionado, and SRN Awards finalist for Te Tohu Kaipuoro Toa (Favourite Solo Act), Skymning, has returned with a new song, 'Isolation' - the promised follow up to 'Exit', released last month. This time they have teamed up with Welcomer, who produced the track. The track feels like the duo's moody, goth rock take on trip-hop, with angular, riff-heavy guitars cycling over very Boards Of Canada-esque drums and spindly drones. Skymning takes a new direction with the lead vocals; layers shape shift from monotony to chaos, encapsulating the acceptance and frustrations of seclusion.  'Isolation' is out now via Bankrupt Records - co-run by Skymning and Reuben Samuel Winter, the heavily missed and legendary force...

Fazed On A Pony // Photo thanks to dunedinsound.com Ōtepoti/Tāmaki Makaurau-based alt country rockers, Fazed On A Pony, have shared a new song - 'Fanfare' - the second single to surface from their upcoming debut album it'll all work out (released soon via trace / untrace). The song begins in a crackly, cosy space - vocalist/guitarist Peter McCall's songwriting chops really shine amongst the dusty hues of the first verse. 'It'll all work out it' is sung over a hopeful, yet melancholic guitar fuzz, before the band kicks in and clasps the track in a radiant beam of light. It is one of those songs that sticks to...