The Loft defined the mellow indie-pop Dunedin sound with their 1984 debut single Why Does The Rain – and prompty broke up.

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This was one of the standout songs on Bowie’s last-but-one studio album, The Next Day, released without fanfare in 2013 after a decade of retirement. (more…)

Here is Earth, Wind & Fire’s exuberant slice of funk Happy Feelin’ sampled, sped up and retooled for the dancefloor by Groove Armada.

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Earth, Wind & Fire recorded Happy Feelin’ as an album track back in 1975, a quarter of a century before it formed the basis of a hit single.

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The Techniques were a Jamaican vocal quartet who found fame once ska evolved into reggae, with this classic Queen Majesty.

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Short-lived power pop band The Motors enjoyed their biggest hit in the summer of 1978 with Airport, which reached No.4 in the singles chart.

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Here’s a vocal version I’ve never heard of what is probably my all-time favourite reggae tune, King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown.

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This is the song that introduced me to the Canadian band Metric. It’s sounds as fresh today as it did back in 2008.

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Last night, at the last minute, I managed to blag tickets to see Lindisfarne – a band I thought had broken up decades ago.

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Annie Clark, aka St Vincent, teams up with Beck and musician friends to cover the INXS classic Never Tear Us Apart.

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