Beats + Pieces Vol. 92
New work, new work, new work.
Selected Works is a weekly (usually) newsletter by the Te Whanganui-a-Tara, Aotearoa (Wellington, New Zealand) based freelance music journalist, broadcaster, copywriter and sometimes DJ Martyn Pepperell, aka Yours Truly. Most weeks, Selected Works consists of a recap of what I’ve been doing lately, along with some of what I’ve been listening to and reading, paired with film photographs I’ve taken, plus some bonuses. All of that said, sometimes, it takes completely different forms.
Resident Advisor: Klymax Discotheque: Bali’s Temple of Sound
Beyond Bali’s beaches lies one of the best audiophile clubs in the world. Guided by co-creator and resident DJ Harvey, its bespoke quad-stack system renders music in ultra-high definition. Welcome to paradise.
At the start of the year, the editorial team at Resident Advisor invited me to travel to Bali to conduct the third edition of their The Art of Sound feature series. Obviously, I said, yes. That said, as with many things in life, there’s no way around the fact that this project was a collective effort.
I’d just like to extend my thanks to Maria Garcia del Cerro, Kai Evill, Bagvs, Gero, DJ Harvey, George Stavro, David Gianotten, Rachel, Nyshka, Aaron, Andrew, Dan, and everyone else who weighed in on this one.
You can read the full feature here.
Listening Party: Clear Path Ensemble, Ascending
On Wednesday night in Te Whanganui-a-tara, we hosted a pre-release listening party for the New Zealand drummer, composer and producer Cory Champion’s latest Clear Path Ensemble album, Ascending, at Vogelmorn Hall. The format was simple: 30 mins from doors for people to arrive, a full 35-minute playback of the album, then a short improvised musical performance from Cory and friends.
If you’re interested, you can check out the first single, ‘Tongue Rhythm’, above and pre-order the album on vinyl and digital as well. There are also two more listening parties to go: Tāmaki Makaurau / Auckland, May 13 at Goblin. Naarm / Melbourne, May 21 at High Note Room 2. Tap in with Cory on IG for more details.
GoldTooth’s Goldmine w/ Martyn Pepperell (02/05/26)
95bFM’s Goldmine is a Saturday evening radio soundtrack provided by GoldTooth, Tāmaki Makaurau’s latest London import. DJ, music curator and dentist. It’s a two-hour dive into the freshest sounds from across the globe: club heaters, deep cuts, diaspora gems, and underground electronics, all woven together with GoldTooth’s chatter. From Auckland, to everywhere.
Last weekend, I appeared on the Goldmine via the magic of voice notes and file transfers. Goldtooth had me offer up a local NO SKIPS album and some musical therapy cut suggestions to celebrate Te Marama Puoro o Aotearoa / NZ Music Month.
You can listen to the full show here.
Harry Waugh is a music content creator from Tāmaki Makaurau who interviews musicians on Instagram and Tiktok and makes playlists and other things. I think he lives in Naarm / Melbourne now, but I’m not sure (lol). This week, Harry asked me and a few other friends to contribute to a playlist of New Zealand Music for Te Marama Puoro o Aotearoa / NZ Music Month.
You can check it out here.
What I’ve Been Listening To:
As I learned recently on No Tags, CHAKK is an important precursor to Warp Records. I hope you like some industrial funk.
So nice I had to blog it twice.
Just one of those low-key New Zealand talents who keeps quietly doing their thing. Music about the water, written and produced by the water.
You don’t get a new Surly drop everyday, or even every year. This one is special. For the 160 heads.
What I’ve Been Reading:
Music Discourse Is Plentiful, Often Angry and Increasingly Not About Music at All: Why is industry- and culture-focused commentary now taking up such a huge portion of the music conversation? Shawn Reynaldo for First Floor.
Ockhams: Talia Marshall on Hoods Landing: A novel about a queer family hiding in plain sight is competing for next week’s $65,000 fiction prize at the Ockhams.
Does Anyone Like Music? What happens when marketing is revealed to be marketing, plus gamelan-led dub techno, and more. Sam Hockley-Smith for New Environments.
FIN.