Beats + Pieces Vol. 93
Hun Lynch, Tom Scott, Marlon Williams, etc
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.
Greetings to one and all. It’s been a busy couple of weeks. This month in Aotearoa, it’s a thing we call New Zealand Music Month | Te Marama Puoro o Aotearoa, where we celebrate local music. It can seem like a funny thing, but I like to get involved and have been busy knocking out a bunch of NZ focused stories and reviews for Rolling Stone AU/NZ. You can read a few of them below. Expect more soon.
Rolling Stone AU/NZ: Up-And-Coming Aotearoa Artists: Hun Lynch
Over the past year, culture writer Emma Gleason has been discussing a concept she calls ‘Tāmaki Noir’. As she explained in her newsletter Crust, “Tāmaki Noir is more of a feeling than a theme or genre. Or perhaps it’s a cinematic lens. It’s probably all of these and more.”
Tāmaki Noir is a way of seeing Tāmaki Makaurau as a South Pacific metropolis with secrets and a seedy underbelly. “It’s immorality, antiheroes, crime and ceiling fans,” Gleason wrote. “Flair, style and charisma. Grimy fences. Derelict buildings and big, shiny new builds. Luxury cars and lowered sedans. Raw edges and elegant facades. You know it when you see it.”
Hannah Lynch, who records as Hun Lynch, is a Tāmaki Makaurau artist who works across music, film, theatre, and writing. During a video call, I asked for her thoughts on Tāmaki Noir. “I’m getting goosebumps thinking about this,” she said. “I feel like there’s so much about Tāmaki that is quite gothic. Maybe this isn’t the right word, but it’s quite brutalist, too. Sometimes I’ll be looking at these huge concrete buildings, and realise they’re stained on the sides because it’s always raining.”
You can read my profile of Hun Lynch here.
Rolling Stone AU/NZ: Marlon Williams Takes Risks at Wonderful First New Zealand Tour Show
On the first night of his Tā te Manawa tour of Aotearoa and Te Waipounamu, famously billed as his final performances before a period of rest, Marlon Williams walked alone onto the stage at The Civic in Tāmaki Makaurau.
Dressed in a tucked-in white tee, jeans, and boots, he exuded humility and gratitude as he stepped into the spotlight, waving to the audience with a shy smile. After taking a moment to compose himself, he sang “E Mawehe Ana Au”, the existentially-slanted a capella introduction to his most recent album, 2025’s Te Whare Tīwekaweka.
You can read my full review here.
Rolling Stone AU/NZ: Tom Scott’s Aotearoa Tour Was a Collective Affair
Last Friday night (May 8th), the dancefloor inside Te Whanganui-a-Tara’s Meow Nui swelled as Tom Scott took to the stage. Dressed in understated streetwear, he let the band play for a moment before addressing the audience. Tonight, he told us, he wanted to get out of his head, be present, and have some fun. It was a fitting mission statement for his first live performance in the capital since releasing his debut solo album, ANITYA, late last year.
You can read my full review here.
Mouthfull Radio: Eternity’s Gate #4
The latest edition of my Eternity’s Gate mixshow series is live on Mouthfull Radio’s soundcloud and mixcloud archives now.
Eternity’s Gate 4 is sunny summer car rides along the coast of Te Waipounamu, Greatsouth sending you a DM asking why you haven’t shown him Dead People Famous yet, and Yo Ta Lengo concerts in Te Whanganui-a-Tara. It’s also listening to Tricky with corded headphones and a discman while skateboarding in the ‘90s, downloading Hyperdub Records’ promos to write about on blogs, and seeing Leao play at Whammy Bar in Tāmaki Makaurau. It’s a lot of things. 19 indie rock, dream pop, shoegaze, trip-hop and ambient guitar jams, all packed into one hour for your listening pleasure.
Clear Path Ensemble, Ascending
Ascending is the fourth album from Clear Path Ensemble. In the past, bandleader Cory Champion tracked his first three albums, Clear Path Ensemble (2020), Solar Eclipse (2022), and Black Sand (2025) with a cast of some of the finest jazz musicians in Aotearoa New Zealand. This time around, he chose a different approach: improvising with, and in response to, himself, building a series of layered sonic landscapes recorded over a single day in the same room.
Opening in the spirit of American composers Steve Reich and Laraaji’s late ‘70s to early ‘80s minimalist, new-age, and ambient explorations, the album begins with glistening, hypnotic figures on ‘Tongue Rhythm’. Softer and more watery, ‘Train of Thought’ blends lush chords and rolling percussion into a reflective soundscape. Shades of mid-70s Miles Davis and the Pacific sunset visions of Martin Denny and Arthur Lyman flow through ‘Say Something’ and the title track, before the album closes with the celestial memory-lane melodies of ‘Epicycle’.
Recorded solo, with the exception of ‘Saying Something’, featuring piano, Rhodes and vibes courtesy of Champion’s longtime collaborator, Daniel Hayles, Ascending’s six compositions represent a tasteful subtraction from the spiritual/psychedelic jazz, space music, ‘70s ECM jazz-funk, and electronica that coloured Clear Path Ensemble’s first five years.
Ultimately, Ascending is a window into the soul of an artist looking inward as he reaches into the infinite and the sublime. Due for release Fri 27 May in vinyl and digital formats.
What I’ve Been Reading:
Master plan or moon shot? We need to discuss Lume: A new music platform promises a bold future – by harking back to the past. What are its chances? Chris Schulz for the Boiler Room newsletter (not the streaming DJ platform). Here.
FIN.