Saturday, November 30, 2013

Hitting the Road

Here we are, the day has finally come for us to embark. It seems surreal that after over a year in planning we are finally going to see the sights and partake in the activities that have until now only been some endulgent fantasy played out on desktop wallpapers.  It's as if all the daydreaming has mythologized the trip, creating some hyperbolic ideal right out of a tourism commercial that is far too luxuriant to ever equate to reality. 

Unfortunately, now that time to write and new experiences to write about will be plentiful, our access to the internet will, of course, be less than reliable. You can rest assured, however, that whenever we are able to find a wifi signal (hello, McDonalds), we will be posting one of perhaps even several blogs to make up for lost time. I will also be posting one photo every day via Instagram which will show up on my Facebook with my phone, so even if we haven't had the internet to post a proper blog you can still see where we're at or what we're up to on any given day. 

It may perhaps sound a bit strange, but we're both a little nervous about this. It is the largest chunk of unstructured time we've had in our lives since...hell, ever. We don't really know what to expect, of the trip or of each other. Dare I say we might get a bit bored? It may take a week or two to get used to a new pace of living and get back I touch with ourselves, but that's what travel is all about - that is, trying new things. I can say assuredly that I look forward to waking up with the sun and going to bed with the stars, to es when I'm hungry instead of when I'm able, and to spending more than a few drowsy hours at the end of a long workday with Kay Fry. 

Now we must take our leave, for the mountains, forest and the sea beckon. 
To all of our Auckland friends - you've been more than amazing. See you in April!

Saturday, November 16, 2013

The Sound of Muzack Part II

The music scene in New Zealand has really taken me by surprise.  It is a small, but devoted group of musicians that love to collaborate and are loved by virtually the entire NZ population.  It's the sort of scene any musician would love to be a part of, that is, big enough for creativity to thrive, but without all the trappings of international prestige and competition.  In a scene dominated by electronic, reggae, and drum and bass, it did take me a little while to sniff out some great rock bands.  Low and behold I have finally fond a few worthy of merit, and today I'm going to tell you a little bit about them and share some music.

The first group of the three is Shihad.  Shihad is a Wellingotn based group that has been in the scene for over 20 years, and have released albums ranging in style from the Metallica Esq thrash metal in the late 80's to the more pop oriented alternative rock that currently defines them.  It was the latter style that briefly propelled Shihad onto the international stage in the early 2000s, becoming the "home-town heroes" of New Zealand and ensuring their legendary status.   Believe it or not, if you were listening to radio rock in the early 2000s you may have heard a few of their tunes (I know I had), but you would never have known due the scandal surrounding their name.  As you may have guessed, the name Shihad which they derived from the Arabic word "jihad," suddenly became a marketing nightmare after 9/11/01.  They ended up releasing their 2003 album internationally under the name of Pacifier.  Rumor has it that they disliked having to change their name and the clever message behind new name shouldn't be lost on anyone.  Unfortunately for them, this album turned out to be the only album ever released internationally, and subsequently the peak of their international fame.  So here I'm going to highlight a few of their songs from various stages in their interesting career.

You Again from the album Killjoy -  This was the first song that grabbed my attention, so I figured I'd share.  

Everything from the album Pacifier - This is one of the biggest hits off of their international album, and is the one you may have heard.

Ignite from the album Ignite - A more down tempo song, but great none-the-less!

The second band I'll be covering today is another Wellington based act.  In fact, this band shared a practice studio with Shihad in their up and coming days.  The band of which I speak, is Head Like A Hole (also known as HLAH).  Their name may have been taken from a Nine Inch Nails song, but they certain aren't derivative of NIN.  This band is more of a straight forward rock and roll band that sounds like they would have been comfortable in the early 90's Seattle scene.  I don't have too much to more to say about them, so rather than reading my rambles why don't you get onto youtube and check them out for yourself!

Swagger of Thieves from the album Blood Will Out - Great stoner rock from their latest album (sadly, they disbanded shortly thereafter)

Hootenanny from the Album Double Your Strength, Improve Your Health and Lengthen Your Life - This song is a prime example of their music in all it's mid 90's glory.

The final band I'll be talking about today is The Checks.  While honestly a little hit and miss for me, I figured they warranted a mention as they were the first rock band I found out about and they do have some songs I think are worth listening to.  Hailing from the North Shore area of Auckland, they are a modern sounding blues rock band reminiscent of The Strokes (maybe even The White Stripes if you're willing to stretch a bit).  Many of their songs have some very wacky and interesting lyrics that I still haven't quite deciphered, but the groove will get stuck in your head before you know it.  They released three albums before disbanding in 2012.

Bagheera from the album Alice by the Moon - This is a great jam with some of the off the wall lyrics I was talking about.

Ballroom Baby from the album Alice by the Moon - This is probably my personal favorite song, and was a good backing track to some of my first months in New Zealand.  A bit more laid back, and catchy as hell

Hunting Whales from the album Hunting Whales - Just press play and I promise the first squeal of the guitar will grab you.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

October Photos #3 - Hunua Falls and Ranges

Hunua Falls



 Stopped to take a picture of the countryside and these cows all walked straight up to the fence and just kinda started.  They wanted to be in the picture too I guess.





Tranquility

Like a dream

Monday, November 4, 2013

October Photos #2 - Anchor Bay

Anchor Bay 
Do you see what I see?



Just perfect


Lali Ho!


An empty shell 



Chicks

Friday, November 1, 2013

October Photos #1 - Mokoroa Falls and Stream Hike

Hey all, the next few posts are going to be much heavier on pictures and lighter on substance than usual as I'd just like to share with you what we've been doing during in the last month.  I'll roll them out over the next few days, so let's just go ahead and get started…

Mokoroa Falls (or the Garden of Eden, whichever you prefer) 
Ian about to take a frigid dip

Mokoroa's nameless sister fall

First outdoor rock climbing experience

The stream walk

Waterfall #1

The plunge pool

Getting ready to dive in!

Waterfall #2 
Waterfall #3

Waterfall #4


Waterfall #5
My first experience with the infamous New Zealand hanging bridges.