ThisCulture is a new film series I’m putting together with the help of my good friend Morgan Hammond from Crooked Crowns, it’s an idea we’ve had floating round for a while (I registered the domain about 2 years ago!) so it’s great to finally get it going. The concept is pretty simple, we wanted to screen some music/beat culture films in a great little venue over the winter months, we also wanted to focus on films which you might not be able to see in New Zealand because nobody else is screening them. Some films are meant to be screened in cinema’s but I think some films are better screened in an intimate environment where you can feel a little more connected with the rest of the audience.

It’s going to be a six month series and we’ve got the first 3 films confirmed plus quite a few more on the bubble. It’s real exciting to be working with Dublab and Mochilla on the “Secondhand Sureshots” and “Timeless” screenings, this will be the first time that “Timeless” has been screened in New Zealand so make sure you come check it out, July date will be confirmed in the next week.

We’re also working with a local crew called “Film the music” who make amazing short doco’s from live performances in New Zealand. We’ll be screening one of their doco’s at each event and working out a feature night with them to showcase their work and celebrate the local music scene.

Here’s the first release with more information on the series, hope to see you at the preview night at Khuja on June 15th and let me know if there’s a new film you’d like to see, maybe we can hook it up.

“Thisculture” is a new project put together to bring a taste of “worldwide beat culture” to the heart of New Zealand. We’ve got an amazing line-up of films for the series starting with a special free evening at the Khuja Lounge where we’ll be screening previews of some of the films from the series including:

Secondhand Sureshots – http://dublab.com/secondhand

Secondhand Sureshots is a filmed experiment in creative sound recycling with music from Daedelus, J-Rocc, Nobody and Ras G.

Timeless – http://www.mochilla.com/timeless

Timeless: The Composer/Arranger Series is the name of a concert series that was created in homage to the composer/arrangers who have influenced hip-hop in the most literal and profound ways.

Favela On Blast - http://www.maddecent.com/blog/favela-on-blast

Favela on Blast, the directorial film debut from Grammy-nominated DJ and producer, Diplo, and his partner Leandro HBL, documents a vibrant and innovative musical subculture that has emerged in Brazil’s impoverished slums, known as favelas.

Location: Khuja Lounge, Auckland

June 15th: Special preview screenings
8.30pm doors – 9pm screening – Free entry
previews of Secondhand Sureshots, Timeless, Flavela on Blast
plus DJ support.

June 23rd: Secondhand Sureshots film screening
8.30pm doors – 9pm screening – $5
Secondhand Sureshots – This dublab documentary film features four amazing, LA-based beat makers: Daedelus, J-Rocc, Nobody and Ras G in a secret mission to create new musical magic from the dusty remains of thrift store vinyl.
plus DJ support.

Bluevibe Collective have been working on a few gigs for NZ music month with the kids over at Jester Underground so I thought I’d give you all a quick run down of whats coming up in May. BVC is starting to get busier now and we’re rolling out some cool gigs in May plus working on a few new events over the coming months.

Smash the Jukebox – May 8th Juice bar – A Fundraiser for ‘Ronald McDonald House’ Auckland. Smash the Jukebox’ is a celebration of all things New Zealand Music, Past and Present. A chance for everyone to come together and celebrate the History behind the Music and Give back to a Valuable Charity at the same time.

NZ Beats showcase – May 15th Coherent – smashing a few genres with this one which is something I think is missing in a few local clubs at the moment. Scratch22, OoGun, Bromide Dub (live), Pigout and Tim Richards are gonna crank the system all night, best get down early for this one.

Battle Circus and Decortica plus guests – May 22nd Kings Arms – As far from mainstream rock as your gonna get in NZ and always put on a killer live show, really excited to have these 2 bands playing together.

Bang Bang Eche w/ Bandicoot and Sherpa plus Guests – May 29th Bacco room – closing party for our little gig fest and it’s gonna be loud with this bunch of kids tearing up the Bacco room.

We’re also giving away a bunch of prizes and passes to all the gigs in May over on the Jester Underground facebook page so check it out.

I’ve been kind of on a run at the moment of going ahead with idea’s I’ve been playing with for a while, the first was the Music Machines event coming up in November and now the first NZ Soul music Alldayer which is gonna be held next year in Feb.

You can check out the Soul Alldayer website and register to get more information as soon as I’ve got it. I should have the venue sorted next week, once that’s booked then i’ll get everything else put in place. I’ve already got some of NZ’s finest DJ’s lined up and will be announcing all the details over the next few weeks.

About 6 months ago I had an idea for a little event, well, it was more like a day dream about being in a room full to the ceiling with classic synths and drum machines, all plugged in and working, being played all at the same time by a crowd of musicians making one hell of a funky racket.

The idea bubbled around for a while until I decided that we could actually make this happen, so, I found a great venue up at KFM in Auckland and started to put the word out to all the synth enthusiasts I could find. Music Machines is now going to be held on November 21st 09 and you can check out the Music Machines website and Facebook page for all the latest news on the first collection of it’s kind in New Zealand. I’ll be announcing all the guest speakers and performing artists over the next few weeks and will keep you all updated with the full list of kit you’ll be able to get your hands on at the event.