Kevin Mark Trail

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By Sebastian Mackay

Listening to Kevin Mark Trail speak, in a rapid fire English accent over the roar of a train and excited shouts in the background, my internal monologue was singing Good Charlotte's Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous quietly to itself, interjected with a deluge of snide comments. (Mum says I need to work on my people skills and I'm finally beginning to see that).

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Hazel Mills - The Paper Cinema's 'Odyssey'

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By Poppy Tohill

What happens at the accidental meeting of inkblots, photocopies, cardboard, angle-poise lamps, video technology, a laptop and a banana box? The United Kingdom's ‘Paper Cinema,' theatre company is what happens. Using the language of animation, music, film and theatre to lead viewers through a variety of stories, New Zealanders are lucky enough to have the opportunity to experience their most recent work‘Odyssey' in action this month, as the English theatre company bring this show to our shores for the very first time since its premiere in the spring of 2012.

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Itch

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By Poppy Tohill

Some of you may be familiar with the punk rock band The King Blueswho for ten years challenged the politicians and war-monger's of theUnited Kingdom with their original punk rock, ska, protest music. Well almost three years on from their break up, vocalist Jonny Fox, is back on the airwaves, more commonly known and referred to as ‘Itch' these days which is his stage name for his now, solo musical career.

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Bernie Griffen

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By Poppy Tohill

Bernie Griffen has got a new band. The Thin Men, a new album,'Salvation,' and a bit of a new sound. Launching the release of the new album at Auckland's Tuning Fork late last month, I caught up with Bernie and one third of the thin men, who is in fact not a man at all, but Griffen's long time musical partner Kirsten Warner, at the bands soundcheck ahead of their show later that night.

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Nico And Vinz

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By Sebastian Mackay

Nico and Vinz have made quite the storm - even still I'd never heard of them but that says more about me than it does them - and if the hype is to be believed they're going to be dominating the charts of every country across the world (literally speaking. They've triumphed over the United States, which let's be honest pretty much is the world, and they've trampled over pop everywhere from Denmark to the UK). But there's one thing about this duo that stands out more than everything else: when he has to Nico can talk a million words a minute, bloody good for me because we were only given 10.

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