As a young man I lived illegally in a commercial building above a second hand book store called Smiths. Two things that had a profound affect on me.
That building, now flattened by earthquakes was on a Tuam Street corner site in Christchurch with neighbours that included a bike repair man, a tailor, a heroin addled army surplus businessman, a landmark massage parlour and a photographer who had found god ( via drugs ) and was "about to move to New York".
His partner worked at a clothing store called Metropole ( later to become Workshop) and she ended up marrying another friend of mine and moving to Melbourne. The photographers name was Alastair Parker, the street was Manchester Street the year was about 1987 and he also played in a band called Bailter Space.
Every weekend and some week nights me and a few of my neighbours plus the hookers and junkies were serenaded by "the loudest band on earth". In those days inner city Christchurch was a desolate place at night and the music reverberated through the streets.
Bailter Space had recently formed and practised tirelessly from Alastair's studio until very late. I can attest first hand to how loud they were. Legend goes that ( later) when they played with Motorhead they needed 4 extra PA's.
In a previous band and life Alastair had been a member of the Gordons and in 1983 at the age of 16 I had been denied the opportunity to see them play. Now I listened to them free of charge on a weekly basis.
The album Future Shock ( originally self released ) and later on Flying Nun had been a part of my musical awakening.
The artwork later featured on a little brother tee and to me they always epitomised everything I loved about New Zealand music.
The Gordons have won the inaugural Independent Music NZ Classic Record Award, that makes me feel old but its a great accolade and richly deserved.
We have been repeatedly asked for optical frames and are pleased to be stocking a very limited selection of Kirk Originals opticals in-store and online. "The Optical Collection” was initially launched to complement the brand's ever popular sunglasses. It is inspired by trailblazers from the Golden Age of Advertising and references icons such as Georgie...
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We are thrilled to be open in Ponsonby and have our second door in Auckland. Located at 271 Ponsonby Road, the store represents an evolution of our offer from purely suit-centric to a becoming a complete lifestyle brand for men. With this new and expanded range we have showcased our concept of what a modern...
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Founder Murray Crane caught up with Awling and discussed all things menswear, New Zealand’s approach to it and why he’s so fond of handcrafted goods. Read a shortened copy below or visit Awling to read to full interview. Hi Murray, thanks for finding some time to speak to us. Let’s start with getting some background on yourself. Where...
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