Gordon Campbell On The Making Of King Donald
After decades of watching the US prop up dictatorships in Central America, South America and the Middle East, there’s a certain irony in seeing authoritarian […]
Music
Gordon Campbell on free speech and anti-Semitism
According to Workplace Health and Safety Minister Brooke Van Velden, employers are having to endure a “culture of fear” created by Worksafe, which has the […]
Gordon Campbell On The History Of Doo Wop Music
The decade between 1952 and the early 1960s was the peak period for the style of music we now call doo wop, after which it […]
Gordon Campbell on the language of healthcare, and Mink DeVille
So far, the Great Multi-lingual Healthcare Crisis has passed by without any damage to life, or to limbs. To date, no-one appears to have mistaken […]
Gordon Campbell on unemployment, Winston Peters’ low boiling point and music criticism
On Werewolf/Scoop, I usually do two long form political columns a week. From now on, there will be an extra column each week about music […]
Gordon Campbell on Iran killing its rappers, and searching for the invisible Dr. Reti
As hideous as David Seymour can be, it is worth keeping in mind occasionally that there are even worse political figures (and regimes) out there. […]
Gordon Campbell on Appalachian music, with a playlist
Around the globe, culture is being homogenised by dominant styles of popular music, spread far and wide by delivery platforms like Tik Tok and Youtube. […]
Gordon Campbell on Games fervour, and the music of S.G. Goodman
Given how the pandemic has disrupted the sporting calendar, no-one would begrudge our elite athletes their chance to compete at international level. What with the […]
Gordon Campbell on whether Spotify can save itself; plus a playlist
Spotify has to be one of the most interestingly futile mouse-wheels of 21st century capitalism. Run, run, run goes the Spotify mouse but it never, […]
Gordon Campbell On Political Can-kicking, And The“ Louie Louie” Saga
One of the more infuriating aspects of the current political debate is the way the National Party says it would be more rigorous, and more […]
Gordon Campbell on “the old weird” music of America, with a playlist
Here’s some weird old music for the weird realities of lockdown. Like other key phases in popular music – jazz, country, rock’n’roll, punk, hip hop […]
Gordon Campbell on the legacy of rockabilly, plus a playlist
Rockabilly was a 1950s precursor of punk. It was uptempo, aggressive, and shared with punk the same DIY “hell, I’ll give that a whirl” sense […]
Gordon Campbell on the barriers facing female country musicians, and the weekly playlist
Like no other performer in popular culture, Dolly Parton is loved and respected by people from opposite ends of the political spectrum, and every point […]
Gordon Campbell On Bob Dylan At 80
Bob Dylan turns 80 today. And at such a moment, are we gathered here to praise him, or to bury him and erect a monument? […]
Gordon Campbell on Werewolf’s best music of 2020
Sure, New Zealand’s pandemic experience hasn’t been anything like the horror show it has been elsewhere. Yet the Covid anxiety levels were still high enough […]
Gordon Campbell on tourism’s endless sense of grievance
Sad that a once in a century pandemic should have come along before the government had a clearly thought out plan for rescuing all the […]
Gordon Campbell on National’s hopes of driving NZF out of Parliament
For months, National’s best (and only?) hope of winning Election 2020 has involved keeping New Zealand First down below the 5% MMP threshold, and out […]
Gordon Campbell on the best music of 2019
In a year where so many of the highlights came from female musicians, there was one standout album…
Best Music of 2019… So Far
This mid-point, as we’re heading into the cold… it seems like an ideal time to list a few albums and tracks to keep the wolves of winter at bay.
Gordon Campbell on the best music tracks of 2018
Oliver Godji, who records as Octavian, is a French/British/Angolan rapper based in London. As someone born in Lille, France, he didn’t qualify for welfare in Britain…
Best new music of 2017
Among other things, a year of great break-up albums by female artists…
Frightened Rabbit: On Liking Music That Harms You
Society teaches people that admitting to bad behaviour means accepting punishment and giving up support, which is why most people will try deny it.
Gordon Campbell on the rise of the far right, and battle bots
In his victory speech at the Cannes film festival this week, the British film director Ken Loach warned that the rise of far right parties […]
Gordon Campbell on Pharmac’s indefensible stance on the new melanoma drugs
One of the interesting line items in this month’s Budget will be the one that sets out the increase – if any – in Pharmac’s […]
Gordon Campbell on Trump and the Madman Theory
Years ago, Richard Nixon explained to his chief adviser Bob Haldeman what has since become known as the “Madman Theory” of foreign policy. Basically, if […]
Gordon Campbell on Kiwirail’s latest stint in the dogbox
The denigration of Kiwirail continues. The latest review (based on a 2014 assessment) of the options facing the company have enabled Kiwirail to be hung […]
Gordon Campbell On Our Fearless PM's Foray Into China
Don’t mention the South China Sea dispute. Oh, but he will! Earlier this week, the image of dauntless Prime Minister John Key not backing down […]
Gordon Campbell on the (missing) US links to the Panama Papers, and Merle Haggard
Belatedly, US complicity in the global tax avoidance systems is now trickling out into daylight. To some, one of the suspicious aspects of the scandal […]
Gordon Campbell on the tension between health and defence spending, and Batman v Superman
What is the more rational use of taxpayer money? In one instance, we have New Zealanders with orthopedic problems living in pain until they can […]
Gordon Campbell on the SIS crying wolf, the Syrian end game and Max Edwards RIP
In the wake of the Cullen/Reddy review of the security services – and the suggested extension of their powers – it seems healthy to highlight […]