In complete contrast to Jeremy Toy's work as Opensouls soul-funk monster songwriter and guitarist, She's So Rad is his dreamy, electronic, fuzz-laden solo project, his first outing as a vocalist too, with contributions from Sami Sister Anji.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say this compilation proves radio is not dead. With syndicated shows in 17 countries, BBC DJ Gilles Peterson embodies the word influential.

So Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah is still slightly annoying, even in its beautifully slinky and soulful original version as it is here. But you can't really go wrong with these 19 tracks from the golden age of Phil Spector.

As the name might suggest, the song Boom Boom Da Na is mostly a load of prattling drivel, something not usually associated with prolific grime poet Wiley.

If you, like me had been couchbound since the beginning of the television coverage, you might have forgotten there was a game on.

TrinityRoots' third coming saw a refigured lineup coming together to continue the legacy of one of New Zealand's best-loved bands.

Summoning the crowd to the dance floor with a jam reminiscent of Mara TK's roots in blues and psychedelic grooves, Electric Wire Hustle announced their intention to bring their unique blend of forward-thinking hip hop, soul and rhythm to Auckland.

Tim Finn and his little brother will be dusting off their songbooks for the pre-tournament festivities tomorrow night, but the elder's latest solo album shows his side of the family jukebox has just undergone a major refresh.

Graham Reid reviews Pull Up Some Dust and Sit Down by Ry Cooder.

Louisa Young's enthralling novel begins in the gorgeous, leafy light of upper-class Edwardian England where wealthy, bohemian-ish families plan lives filled with art and beauty, and ends in a darkened world transformed by the violence and pain of World Wa

John Boyne, author of The Boy in Striped Pyjamas, has published a new novel with links to World War I. The Absolutist traces the experiences of a young serviceman through a deft weave of past and present.

Graham Reid, once a handy winger and goal kicker, gets in a rugger mood.

Love him or loathe him, he does what he does well.

Here's a turn-up. Kravitz - who has released some self-indulgent stinkers in the past - returns with his best album since 1993's Are You Gonna Go My Way.

Just as Ayrton Senna rose above being just another fast driver in his decade of Formula 1, this film of his life rises above being just another sports doco.

The Chilis still manage inspired moments without guitarist John Frusciante.

It's business as unusual for a band big on chords and enjoyably familiar progressions, hook-filled pop-rock, sometimes lazily obvious lyrics and the occasional sense of Cheap Trick-like irony.

This Finnish documentary, surely the best film ever made about men sitting in saunas, will not be for all tastes.

Good time listening, horn-driven party music mostly, and the stepping stone to that remarkable Palmer doco.

A terrible thing happened, that day, up at Blackwoods' place, in The Secret River, the first of Grenville's historical novels set in the penal colony of New South Wales.

Every city can lay claim to its fair share of eccentrics. This book is about one of Melbourne's: Edward William Cole.

This book might more accurately have been titled In Love With Dante. It is a wholehearted piece of advocacy for the 14th century writer, of whom Wilson says it "could be argued that he was the greatest of all European poets, of any time or place".