Popular Music

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New 'Select: Sound & Vision' collection!

Select collection sticker Get the latest CDs & DVDs faster! The 'Select' collection is designed to make it easier to borrow heavily used and reserved items within our AV Collection. The items in this collection have a reduced loan period of 3 days, meaning you can access the most popular CDs and DVDs faster for the same price and find them on the shelf more often.

You can find more information on our News page.

Latest Staff Picks

Insurgentes, Steven Wilson.
Porcupine Tree's front man Steven Wilson is a gifted musician reminiscent of Mark Hollis (Talk Talk) and Graham Sutton (Bark Psychosis). However, unlike Hollis and Sutton, who put out their efforts only once a decade or more, Wilson is very active and productive. In addition to leading Porcupine Tree, he has been involved in No-Man, his other main band with singer Tim Bowness, acclaimed art rock band, Blackfield, which is a cerebration with Israeli rocker Aviv Geffen, and numerous other projects such as Bass Communion, I.E.M and Arcadia Son. As a producer, he has worked with Fish, wonderful Norwegian singer Anja Garbarek (daughter of Jazz legend Jan Garbarek), Swedish metal band Opeth amongst others. Undoubtedly he is one of the most prominent artists today and will play an increasingly important role as a producer and sound creator in the future. Despite his demanding schedule, due largely to the success of Porcupine Tree, No-Man issued new albums last year, and this, his first solo album. In this album, there are moments of Porcupine Tree and No-Man, mixture of aggression and exquisite stillness that are typical of Wilson's manner. Everything expected from Wilson at this point is put together here although there are no surprises. Good album but his potential is bigger than this. (Shinji)

Histoire de Melody Nelson, Serge Gainsbourg.
The deluxe version of the classic French album about a brief love affair between a middle-aged man and a young girl (actually Jane Birkin with glued-on freckles), this is a brilliant combination of Serge's resonant vocals, lush orchestration and some sleazily funky 70s guitar. (Neil)

Next, Jacques Brel.
Nice compilation of cover versions of tracks by Belgian singer-songwriter Brel. Brel was fairly obscure outside Europe, until Scott Walker became obsessed with several of his songs, featuring a number of translated versions of Brel's work in his famous run of solo albums in the late 60's. Many of Brel's songs would become well known, though with some watered down versions of his bleak lyrics. Terry Jacks would go on to have a number 1 hit in 1974 with a reworking of 'Seasons in the Sun', but Brel's most famous song 'Ne me quitte pas' ('Don't Leave Me'), would become 'If you go away', and go on to be covered supposedly 400 times in 22 different languages. 'Next' rounds up some of the best cover versions of his tracks, from the cynical 'The Lovers' by Jimmie Rogers, to the even more acerbic 'The Girls and the Dogs' by Scott Walker with its insane arrangement, to Bowie's stark version of 'Amsterdam' from an unreleased BBC session; but perhaps the best track, translation issues aside, is Dusty Springfield's haunting take on 'If You Go Away'. (Mark)

The historical conquests of Josh Ritter : bonus, Josh Ritter.
'The historical conquests of Josh Ritter' is a raucous, everything-in-the-barn stomp which neutralizes the pressure of following up The Animal Years - a profound literary album that generated an immense North American and European buzz for Ritter. It's not all good times, though - you're heart might skip a beat for the track 'The Temptation of Adam'. (Jesse)

The sound of wonder.
A collection of classic soundtracks from 1970s Lollywood - the somewhat psychedelic Pakistani movie industry's take on Western pop - from the excellent archives of Finders Keepers Records. These songs are exuberant, wonderful, and often quite bizarre. (Neil)

All the plans : deluxe edition, Starsailor.
Probably slipped into the world without much fuss and could fit into the MOR, middle of the road rock area much like Coldplay, but has something Viva La Vida seems to lack in spades, like heart and passion. It takes a bit of time to 'get into it' but is very rewarding when you do as it has variety and a singer in who sounds like he's enjoying his job. Highlights for me are 'You never get what you deserve', 'Neon Sky' and 'All the plans'. (Martin)

Falling debris, David Kilgour.
David Kilgour delivers another understated and eminently listenable album, this time with lyrics from Sam Hunt. The music and words mesh together well, and it all adds up to a very enjoyable listening experience from two of Aotearoa's national treasures. (Neil)

Coward, Nels Cline.
Nels Cline solo project was inevitable and after considering it for more than 20 years, he has finally made one. It was recorded in the same week his twin brother Alex was making his superb album 'Continuation', and it is a showcase of Mr. Versatility. In this multi-layered album, you are taken through his musical universe. Lyrical acoustic numbers are reflections of the 70s ECM guitarists that had an intense influence on him, John Abercrombie, Ralph Towner, Bill Connors. There is a Sonic Youth-style guitar number, moments of psych, progressive rock, country Americana, drone, ambience, atonal modern music, and an 18 minute long, deeply emotional piece dedicated to the experimental guitarist, Rod Poole who was killed last year. Since joining Wilco, one of his trademarks, aggressive intensity has been concealed a little, but he has deepened his expressive power and storytelling skills. Unlike the title, the music here, as always from him, is brave. (Shinji)

Selda, Selda.
Another Finders Keepers gem, this is a kind of a psychedelic protest folk album by an Anatolian singer called Selda, whose political views landed her in jail under the military government of the time. If you like your Turkish vocals with fuzz guitar - and you know you do - this is the album for you. (Neil)

The works, Jonatha Brooke.
A decade after Wilco & Billy Bragg put new music to Woody Guthrie lyrics ('Mermaid Avenue' & 'Mermaid Avenue II') female singer-songwriter Jonatha Brooke was approached to record music to a Woody Guthrie composition for a fund raiser. She soon hit it off with Guthrie's daughter, the gatekeeper of his archival material, and the concept was expanded to a full albums worth of songs, making her the first female artist to interpret his material. Taking a different approach from Billy Bragg & Wilco, Brooke worked with mainstream producer Bob Clearmountain (who has worked with everyone from Springsteen to Sheryl Crow), to craft a more modern sounding set. Having that goal in mind most of the material focuses on relationships rather than politics & social commentary, still it's easy to hear Guthrie's 'voice' in songs such as 'My sweet & bitter bowl' & 'Madonna on the curb'. What's surprising, though, is how much songs like 'There's more true lovers than one', and 'King of my love' lyrically sound like Brooke's own material, proving Guthrie's artistry still acts as the foundation for many modern singer-songwriters. (Mark)

"But what if I don't like it?" Well, it's true one's meat is another's poison, so why not double check with allmusic.com first to see if it sounds like your cup of meat/poison/tea.
Previous staff picks

Librarian's Choice

Recommended by Wellington City Libraries staff members, these CDs are chosen from all genres of our wide collection and are displayed with gold Librarian's Choice stickers on the cover. Watch out for the display of Librarian's Choice CDs and DVDs in the Sound & Vision Centre. A list of the CDs chosen is available here (Word) and from the Central Library Sound & Vision Centre desk.

Recent books

The underlined titles will take you directly to our catalogue. Some featured items are linked via a book cover to enable you to read more reviews.

My son Marshall, my son Eminem : setting the record straight on my life as Eminem's mother, by Debbie Nelson with Annette Witheridge.
"One of the most embattled celebrity mothers in the U.S. pop culture landscape, first-time author Nelson has suffered repeated insults and accusations from son and rap star Eminem, aka Marshall Mathers, who paints her as a negligent (if not malignant) mother and drug abuser. In this memoir, Nelson tells her side of the story, coming clean with a detailed but defensive account of their complicated mother-son relationship. Beginning with her turbulent marriage to Mathers' father, Bruce, through her 2000 attempt to sue Marshall for defamation (she claims it was just a way to save her home from foreclosure) and their present estrangement, Nelson insists throughout that her only concern is for sons Marshall and Nathan; readers-especially the Eminem fans likely to fill her audience-may think she protests too much. Still, it's easy to believe the theatrical rapper exaggerates, and Nelson's insight-especially into Marshall's relationships with wife Kim and daughter Hailie-attest to an ongoing connection that he and/or the media may have obscured or denied. Though readers may find it hard to reconcile Debbie's claim never to have exploited her son in the pages of a tell-all about him (complete with baby pictures), Nelson's urgent voice sketches a tense but sympathetic portrait of the elusive, mercurial MC." (Amazon.com)

How the Beatles destroyed rock 'n' roll : an alternative history of American popular music, by Elijah Wald.
"Earlier musical styles sound different to us today because we hear them through the musical filter of other styles that came after them, all the way through funk and hiphop. As its blasphemous title suggests, How the Beatles Destroyed Rock 'n' Roll rejects the conventional pieties of mainstream jazz and rock history. Rather than concentrating on those traditionally favoured styles, the book traces the evolution of popular music through developing tastes, trends and technologies - including the role of records, radio, jukeboxes and television - to give a fuller, more balanced account of the broad variety of music that captivated listeners over the course of the twentieth century. Wald revisits original sources - recordings, period articles, memoirs, and interviews - to highlight how music was actually heard and experienced over the years. And in a refreshing departure from more typical histories, he focuses on the world of working musicians and ordinary listeners rather than stars and specialists." (Real Groovy)

True Norwegian black metal : we turn in the night consumed by fire, photography by Peter Beste ; edited by Johan Kugelberg ; introduction by Jon 'Metalion' Kristiansen.
""When we're on the road, all we watch is VBS, and our favorite series is Norwegian Black Metal." (Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters) Documentary photographer Peter Beste has spent the last five years working in the milieu of the Norwegian black metal scene. This scene, with its notorious events of murder, church arson, and self-mythology, is absolutely sealed to outsiders. The international black metal fan base is one of the most devoted, fanatical, and proprietary in the world. Beste's access and insight into this world is unprecedented and has yielded an amazing photographic journey, along with a very popular documentary series on VBS.tv, also available on YouTube. Beste, together with Johan Kugelberg, noted writer, editor, and collector of documentary photography, has brought the images into a hermeneutic narrative that makes for a compelling experience along the lines of Anders Petersen's Cafe Lehmitz, Ed Van Der Elsken's Love on the Left Bank, or William Klein's Life Is Good and Good for You in New York." (Amazon.com)

People Tribute: Remembering Michael 1958-2009, editor, Cutler Durkee ; writers, Steve Dougherty et al.
"Partly by chance, partly by design-is there anyone else who so wanted to be different?-there was never a life like Michael Jackson's. Preposterously talented, fronting the Jackson 5 from early childhood, he captivated kids, and more than a few grown-ups, with fancy footwork, effortless high C's and charisma to burn. And that was only prelude. Thriller launched Jackson into a new level of celebrity stratosphere - more media, more attention, more intensity - that even Elvis or the Beatles had never experienced. How he dealt with that fame - how he used it, and how it, arguably, overwhelmed him - became, in later years, the heart of the Michael Jackson story. Remembering Michael looks back at the triumphs, and struggles, of a life like no other." (Amazon.com)

The north will rise again : Manchester music city 1976-1996, by John Robb.
"The Buzzcocks. Joy Division. The Fall. The Smiths. The Stone Roses. The Happy Mondays. Oasis. Manchester has proved to be an endlessly rich seam of pop-music talent over the last 30 years. Highly opinionated and usually controversial, stars such as Mark E. Smith, Morrissey, Ian Brown and the Gallagher brothers have always had plenty to say for themselves. Here, in John Robb's new compilation, Manchester's gobbiest musicians tell the story of the city's thriving music scene in their own words.When the Buzzcocks put on the Sex Pistols at Lester Free Hall in 1976, they kickstarted a musical revolution and a fervent punk scene exploded. In 1979 the legendary Tony Wilson founded Factory Records, the home of Joy Division/New Order and later the Happy Mondays. The Hacienda, the Factory nightclub, became notorious in the late 1980s as a centre of the influential Madchester scene, led by the Mondays and the Stone Roses, with a unique style and sound of its own. Then, from the ashes of Madchester rose uber-lads Oasis, the kings of Britpop and the biggest UK band of the 1990s. Full of great characters, fierce conflicts, untold stories and seething controversies, Manchester In Its Own Words is indispensable reading for any music fan. It is the real story of the Manchester scene in the words of the musicians, promoters, club owners, managers and pundits. It is compiled by Manchester music authority John Robb. Robb has been at the frontline of the Manchester music scene for 25 years and has direct access to all the key players." (Amazon.com)

Top of the charts. 2009.
"This title lets you celebrate the best of today's pop with over 20 chart-topping songs arranged for voice and piano with guitar chord boxes. It includes the big songs of the moment from Lily Allen, Girls Aloud and Take That, as well songs from Katy Perry and Dido, and the number one hit from the X Factor Finalists." (Amazon.com)

Magazine roundup

Sick of reserving the latest copy of Mojo, only to find a seven-page feature on Val Doonican? Tired of trudging up the stairs to get Rolling Stone, only to find that Yanni review cruelly missing once again? Avoid nasty surprises with our music magazine roundup.

Here's what's happening in:

Acoustic Guitar website
Bass Player fulltext
Downbeat fulltext
Froots website
Guitar Player website
Modern Drummer website
Mojo website
New Zealand Musician website
NME website
No Depression website
Q website
Real Groove website
Record Collector website
Remix website (requires Flash)
Rip It Up website
Rolling Stone fulltext
Songlines website
The Source website
Uncut website
Wire website

For more magazine links, visit our online music resources page.

Popular music collection

At Wellington City Libraries we have a ridiculous number of CDs (well, over 20,000) for you to borrow at the altogether reasonable price of $1 each. Whether Matmos or Minogue, Strokes or Stockhausen, RZA or AWB you may very well find just what you were looking for in our collection.
Try these searches for the latest CDs in these categories

stack of CDs

Popular
Hip-Hop
Electronica
Compilations
Jazz
Soundtracks
Experimental
Country
Punk
Metal
Soul/R&B
A full list of music genres is available on our Catalogue Quicksearch page.

Of course we also take care of classical music.

"Music Ad Lib" radio show

"Music Ad Lib", hosted by our own library staff music enthusiasts, airs monthly on Access Radio 783 AM. The show is on a Saturday afternoon from 4.30-5.00pm on Access Radio 783 AM - look here for the tracks from a recent show.