TA June 2009

$3.90

W W W . T E A R A W A Y . N E T . N Z

J U N E

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Gangs: giveaways!

Over $3,000 in

I SS N 0 1 1 3 -3 40 3 (P r int ) ISSN 1175-7140 (Online)

U.S. culture we don’t need

Midnight youth, Green Day poster, The Cut! video comp, Careers in electronic arts, smokefreerockquest, Exchange yourself to Italy Movies • Books • DVDs • Games • CDs

CONTENTS

Gangs: 6

Midnight Youth: 14

Refugees: 12 Er…what just happened? How is it June already? 2009 seems to be passing faster than I can say ‘Mexican swine flu’!

But…there’s still plenty of time to get your entries in for our cover art competition.

Remember, the theme is Tough Times, and the prize is $250! (Thanks to those who’ve already entered!)

The Spirit of Tearaway Youth Awards are still under construction, and my inbox is still open to your ideas.

We’ll be launching them officially soon, but until then, get nominating your mates, and yourselves.

For full details on both, check out www.tearaway.net.nz or flick me an email.

We talked to some pretty cool people about this gang issue. It is possible to turn your life around, even if you feel like you’re totally stuck in a

Exchange in Italy: 47

A career in visual imaging: 42

bad place. Here’s a little bit of inspiration from Jude Simpson, who spent many years as the girlfriend of guys in gangs: “We all need to not be so judgmental. There’s always a story behind why someone is out on the streets and not at home. We need to be a bit more compassionate and understanding of each other.”

I’m sure there’ll be heaps of different opinions about some of our gang articles… what’s yours?

Email me at rain@tearaway.co.nz RAIN FRANCIS, Editor

SPECIAL FEATURES 6 Gangs: where is this road leading? Interviews, pics, opinions, stories 12 Global Focus: refugees and Earthless Trees 21 New from Drew: Vodafone Select Live!

25 Imagine Cup: technical wizardry 26 Billy TK Jnr and Greg Murphy take to the road 34 Special books feature: reviews, giveaways, NZ Post Book Awards, The Phoenix Files and more!

41 St John sim city

MUSIC 14 16 18 20 22 24

Midnight Youth review The Upbeats: interview and pics Pussycat Dolls pics Kiwi music news with Kiwi FM POSTER: Green Day Smokefreerockquest – first regional finalists!

COMPETITIONS 5 The Cut! Short video comp June 09 cover: Detail from a mural by Elliot, on wall at Crosspower Ministries, Otara.

TEARAWAY magazine is an independent publication of TEARAWAY Press Ltd. HEAD OFFICE: PO Box 7351 Wanganui Phone: (06) 349 0049 Fax: (06) 345 0071 TEARAWAY MAGAZINE IS PRODUCED BY AND FOR NEW ZEALAND YOUTH The opinions expressed within these pages are those of the individual writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Tearaway magazine.

Publisher and Executive Editor: John Francis CEO: Josh Kosmala (josh@tearaway.co.nz) Editor: Rain Francis editor@tearaway.co.nz Sub-editor: Jonquil Brooks Operations Manager: Anita Smart (anita@tearaway.co.nz) Digital and Online Manager: Josh Kosmala (josh@tearaway.co.nz) Designer: Leo Francis CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE: Emma Wilson, Matt Alpe, Cam Carpenter, Jenny Chang, Alexander Donohue, Rachel Driver, Luke Farmer, David Osten Gifford, Shrutika Gunanayagam , Annie Hawker, Ashleigh Hope, Aroha Hughes, David ‘Apek’ Hutcheson, Fleur Jack, Rhian Lawrence, Ben Lilley, Dee Middlemiss, Alana Moffatt, Chris Morphew, Nicholas Mutch, Drew Neemia, Feilidh O’Dwyer, Soane Papalii, Jono Perkins, Teezall Petero, Hannah Robson, Kate Russell, Druvin Seneviratne, Jude Simpson, Chris Traill, Laura Vincent, Kelly Williams.

ADVERTISING: Josh Kosmala (josh@tearaway.co.nz), Anita Smart (06) 349 0049 (anita@tearaway.co.nz) Distribution: Anita Smart Printed by: Webstar, Masterton Subscription Enquiries: anita@tearaway.co.nz

REVIEWS, PREVIEWS AND GIVEAWAYS 28 30 31 32

CDs DVDs Movies Games

CHOICES & CAREERS 42 Applied visual imaging: video, animation, web design 47 AFS student exchange: Italy

REGULARS 4 News quiz 45 Cooking: meatball sammies 46 Grabbag

Variety, creativity, earn and learn?

Get a Modern Apprenticeship in Food & Beverage or Cookery

Visit www.hsi.co.nz or text ”career” to 963 At school, I always wanted to belong to a gang, and no one would have me. So I’d make my own gang, but with everybody else’s leftovers – Kristin Scott Thomas

www.tearaway.net.nz

3

NEWS QUIZ JONO PERKINS roasts you

News to you?

under the news quiz grill

OK folks! Grab a pen, put on your lucky hat and see how much news you remember as you complete this month’s NEWS QUIZ!

1. There are fears that we may soon experience a worldwide pandemic of swine flu. In which country did the 2009 outbreak originate?

6. The train tracks from Auckland to Wellington were closed for the best part of a day last month.

Why was this?

a) USA

a) A damsel in distress was tied to the tracks!

b) Mexico

b) This was a peaceful protest against US Government funding of stem-cell embryo research that may enable cloning

c) Philippines 2. Former Deputy Prime Minister Michael Cullen has recently ________?

c) A train went flying off the tracks! Sparks from this caused one of the carriages to catch fire and the electric wires above the track were damaged

a) Resigned b) Given birth c) Gone back to complete his NCEA level 1 qualifications

7. American Idol judge Paula Abdul has just confessed to a 12-year addiction to what?

3. A British nurse, her crane driver husband and their daughter travelled to New Zealand in 2007 for a holiday. They liked it so much they thought they would move here for good. Why was this family denied access to New Zealand?

a) NZ Idol b) X Factor c) Pain killers

a) The woman told immigration that she was the recent YouTube celeb Susan Boyle. When a customs officer heard the lady actually singing in the airport toilets however, she realised it was not the same voice and had the family deported straight away b) The woman was too morbidly obese to be allowed into New Zealand c) The recession 4. Recently, a police officer was tragically killed and three other people badly injured, in a 51-hour siege in a NZ suburb. The siege ended when the gunman shot himself. In which town did this happen? a) Christchurch b) Tauranga c) Napier 5. Kapiti residents should now make sure they follow their children around, ready to cover their eyes at any moment. You might as well say the Kapiti district is pretty much PG rated now! What by-law did their council recently change to make me say this?! a) It is now legal to wear Crocs b) Clothing could be ‘optional’ on beaches c) Soft drinks, bubble gum and ice cream are now all council funded

8. Vodafone is in the process of taking Telecom to court. Why is this? a) Telecom’s new third-generation (3G) network is allegedly interfering with the Vodafone network b) Telecom earned more money last year than Vodafone. Vodafone doesn’t like this so they’re having a cry to the High Court judge c) They want to see if a court case really is like the ones on Boston Legal 9. Scientists at the University of Warwick in the UK have designed a race car that is expected to reach speeds of over 235kmh. What is interesting about how this car is powered? a) The car has a newly designed engine that runs on oxygen and therefore never needs to be fuelled up b) They are using normal petrol, filling it up at BP on the way to the race – nothing special c) The car is fuelled by waste left over after chocolate is made 10. In February, Australia battled devastating bush fires. Which other country has also recently been facing severe bush fires, with up to 2,000 homes at risk?! a) China b) USA c) Fiji

Answers at bottom of page 30

What’s your news hat? So, how did you score? Did you put on Edward Do Bono’s thinking hat or Bart Simpson’s beanie?

0-2: a sombrero – you are obviously asleep. 3-4: Bart’s beanie – need we say more? 5-6: Coco Chanel’s fascinator – interesting but not very sensible really. 7-8: Darth Vader’s helmet – impressive, whuh-pshhhhhh. 9-10: So – you whipped out for a Stephen Hawking brain transplant instead of wearing a hat? Solid effort.

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Tearaway June 2009

News is what somebody somewhere wants to suppress; all the rest is advertising – Lord Northcliffe

The Cut!

National Secondary Schools Short Video Competition

Making the

The The The Gissy Gissy Boys Boys The The TheGissy Gissy Gissy GissyBoys Boys Boys Boys The ‘Gissy Boys’ team from Gisborne have been

The Cut! National Secondary Schools Short Video Competition is a great way to get involved in filmmaking, and offers some excellent prizes. This month we check out the GISBORNE BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL TEAM, and ask the lecturers from Wintec’s Bachelor of Media Arts (Moving Image) for some tips.

Word from the experts Here are some inside tips for making a great Cut! film, from Bachelor of Media Arts (Moving Image) lecturers.

Story is everything. What stories do you like to watch, which ones work well, and why?

Structure: do you have a solid beginning, middle and end?

Aim to offer an interesting and original take on your chosen theme.

Don’t forget the sound: well-recorded dialogue and good sound design go a long way. Other technical issues such as focus, framing, lighting and editing are important too, although all must serve the story.

Good performances help, whether you’re going for drama or documentary.

Keep up the pace – every shot should play a part towards advancing the story.

Watch other short films (previous Cut! DVDs, YouTube, etc) to learn what works.

Consider how your film will stand out when seen with 80 others – what makes it unique, fun, dramatic, creative, relevant, exciting...?

To take part in Cut! 2009 Register now at www.wintec.ac.nz/cut For information on Wintec’s programmes, contact Wintec on 0800 2 wintec (0800 2 946 832) or online at www.wintec.ac.nz/contact

consistently strong performers in Cut!

They won the top prize in 2007 for their documentary The Teredo Worm, were runners-up for best film in 2008, and have also been successful in other competitions such as 48 Hours and Movie Fest.

A past team member is now working at TVNZ. Something in the East Coast water must be fuelling this creative powerhouse...

The Gissy Boys’ Cut! entry for 2009 is under wraps – “don’t want to give our secrets away!” – but they did comment on their production process. “We basically nut the idea out first, everyone specialises in what they’re good at, and the production begins.

“Sometimes, because of small numbers, directors have to act and actors have to direct.

“Cut! is great! Just have a go – movie-making is fun, and when you get a shot at winning some great prizes, it’s even better.”

Future plans? The team aren’t sure yet.

“As well as filmmaking, a lot of the boys are keen on rugby – maybe we could take up sports commentary!”

GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY

29 Sale Street Freemans Bay PO Box 91 641 Victoria Street West A u c k l a n d 11 4 2

According to the reformers, most of the movies have unsound effects – Olin Miller

Audio 2 viZual

A 2 Z Te c h n o l o g i e s L t d

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5

FEATURE: GANGS

Gangs Why join a gang?

One of the main things a gang seems to offer is a place to belong. But that box CAN be ticked in other ways – by getting into sports clubs, bands, art or dance for example.

Everyone’s got the potential to do awesome things. ‘Belonging’ does not Mural art from 274

have to equal crime and violence.

The road to jail or the grave We all have a story. This month, we talk to people who have turned their lives around after years of being tied up with gangs. We also talk to a guy who is still working on making that transition.

If you’re in a gang or thinking of joining one, ask yourself this: where is this road leading? As youth worker Teezall Petero says, it leads to one of two places: jail, or the grave.

You’re worth more than that, and the choice is always yours. Find someone you can trust to talk to.

Discover your talents and explore them. Don’t waste your energy and your life on negative things and negative people.

ASHLEIGH HOPE talks to Jacob, a young gang member who is taking control of his life

More than just a number When Jacob* was five, his Dad went to jail, and Jacob and his family moved to Auckland. At nine years old, Jacob got kicked out of primary school in South Auckland for stealing his principal’s car.

From there, his crimes escalated – stealing more cars, breaking into houses. He has never been to intermediate or high school.

How did you first become involved with gangs?

I was 12. My brothers forced me. They said if I don’t, they’ll beat me up.

So do you have a lot of friends and family in the same gang?

Yup. What is your favourite part of being in a group like this?

Just smoking weed and getting drunk. But that’s what I’m trying to change, the smoking weed and that.

What other kinds of things do you do in the gang?

Before any crime, we get stoned. If we get stoned we don’t care. The crime we used to do was break into factories, banks, stores, liquor stores, houses, cars. I even stole a police car before.

Did you do these things for the financial security or just for the thrill?

It’s just for all the fame. What gang can do more crime? ‘Cos that’s all it is, who can take it the highest.

Have you ever been put into situations you didn’t want to be in?

Yip, a few times. My mates tried to make me do banks, and I said no. One of my friends tried to make me stab one of my school mates in primary.

All sorts of stupid stuff like that.When you see someone from a rival gang, how does it make you feel?

It makes me feel angry. It’s just those...colours, the bandanas, don’t like them. They hate us, so we hate them.

Do you think if things had been different in your life you would have joined a gang?

Um yip, cos my Dad’s an old school [gang member]. And since we were little he told us “don’t wear [that colour] ever”. So yeah, we were just brought up with a gang.

So what’s the worst part of being in a gang?

The worst one would have been when I got arrested – the time when it was for something I didn’t do.

How old were you when you got arrested?

Just turned 10.

Were you scared?

I was just going with the flow.

Do you get along with people who aren’t in gangs?

No, not really.

How did you get involved with working with your youth worker?

Through a court order. I got arrested and then went on the MYND camps.

So it’s all you’ve known?

Yeah, pretty much. Know how to steal, know how to rob. It’s nothing to brag about.

MYND = Male Youth New Direction

What are your aspirations?

I know the place I don’t want to go is jail. I’ve been in and out of the cells. It’s boring, it sucks.

You learn nothing from in there. All you are in there is just a number. At the moment I’m trying to be a graffiti artist or a mechanic.

These are intensive 10-day militarystyle camps for young offenders.

After the camp, a youth provider will often be assigned to work with the young people.

Jacob’s youth worker Soane was working on the MYND programme for a while, which is how they met each other, and they’ve been “best mates ever since”.

*Jacob’s name and other details that might identify him have been changed.

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Tearaway June 2009

I believe that I understand gangs better than others. Because they’re formed out of necessity. They’re formed by people to keep from being suppressed – Jack Bowman

How long have you been working together?

Since last year in August.

Is the end of the time together coming up?

I actually got a breach and they extended it for a bit longer. That’s what I’m trying to drop, all my charges that I’ve got now.

What does your mum think of this?

She and my dad think it’s a waste of time for me to stay at home if I’m just going to get in trouble.

My mum is in and out of court, bailing me out.

So you are doing this for your mum?

Yeah, pretty much. Just trying to make her happy.

When I wasn’t on this course I was in and out of the cells, going to boys’ homes, staying in the cells for the weekends. It just gets out of hand.

Do you think you can stay in gangs and not get into trouble?

Nah, I don’t reckon.

Do you feel like there are any options for you, other than being in a gang?

There is the option of what I am doing now – it’s the only option I like and want to keep to. Every other course I just walk in and walk out…I would just go to MIT and steal stuff, steal cars…but the one I’m on now, I like. It’s laid back.

Are you enjoying the writing and maths?

I’m not really a maths person, or a writing person, I just like reading.

What do you like reading?

Car magazines. I’m getting into my cars a lot, that’s why I want to be a mechanic – from just seeing all the stuff in the magazines.

What have you been learning from your programme?

What I learned is how to stay out of trouble, and how to respect people. Don’t take things.

Someone who cares Soane Papalii of the Tamaki Ki Raro Trust is the youth worker who’s been helping Jacob.

My work involves mentoring young people on a one-to-one basis. I sit down and listen to them, and what they want in their lives, and we set goals.

I encourage them to engage with positive peers, moving away from negative ones. If the young people I’m working with can see the positive peer groups being career-focused or education-focused, it might build their confidence and motivate them.

Communication is the key part. Also, having a sense of security – having someone older who cares and is making the effort to listen. That can really encourage the young person to do great stuff. You can be more than what you are now.

Jacob has made some huge changes which is a step. He’s in education now and I can see those small changes that I guess can’t be measured. I just look at the positive side of Jacob, bearing in mind the environment that he’s in at the moment, and try and weave him away from that group.

He’s in education Monday to Friday. He’s working on literacy and numeracy foundations he has missed out on. He’s really focused on the tasks that he’s doing, so I hope he can make that big shift to something positive. Jacob is getting there, he’s been consistent – it’s a work in progress.

“He’s really focused on the tasks that he’s doing, so I hope he can make that big shift to something positive. Jacob is getting there... it’s a work in progress” Has it been good having a positive male role model?

Yeah, I don’t want to say anything, but I don’t really like females. I like hanging out with the boys.

What do your brothers think about you doing this programme, knowing that you could move away from the gang?

They say don’t be in a gang, but they can’t talk because they are in the gang too. It’s just the environment we’re in. The gangs are in every street. And we just want to represent our street.

Soane Papalii (youth worker) and 'Jacob' (with his back to the camera)

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7

FEATURE: GANGS

Crisis, intervention, prevention

Hard to leave As a young woman, JUDE SIMPSON was involved with gangs

A few years ago, youth gang incidents started to get out of

for two periods of her life – first when she was 17, and again

control – aggravated robberies, scrapping between gangs, and

at 34. Jude is now a Family Violence Prevention Advocate at

even some cases of homicide, with the worst of the problems

Presbyterian Support (Northern).

arising in South Auckland.

As a child I was a victim of family violence. That changed everything for me – my whole belief system.

My self-esteem was very low and I didn’t feel like I deserved to be around good people. The idea of gangs suited me because of who I believed I was.

Both times my involvement with gangs came about through guys I was involved with.

Outside of there I didn’t have anywhere that I felt I belonged. It was incredibly violent, abusive, disruptive and dishonest, but those things came secondary to more important things – a sense of belonging.

I was a victim of violence from my partner who was a patched member. We women would never fight back with our partners, but we’d be involved with violence towards women from rival gangs.

I ended up being arrested and charged with armed robbery and facing seven to ten years in prison. That first night in my cell made me realise I had to get out of the gangs and the whole world of crime.

The first time it was hard to leave. I had to get out of the area and hide out a little. Once you’ve been affiliated with gangs it’s not that easy to just leave.

My self-esteem was still obviously very low the second time I became involved with gangs.

A lot of these men can be very charming, and it stops you from looking for the obvious signs. You can get caught up, not hear the bells going off, and think ‘he’s not going to be like that, or do anything to hurt me’.

These growing issues were the catalyst for the government to look at how youth gangs were dealt with in other countries, as well as here in NZ. A 26-point plan was developed by a number of government agencies and led by the Ministry of Social Development.

This action plan was arranged into three streams: Crisis, Intervention and Prevention.

“Listen to your puku, your gut instinct.

It’s the most valuable tool, and we carry it internally. Often we get caught up in the moment in new relationships and think everything’s wonderful. Be wise think bigger” My eldest baby was only a few months old when I went into the gang world the first time. She ended up going to live with her father, which was good because where I was was just no world for children.

As for my son, I ended up having to leave him. If I had tried to take him I would’ve been killed, so my son was left with his father and the gang.

I do see him now, after all these years. He’s now 30 and he’s doing really well.

Listen to your puku, your gut instinct. It’s the most valuable tool, and we carry it internally. Often we get caught up in the moment in new relationships and think everything’s wonderful.

Be wise – think bigger. The damage that can be done is just huge, and it can be irreversible.

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Tearaway June 2009

Crisis Special police teams were formed to focus on youth gang problems.

Emergency housing was also set up for young people, who would either have to spend a night in jail or roam the street.

These ’reception centres’ are staffed 24 hours by social workers, and offer safe housing to young people, whether they are involved with gangs or not.

Intervention This is about dealing with young people who are already members of gangs, and guiding them into more positive activities.

Prevention This aims to give young people other options than joining gangs.

Twenty three youth workers were funded through the Ministry of Social Development, Family and Community Services. They work with young people and offer them alternative things to do, rather than being in gangs.

Some of the youth workers are based in Tamaki Ki Raro, Genesis, 274, II MUCH Trust, and Manurewa Mäori Women’s Welfare League.

Parenting programmes are helping parents to better understand today’s young people, and how the culture might have changed since their own teenage years.

Dramatic reduction in gang activity The four-year Action Plan has now been in place for two and a half years.

“Official police word is that there’s been a sustained dramatic reduction in youth gang activity in Counties Manakau – which is fantastic,” says Carl Crafar, National Manager of Youth intervention Services, Ministry of Social Development.

“We still have issues and incidents, but nowhere near as many as we used to have.”

The Action Plan was developed from an Auckland perspective, as that’s where the worst problems were occurring. Based on the results, the Ministry has now developed guidelines for other NZ communities.

“A number of other regions have picked up the guidelines and are implementing them,” says Carl.

“The problem is by no means fixed,” he admits, “but it’s far better managed. It didn’t pop up overnight, and it’s not going to go away overnight – it’s something we’ll need to work on for quite a while yet.”

I wish every day I could take back the stupid s**t I’ve done but I can’t.

Anybody who is thinking to join a gang, don’t dare do it, it’s damn stupid – Tbone, Deuce Crip

274:24/7 274 YOUTH CORE is a community initiated project in South Auckland which believes that every young person has the potential and ability to succeed.

They live by their motto – 274: 24/7

“Whatever young people are interested in, we try and create it for them,” says youth worker Teezall Petero. “It’s about having alternatives to what street gangs offer.”

274 recognises that so many of us are talented sports players, and are into things like music, dance and art. They offer different clubs and workshops, which are run in the evenings in Otara.

Their sports mentoring leads into basketball tournaments and rugby clubs as well as camps for a range of different sports.

There are also performance opportunities for those interested in dance.

“Our dance academy is under Street Dance NZ,” says Teezall. “It creates the opportunity to showcase your stuff nationally and internationally.”

Another schools-based programme 274 runs is ‘Flip the Script’. It’s about turning anything negative into something positive.

Johnson Brougham, another 274 youth worker, also runs a boxing programme which offers mentoring to young people.

“We’ve had really positive reactions,” says Johnson. “Young people even come down in their own time, when programmes aren’t even on, and offer to help. Anything we’re going to do they want to do it as well.”

“If you want to wreck your life, join a gang,” says Johnson. “I’ve had opportunities to freely be patched up without being initiated, just because of my reputation in the boxing ring. I’m glad I didn’t. The things that are involved with gangs – crime, theft, drugs – they land you in jail, and wreck families.”

“We’re in all the secondary schools and some primary schools in Otara and we’re also in the streets. We invite people, or we get referrals from the police or social workers who are assisting young people, and sometimes the kids approach us, looking for a way out.”

274 is just one of the positive community projects of Crosspower Ministries in Otara.

Johnson Brougham (left) and Teezall Petero

Find out what’s

right for

you

For TEEZALL PETERO, being in a gang was just a part of his life.

He’s now a youth worker with 274 Youth Core in Otara.

My family runs a gang, so it was normal for me to grow up and be a part of it.

They’re still involved. I’m not, and obviously I can’t cut all ties because they’re my family. I don’t let that rule my life – I try to always stay positive.

I saw a lot of wrong things that a young person shouldn’t see, at a real young age. For me, I just knew, this is not a way of life.

Years ago, a man called Allan Va’a came to my school. He ran programmes like what we’re doing now with 274. I had no options at the time, other than roll with the family. Meeting Allan gave me choices, I realised there are other things out there.

It’s hard to give advice to young people in gangs. I know a lot of them will be like ‘this guy… shut up’. Sometimes good advice is not really the right thing. What I would say is have a good hard think about it.

I just encourage you to stand alone – find out what’s right for you and just follow that. To be in a gang is a dead end. You can only end up in two places – jail or the grave.

There’s heaps of help out there, it’s just trying to find it. Ask teachers, or find someone you trust, that’s the only way.

It takes no courage at all to follow the crowd in whatever they are doing. ...NONE. Courage lies in taking control of your life and responsibility for the decisions made by you – Girlnextdoor

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9

FEATURE: PAGE TAG GANGS FEILIDH O’DWYER traces the history of gangs in New Zealand

How did we get here?

Gangs are present in most areas of the country, from as far north as the Filthy Few in the Bay of Plenty and as far South as the Mongrel Mob and Road Knights in Invercargill.

All of this begs a few questions: how did these gangs come into being, who is part of them and why are they still popular in NZ?

The 50s The early and perhaps more innocent days of gangs in NZ were the 1950s, when the concept of the teenager was born. NZ was experiencing an economic boom and young people were gaining independence from their parents thanks to disposable income.

The development of early gangs was fuelled by popular Hollywood films such as Rebel Without a Cause, The Wild One, and The Delinquents.

Gangs in the early 50s were known as the Bodgies and Widgies. They created moral panic with their inter-rival fighting, rebellious nature, sexual promiscuity, occasional hooliganism and rock music.

The 60s The development of gangs in NZ was heavily influenced by media coming from the United States. Hells Angels, a white motorcycle gang in America, had come to prominence in the 1960s due to the proliferation of drugs there.

The Mongrel Mob started in Napier in 1968. The name Mongrel Mob originated when a district court judge in the late 1960s referred to a group of men before him as “nothing but a pack of mongrels”.

Black Power was formed in Whakatane in the late 60s in response to the Mongrel Mob chapter there.

Both gangs are dominated by Mäori and Pacific Island members.

The 70s In the 70s, gangs became involved in drug dealing.

This lead to criminal offending which, in turn, increased the notoriety of gangs with the NZ public.

The 80s In the late 80s and early 90s many NZ päkehä were involved in more European-inspired ‘skinhead’ gangs.

Often referred to as ‘boot boys’, the skinheads had Nazi-inspired views and were prominent in the punk movement.

The 90s Since the 90s, most new gangs have been influenced by the Crips and Bloods in America.

Instead of patches, these gangs wear colours – blue for Crips and red for Bloods.

10 Tearaway June 2009

Today New Zealand has more gangs per capita than any other country in the world, with about 70 major gangs and over 4,000 patched members in a population of about four million.

The NZ Police list the three most prominent gangs in New Zealand as the Mongrel Mob, Black Power and the Nomads. Other well-known gangs are the Killerbeez, King Cobras, Road Knights MC and the Tribesmen MC, to name just a few.

The above gangs are closely associated with violence, intimidation and criminal offending.

Inevitability Jarrod Gilbert who is completing his PhD thesis at the University of Canterbury on the history of NZ gangs had an interview with TVNZ 7 this year. Part of his theory is that lower socioeconomic conditions have always led to the formation of gangs.

“If you have certain social conditions within certain communities you will see gangs rise and that is just absolutely inevitable – just as certain as when you put certain ingredients into a pot you will get cake.”

He said that this held true all around the world.

For many young people who feel disenfranchised, gangs act as a surrogate family and support system.

Chester Borrows, MP for Wanganui, has just had his bill passed into law, which bans the wearing of gang patches in parts of Wanganui.

Other communities around New Zealand are considering similar measures.

However, it is arguable that until the underlying social issues that lead to the formation of gangs are addressed, gangs will remain a place that troubled youths join in order to be part of something and feel a sense of belonging.

The law of lawlessness A former Mongrel Mob gang leader Tuhoe ‘Bruno’ Isaac wrote in his autobiography True Red that in his era there was no rule except the ‘law of lawlessness’.

“Being a Mongrel meant being able to do anything your mind could conceive; any form of fantasy or debauchery you were able to dream up was acceptable.”

What’s a patch?

A patch is the identifying insignia of a particular gang. It is often a symbol and is like the gang’s ‘flag’. Gang members often wear their patches on their clothing as a sign of their gang membership.

Patched members are those considered loyal and trustworthy within the gang.

To earn a patch, a prospect (potential member) must normally do errands or missions to show his loyalty to his gang. A lot of the time, an errand comes in the form of a crime.

A prospect normally has a patched member to report or clock in to. This patched member normally decides when it is time for the prospect to be patched.

The

power of choice

Why do people choose gangs?

Wanting to belong If you’re feeling alone in the world, or you feel like you’re not being heard, joining a gang can seem like a good option. It can give you somewhere to belong, it can give you a sense of pride.

Peer pressure Gang membership might seem cool. It might seem safer to be in a gang than outside one. You might be intimidated into joining, or feel it will bring you protection. You might be enticed into a gang with money, free beer and apparently good times.

American hip-hop culture This is not a judgement on music. As Carl Crafar at Youth Intervention Services says, “rebel-type music has always been around, but some hip-hop preaches anti-social behaviour.

“For example, Snoop Dogg is a practising Crips member. He has a TV show, he’s rich, some of his videos feature anti-social behaviour, and there’s lots of bling and lots of pretty girls. It looks cool, and sends out influential messages about being in a gang.”

Family disengagement Times have changed. We might not all have role models. A lot of us aren’t connected to families as much as previous generations were.

“That’s a societal thing,” says Carl. “Mum used to stay home while Dad was at work, but it doesn’t always work like that anymore. There’s not that level of attachment that there used to be.”

Lack of cash Many gangs get involved in illegal activity which translates into income.

Escape Sometimes people use gangs as a way to escape from problems in their lives. It could be problems at home or school. Maybe you’re just bored.

All colours, all types Our focus on these pages is the South Auckland scene, because that’s been getting so much negative media attention.

Of course, gangs are NZ-wide, and involve all ethnic groups.

Look out for more on this subject in Tearaway!

Youth worker Kaleb Cave breakdancing as part of Genesis Power of Choice programme

Genesis Youth Project runs a programme in schools called Power of Choice.

Using breakdance, chants and roleplaying, the programme shows young people how to deal with peer pressure to join gangs or commit crimes.

You have a choice Are you involved with a gang, and want out? Maybe you’ve got a mate who’s in trouble. Or are you being hassled by a gang?

The first thing to do is talk to someone. Find someone you can trust, who won’t judge you or put you down. This may be a teacher, school counsellor or social worker, or a family member.

There are heaps of different places you can call if you can’t approach someone you know.

Try a youth worker or a youth provider in your area. They can show you other ways, and help you reach your goals.

Contact your local council, or check the websites below.

If you are linked into a government agency, like Work and Income NZ (WINZ), they will also be able to point you in the right direction.

HELP! www.youthline.co.nz 0800 37 66 33 e-mail talk@youthline.co.nz or free text to 234. www.urge.co.nz www.familyservices.govt.nz/directory www.cab.org.nz 274 Youth Core Cross Power: (09) 2747966

More than meets the eye “Most young people are good people,” says Carl Crafar. “We should be careful not to stereotype anyone.”

But stereotyping has become difficult to avoid. People are often judged on appearances only.

“Lots of young people wear sideways caps and basketball shirts,” says Carl. “They could be just a group of people that have got their caps on sideways and are wearing basketball shirts, because that’s what they wear. But that can sometimes intimidate the community and make them feel unsafe.

“There is crime and violence in NZ, but it’s also got to a point where a group of young people can be intimidating, which has quite a

big impact on a community.”

It’s also a stereotype that gang members are certain types of people, or have certain backgrounds, for example broken homes. This is not always the case.

Carl refers to one of the first cases of a youth gang member committing homicide. “He was a seventh-form boy from a loving family with two parents who worked. He was good at sport and academics, but he was a gang member on the weekend.”

“We all need to not be so judgmental,” says Jude Simpson. “There’s always a story behind why someone is out on the streets and not at home. We need to be a bit more compassionate and understanding of each other.” www.tearaway.net.nz 11

GLOBAL FOCUS Refugees are forced to leave their homes behind – they have no choice. Most, if not all, refugees will have endured hardship and suffering as they made the journey to a new and unfamiliar land. NICHOLAS MUTCH of Just Write looks

Photo credit: Claudia Meyer

deeper into the lives of refugees in New Zealand.

Earthless Trees, a book with 11 diverse short stories exploring the experiences of refugees in New Zealand, gives a unique insight into a group of people whose stories deserve to be told.

When reading this book, and writing this article, I came to feel something of a strange, out-of-place emotion.

Despite the horrible imagery and the enormous trials faced by some of these refugees, I almost felt a pang of envy.

As all writers can attest to, I aspire to have a personal story worth writing about, and I know that nothing I could write about my life, no matter how eloquent or well written, could be anywhere near as interesting or moving as the story of someone who has been displaced from their homeland.

I am sure I would think differently if I had experienced war, famine or persecution, and I don’t wish to diminish the refugee experience, but I found Earthless Trees a fascinating collection of stories worth telling.

Refugees in Aotearoa New Zealand When talking about refugee experiences, it is very important to know some background information.

The term refugee is sometimes used a little loosely but the United Nations has a very specific definition: A person who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.

Basically, what all that means is someone is forced to seek refuge in a foreign country because their safety, human rights or lives are at risk in their 12 Tearaway June 2009

Earthless trees home country owing to their ethnicity or beliefs.

An immigrant on the other hand is someone who voluntarily moves from one country to another for any number of different reasons.

Figures vary, but the UNHCR – the UN refugee agency – reports that there are over 11 million people who fit these criteria.

Although the exact number varies, New Zealand accepts a quota of 750 refugees per year.

Once they have been accepted into the country, refugees can ‘sponsor’ family members (including children and spouses) to come and join them.

There are also many other people who seek asylum on reaching New Zealand.

The human face of survival The stories in Earthless Trees detail the experiences of young refugees before, during and after their journeys to New Zealand.

Refugees generally come from countries that are burdened with anything from a dictatorial regime such as the one Yugoslavia suffered in the 1990s, to the conflict, civil war and anarchy which have devastated Somalia since the 1970s.

One of the best things the book does is give destructive conflicts such as these a very human face.

Joseph Stalin once made the morbidly insightful comment that the death of one man is a tragedy; the death of millions is a statistic.

Telling the stories of individuals who survive, despite losing their family, homes and sense of security in these conflicts, is far more powerful than a report that states something like ‘74 people were killed today in a bombing raid’.

Words of honey While all the stories are very interesting, the highlights for me were two stories written by Shamim Homayun, Words of Honey and Sugar and Elements of Good Calligraphy.

They are stories about Afghanistan’s cultural history, with one story describing the experiences of a girl whose father ran an opium den, and the second about the art of ancient Arabic calligraphy.

These stories were beautifully written by Shamim, who has a great eye for suspense and drama. At the same time, they also introduced me to elements of Arabic culture and history that were completely new to me.

All of the stories in Earthless Trees deserve to be read, as they contain poignant and moving accounts of real life experiences and situations that you might otherwise never hear about.

The only way to really understand these stories of course is to read the book, so why don’t you contact Refugees as Survivors and purchase a copy for yourself!

Honest and sad The stories themselves are the experiences of young refugees from Ethiopia, Somalia and Afghanistan. With a few exceptions, the stories are honest and saddening depictions of life in wartorn situations.

Even though these stories are very personal descriptions of the situations refugees found themselves in, I would have found it helpful to have some background information about the specific conflicts. This would have given me a better understanding of the historical context of the stories.

This does, however, offer interested readers a good opportunity to do some research of their own; something I would recommend to get the most out of the stories.

From an escape through mountains on an overloaded truck, to living through an explosion in urban Kabul, these stories touch on universal themes: survival, family, home, friends. To order a copy, email admin@wnras.org.nz

Sorrow never spoken is the heaviest load to bear – Farook Sheikh

Talking to Samson Sahele, Earthless Trees project coordinator What was the main purpose of Earthless Trees?

To build capacity in young refugees and teach them creative writing skills; to create a career path and help young refugees with their education; and to spread the word about the situation of refugees in New Zealand.

How have the participants of the project contributed to their local communities?

They have become a voice for their community by telling their community issues to different mainstream media sectors.

They have become roles model for the young refugee groups in Wellington.

They also now have the confidence to participate in mainstream writing groups and other public events on behalf of their community.

What is the best way for people to lend a helping hand to refugees in their local communities?

Earthless Trees team

The best ways for people to get involved are: visiting our office, visiting different refugee service provider websites, becoming volunteers and participating in community events such as World Refugee Day on June 20.

Win the book!

Do something!

It is World Refugee Day on June 20, but it is always a good time to get involved in helping to make the difficult lives of New Zealand refugees easier. Check out the ideas below.

The easiest way to help out is simply to be a friend to refugees in your school or community.

Find out more about refugees – this may not sound like much, but the more we understand about the struggles refugees face, the more likely we are to create worthwhile friendships and welcoming communities.

Think about volunteering, check out www.refugeeservices.org.nz

Photo credit: Mohammed Asif

Take action

Learn more Check out some of the articles by refugees

Word scramble One of the young writers in Earthless Trees comes from this country. It is one of Africa’s poorest and begins with ‘E’ : OATHIEPI This country, home to one of the writers, has been devastated by conflict since the 1970s. It’s third letter is ‘M’: AIMALSO

Watch videos from the YouTube

New Zealand has peacekeeping forces in this country and it is also home to one of the writers. It ends in ‘N’: FANNAGSAITH

Young Refugees Speak Up channel: http://tinyurl.com/c8g9f3

New Zealand accepts refugees from this country which is often on the six o’clock news: RAIQ

on Just Focus: www.justfocus.org.nz

Have a look at refugee focused sites like: Refugees as Survivors www.aucklandras.org.nz and www.wnras.org.nz Changemakers: www.changemakers.org.uk Refugee Services Aotearoa NZ: www.refugeeservices.org.nz

Photo credit: Sanja

Go into the draw to win an autographed copy of Earthless Trees.

Rearrange the scrambled letters by using the clues provided. Send your answers, along with your name and contact details, to Fiona, Global Education Centre, PO Box 12440, Wellington 6144, or email them to fiona@globaled.org.nz.

Voice It (a radio programme and publication from young refugees in Aotearoa NZ): www.voice-arts.org.nz

This country is currently run by a military force and is officially known as Myanmar. It starts with ‘B’: AMRUB This Global Focus feature is a Tearaway and Global Education Centre project. This article was funded by NZAID – a government organisation helping out with aid and development around the world. The purpose of Global Focus is to provide young people with a forum and information about global issues. For more information, visit www.globaled.org.nz.

Mixit (Auckland based arts project): www.mixit.co.nz

I thought the war was over when I left Cambodia, but I realise now that for survivors, the war is never over just because the guns have fallen silent – Loung Ung

www.tearaway.net.nz 13

MUSIC JONO PERKINS elbows his way past the celebs and checks out this sizzling Kiwi music phenomenon at The Brave Don’t Run album-release gig

Midnight Youth The first thing you notice when you go to an album release is the large assembly of B-grade celebs. Everywhere!

Here I am, lining up outside The Studio on K’ Road, tickets in hand, while at least 10 C4 presenters, radio hosts and Shortland Street actors walk straight to the front of the line, flash their tickets and point to their faces as though they have some sort of jump-the-queue card – only to be humbled by the bouncers who point straight to the back of the line!

Me and my main man CT pretty much decided then and there that even if Midnight Youth didn’t put on a good show, watching this happen would definitely make for a good night.

Packed

more impressive his singing was on the night!

The set was more than polished and each member of the band played incredibly well.

Guitarist Simon Oscroft is killer.

The first three songs were played in order of the album’s running, followed by other songs off the album, a new song, a dance party and even a cover of Led Zeppelin’s Whole Lotta Love!

Of course, their single The Letter was a crowd favourite, with everyone singing along.

One of NZ’s best They may be one of New Zealand’s biggest acts right now but guitarist Simon Oscroft managed to

As we finally made it through the door we kinda realised how much of a big deal Midnight Youth are right now.

Anyone who is anyone in the music and media industry was there and all were having a good mix and mingle in the crowded foyer.

The album artwork was projected tastefully onto all the walls, transforming the venue into a new wonderland!

We gradually worked our way through the maze of musicians I look up to, trying to brush as many shoulders as possible, into the room where the stage is set up.

We walked through the doors and were stopped by the biggest crowd I have ever seen in this venue. There was no floor space left at all, the whole mezzanine level was packed out and all the people in the foyer yet to cram in, and all the guys from Shorty still waiting in line.

say at least three times how grateful the band was

Blown away

by the band.

As the DJ wrapped up his set I somehow managed to squeeze through to the front just as the band walked out.

From the opening chord I was pretty intrigued but as soon as the singer Jeremy Redmore opened his mouth to sing I was blown away.

I had a sneak listen to the album before the show and was amazed at how much bigger and 14 Tearaway June 2009

for the turnout and support.

They weren’t afraid to stop and chat in between songs and Redmore even gave a wave to his sister who was watching the gig via webcam in London!

Technology these days…

After showing us why they are one of NZ’s best bands, the show was over almost as quickly as it started.

An informal invite was passed out to the afterparty, families and friends were thanked by the band and the stampede began as the few hundred of us tried to scuttle through one door.

Super nice Walking home I picked up some sushi and couldn’t stop thinking about how impressed I was They are a band that will succeed for sure! Not only are these boys cleaning up in the charts but they are super nice and come across like good ol’ genuine Kiwi kids on stage.

If you get a chance to catch these boys live, make sure you do. It is well worth putting up with the wannabe celebs outside!

Americans want grungy people, stabbing themselves in the head on stage.

They get a bright bunch like us, with deodorant on, they don’t get it – Liam Gallagher

ASHLEIGH HOPE was lucky enough to have a chat with guitarist Simon Oscroft of Midnight Youth who told her all about their hard work and success.

Midnight Youth formed in 2006 with humble beginnings in the Smokefreerockquest. After some changes to their line-up, introducing the impressive vocals of Jeremy Redmore to the mix, they then worked their way up – practising, gigging and song-writing.

Now, they are signed to a major record label, are travelling the world and have released their debut album The Brave Don’t Run which is climbing its way up the New Zealand charts.

I remember you guys from the Smokefreerockquest finals in Wellington. What steps did you take to get where you are now?

We lost our singer and started from fresh again.

We were going to change our name but it kinda just happened and we found Jeremy by putting an ad on the internet looking for a singer.

After the first time we jammed together it was like ‘this guy’s got a pretty amazing voice, let’s see if we can write some cool songs together’. So we started writing brand new music and it worked.

We practised twice a week for the last three years, played as many gigs as possible, and just kind of got better and better at song-writing and playing live.

And then the right song came out at the right time with The Letter, and everything just started working out.

Your sound is pretty unique – where do you draw inspiration from?

From a lot of places. We recorded the album in New York last year and that was an inspiration in itself.

We had written most of the music before we got there, but Jeremy was writing lyrics in Central Park and was really just being inspired by the city.

We also get inspired by artists and other bands, like Ryan Adams, and we listen to stuff like The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Killers and Kings of Leon.

At one of the recording studios you worked at Ryan Adams had actually recorded there too. Was that pretty amazing for you guys?

Yea, it was so amazing! We had no idea until we got there.

We recorded at about four or five different studios around New York… because it was a small budget record we could only afford little places really.

The most expensive place we did was for the drums, and we could only afford one day cos it was like the most amazing studio we had ever seen. So we did all the drum tracks there then all the guitars and vocals we did at little project studios around the place.

It was one of the little ones where Ryan Adams and Sufjan Stevens had recorded before, so that was really cool.

Any other favourite experiences from your time in America?

The most amazing thing was going to America again a couple of months ago for SXSW. We are pretty lucky.

We played a New Zealand showcase with Ladyhawk and it was a full house.

There were about 500 people, and about another thousand people lining up trying to get in because everyone wanted to see who the New Zealand bands were, because New Zealand is starting to get a really cool name overseas.

Do you have anything else lined up?

Giveaway!

Get your musical mittens on a copy of Midnight Youth’s debut album The Brave Don’t Run. Enter at www.tearaway.net.nz

CD6MDY

In June and July we’re doing two different national tours around New Zealand and then in August we are going to do an Australian tour, so we are going to be really busy!

Finally, do you have any advice for budding rock stars out there trying to make it big?

It’s all about practice and drive. It’s about not giving up because a lot of people want to cut you down.

But if you use that to encourage yourselves more then at some point in time it’s gonna happen, it’s gonna work and you’re gonna get better and eventually get someone taking notice of you.

We’ve had a lot of bands around us break up and get frustrated and stop, but if you just keep working at it, and you make it your passion and your goal, it’s the best thing that could happen! www.tearaway.net.nz 15

MUSIC

Jeremy Glenn and Dylan Jones are The Upbeats – a drum and bass duo from Wellington doing big things for New Zealand music. They have just finished touring Europe and NZ, are now jetting off to the US, and are working on their new album too.

KELLY WILLIAMS caught up with Jeremy – one half of the duo – to find out more…

the upbeats Jeremy and Dylan met at Wellington High School at the age of 16. They were both into surfing and bodyboarding but their taste in music differed in the beginning.

“When I first met Dylan he was anti-electronic music but I slowly dwindled him down,” laughs Jeremy.

They began writing music together and have been doing it ever since.

In 2004, they released their self-titled debut album in NZ, but their big break came when UK drum and bass group Bad Company discovered them.

“They were sitting in the jacuzzi at a private party in Puerto Rico when they heard one of our tracks.”

Bad Company signed them up for the international release of their second album Nobody’s Out There in 2008.

Inspired and loving it Jeremy and Dylan draw inspiration from a whole range of music, from Jamaican dub to Memphis funk, Detroit techno to folk and bluegrass.

Jeremy describes their style as “very energetic party music. It’s quite raw.

It’s what we’d like to dance to.”

The Upbeats have already toured Australia, Europe and North America, and have just completed another national tour.

“The European scene is really good and it’s fun to play at all different kinds of parties overseas. But New Zealand is still my favourite place to play. The crowds are really receptive and we have so much support here.”

After performing in smoke-filled venues overseas, Jeremy and Dylan are big supporters of the smoke-free bar and club scene back home. “We love it.

Neither of us have ever been smokers.”

Non vogue Their Ghost Radio Tour throughout the country in May was to promote their 16 Tearaway June 2009

third release – Big Skeleton – on their independent record label, Non Vogue – and it was a big hit.

“Playing in Wellington was amazing. It’s so good to be home.”

And the boys are very pleased with the overall success of the record label so far. “We’re really stoked. It’s a dream come true.”

Back to roots The Ghost Radio Tour also gave fans a rare preview of their upcoming album Big Skeleton, set for release in August this year.

“For this album we’re going back to our roots and making straightup party music. I think it will be a lot more appealing to drum and bass enthusiasts than the last album.”

And while the majority of The Upbeats’ gigs are performed at over-18 venues, Jeremy says they are keen to do more underage gigs.

“We try to do as many as we can. It’s definitely something we’re open to.”

Hectic And is everything going according to plan?

“We’ve got a very tight schedule. We’re in the studio Monday to Friday.

So fingers crossed.”

Jeremy and Dylan have a hectic couple of months ahead, with an international tour and the release of their new album. So what is next for The Upbeats?

“Some biscuits and a cup of tea!”

Be happy Jeremy’s advice for aspiring musicians is simple – to keep having fun.

“It’s all about enjoyment. Don’t do it to be the most famous or to get the biggest name. Just be happy doing what you’re doing. Keep that in the front of your mind and you’ll be right.”

Check out The Upbeats MySpace at www.myspace.com/theupbeatsnz

www.tearaway.net.nz 17

Photos by Chris Traill

Pussycat Dolls and Lady Gaga.

Live at Vector Arena (Auckland)

MUSIC

NZ Music Month is over for another year but FLEUR JACK checks out some of last month’s great releases plus more Kiwi music goodness on the radar

Kiwi music news The must buy!!!

Dictaphone Blues

On the Down and In

People talk about how hard it is for bands to ‘make it’, but, in my book, if you tour around the world playing music, get your songs on radio and release albums, you’ve done just that.

Edward Thomas Castelow has had previous radio success with his last band degrees.K, he has toured overseas with The Brunettes and The Ruby Suns, and when he returned home to NZ it was time to focus on his own creations.

On the Down and In is his brand new album and it is packed with great tunes, groovy melodies and songs so catchy you’d be stupid not to buy it and whack it on your iPod. For a quick listen www.myspace.com/

Edward Thomas Castelow of Dictaphone Blues

dictaphoneblues

Hardcore busy Antagonist AD may just be the busiest touring NZ band!

This year, they have already done extensive touring through Australia, they headlined a tour in Japan and they have also taken off to countries that most Kiwi bands wouldn’t think of putting in their tour plans – like Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.

You may think it’d be time for a cup of tea and a lie down, but not a chance! They are taking off again to Australia this month to support American band Earth Crisis.

You can catch the details at www.myspace.com/antagonistad

Gig ‘n’ kai

Wanna catch a live gig, but don’t want to leave the house?!

Check out Guess Who’s Singing For Dinner every Tuesday night @ 8pm.

Burger Fuel puts on some food, a band comes in to play three live songs and have a chat about life on Indie Alt New with Fleur Jack.

“I wanted to have a band on my show every week and I thought what better way than to lure them in with the promise of a darn tasty kai” – Fleur Jack Thanx Burger Fuel!!

MONDAYS Mellow Mondays w/ The Good News Diary TUESDAYS Guess Who’s Singing For Dinner?

WEDNESDAYS The Rock Factory Musicians Helpline THURSDAYS Indie Album of the Week Interview FRIDAYS Party Rock Night

20 Tearaway June 2009

102.2FM AKL 102.1FM WLG 102.5FM CHC

with FLEUR JACK Monday – Friday 7pm – 9pm The Best of I.A.N. Saturdays 12pm – 3pm & Sundays 1am – 4am Audio on Demand 24hrs, 7 day @ www.kiwifm.co.nz

Watch these spaces!!

Now that the NZ Music Month wave is over for another year, here are some of the bands who’ll be releasing new

Quirk folk for the European masses Last month the The Benka Boradovsky Bordello Band released their debut album Polkapocalypse through Monkey Records.

They had released an EP called Danse Macabre in 2008 and the new album is a great follow-up that showcases the band’s crazed gypsy sounds.

It features four traditional songs, a few of the band’s own originals and it also has a couple of covers, even one by the Dead Kennedys.

They also did a wee NZ tour to support the release and played their new material to folks in Auckland and Wellington. They are now relocating to Berlin for the next six months to take their music to new audiences. www.myspace.com/bbbordello

albums and taking their live acts around NZ in June.

The Checks’ new album Alice by the Moon is out June 8, which will be followed by a nationwide tour.

Minuit will be fresh back from shows in Vietnam and ready to release their new album.

The third Fly My Pretties tour is in progress and will finish up early June. The album recorded from the live performances will be out later in the year and, like its previous incarnations, will no doubt be a must-have in your Kiwi collection.

New from Drew

, , What s up? My name s Drew Neemia and , I m the new host of Vodafone Select Live on C4 - and the new writer of this new , column! It s newness all around!

Every month, I’ll be updating you with the latest about my show and what new music to look out for. So make sure you check me out on the telly and in Tearaway every month!

Kids of 88 Since I’ve been working at C4 everyone has been asking me about ‘that song on the C4 promo’ and ‘who is singing???’

I was curious too, and I still don’t know, so good luck with that! Jokes! He he… The group’s name is Kids of 88 and the song is My House.

The good news is that these boys are all Kiwi!

When asked to describe their music the band duo Jordan Arts and Sam McCarthy said, “a cross between a late 80s police drama intro theme and a sophisticated super hussy”.

The music video to their first single My House will be on C4 soon (hopefully by the time you read this!) so make sure you watch Vodafone Select Live to check it out – or visit our website c4tv.co.nz for details!

Country music is three chords and the truth – Harlan Howard

All going right Darren Watson from Wellington wrote a song called All Going Wrong – but it certainly wasn’t going wrong for him after he entered it in the International Songwriting Competition.

His song won first place in the ‘best blues song’ category, and the prize is worth several thousand US dollars.

He is hoping it will open some doors in the US music industry and plans to release a new album later this year.

To win, his song beat 15,000 other entries from all over the world. And the judges include some of the world’s best songwriters and producers: Tom Waits, James Cotton, John Mayall and Jerry Lee Lewis. www.myspace.com/darrenwatsonband

Boom boom Elsewhere on the show – the Black Eyed Peas are back and their latest single Boom Boom Pow is ridiculously good.

It smashed the American charts and took out the number one spot. And judging by the votes on Select Live – it’s going off here too!

Boom Boom Pow is from their latest album The E.N.D. which stands for The Energy Never Dies.

When asked to describe the music of their new record, will.i.am said, “a lot of dance stuff, real melodic, electronic, soulful. We call it, like, electric static funk, something like that”.

The album will be released in NZ on June 8 and will no doubt take the country by storm!

Stoked So anyway, in between trying to get Select Live viewers to see Lily Allen live in Australia, giving away some mean Adidas packs and getting excited about the new Star Trek film (I’ve seen it twice and counting), I’m loving my new gig.

It’s a tough job, but somebody’s got to do it!

Enjoy the Green Day poster in Tearaway too – we love their single Know Your Enemy and are stoked they’re back with a vengeance.

Till next month, Love, Drew P.S: don’t forget to watch Vodafone Select Live, weekday afternoons on C4! www.tearaway.net.nz 21

Smokefreerockquest

RAIN FRANCIS has a quick chinwag with drummer and vocalist, Miller Christensen-Yule – one half of Matt and Miller

Classic rock owns it!

This year’s Smokefreerockquest is well and truly underway. Hundreds of bands are battling it out for a place in their regional finals. And we have our first finalists of the season! Matt and Miller from Northcote College scored first place at the West Auckland finals.

Matt and Miller play “classic, folky rock”, which was obviously a winning formula in West Auckland.

The heats there were dominated by a heavier sound, so Miller reckons they had an advantage by being a bit different, what with their short hair and acoustic guitars.

They also took the APRA Lyrics Award for their song The Ballad of Sally James.

Both Matt and Miller are fans of Led Zeppelin, Oasis and Aerosmith, or “pretty much anything you can find on a classic rock compilation CD”.

The lads met in year 10 and have been playing on and off since then, in various rock bands and jazz bands. This is the first year they’ve entered Smokefreerockquest together, though Matt entered last year, in a different band.

Winning first place in the regional finals bought Matt and Miller a sweet $500 worth of Rockshop equipment.

24 Tearaway June 2009

(Left) Miller Christensen-Yule (guitar and drums) and (right)Matt Innes (guitar and vocals)

“Matt’s got his eye on a harmonica set for every key, and an amp, and he just told me he wants a 12-string guitar,” laughs Miller.

“I don’t know what I’ll get, maybe some drum equipment. We’ll have to go and have a good look around – I don’t know how far our $500 is going to go!”

The game plan now is they have to record a video of their live, original, classic folk pop rock goodness!

Luckily, Miller’s brother is a ‘camera guy’, so they’ll be taking advantage of his expertise.

Find out about your region’s heats and finals at www.smokefreerockquest.co.nz and don’t forget to get your dancin’ boots on and show support for your local bands!

And the other winners are…

Second place: Katie Everingham, Green Bay High School Third place: Blue Room Experiment, Avondale College Smokefree Women’s Musicianship Award: Christine Olive, St Dominic’s College The Lowdown Best Song Award: The Outliers, Rutherford College MAINZ Musicianship Award: Jay Owen, guitarist from Yearbook Eulogy, Kaipara College

Without music, life is a journey through a desert – Pat Conroy

TECHNOLOGY BEN LILLEY attended the New Zealand finals of the 2009 Microsoft Imagine Cup held at The University of Auckland’s Business School to see what we Kiwis had to offer the world

Imagine this...

Imagine a world where technology helps solve the toughest problems facing us today – that’s the challenge Microsoft put out to students around the world with the 2009 Microsoft Imagine Cup, and it’s certainly no small challenge.

Team Ahurei from AUT (Auckland University of Technology) presented ‘F.E.W.S’ – a wireless sensor network that could automatically alert people via phone about potential forest fires.

Team Think from Lincoln University presented ‘LearnIT’ – an interactive programme to help teach illiterate people to read and write using letters, number and words.

the ideas demonstrated throughout the competition, the future has never been in more capable hands.”

Team Think will now move on to the worldwide finals this July in Cairo, Egypt where they will compete against other student teams representing 100 other countries and regions. They are in the running for the top prize of $25,000. Good luck!

Photos: Ollie Dale

As I guessed they would, the six teams competing in the New Zealand finals had some brilliant ideas. Here’s a breakdown of the teams:

Team PigeonGrape from The University of Auckland presented ‘BirdBrains’ – a game that teaches physics by using a fun little game involving hurling stuff through a cannon.

Team Wild Bunch from the University of Canterbury presented ‘Autopilot’ – they used a cellphone-controlled model helicopter to do precision photography of farm land, allowing farmers to be more effective and productive.

Team Bolty from Victoria University of Wellington presented a simple little web service/desktop application that allows large companies to track the power usage of their computers, helping them minimise power usage.

Team Biometritec from The University of Auckland presented ‘ROPS’ – a remote online profiling system that can aid groups such as the Red Cross in reuniting families in troubled areas.

Team Think: Michael Trengrove, Graham Smart, Chun Ling Wong

From cellphone-controlled helicopters, to puzzle games that teach physics, you can see there was no shortage of innovative ideas at the event and it was great to see that trademark Kiwi ingenuity in full swing.

As one of the judges in this year’s competition, Scott Wylie (director of Developer and Platform Strategy) was able to see firsthand the innovative ideas put forward by young people from all around the country.

“Though there can only be one winning team, all of the students should be lauded for their creativity, commitment and continued enthusiasm for the Imagine Cup competition.”

And the winner is…

As with any competition, there had to be a winner.

Team Ahurei were the runners up, scoring themselves an Xbox 360 each, but in the end Team Think took out first place, and deservedly so. They were the best presented on the night and were armed with an idea that can truly help millions of people around the globe.

“It’s been a wild ride”, Michael Trengrove, team leader for Team Think said, “from coming up with our project, to building it and testing – not to mention the added pressure of presenting. But now we’re here as winners and excited for the next round. Bring on Cairo.”

Kevin Ackhurst, country manager for Microsoft New Zealand said the solution put forward by Team Think showed that “the answers to today’s problems lie in the minds of tomorrow’s leaders. Based on what I’ve seen of

Team Ahurei: Aakash Polra, Jingwen Xiong and Vin (Cheng) Xuan

Interested in getting involved in next year’s competition? Watch ImagineCup.com for updates and more information.

www.tearaway.net.nz 25

Holden driving towards a future Greg Murphy, Holden V8 Supercar driver, was a special guest for

Holden Driving Towards a Future at Papatoetoe High recently. JENNY CHANG AND SHRUTIKA GUNANAYAGAM report on his safe driving message

Stop the carnage

You’re probably thinking, ‘Drinking and

driving – yep, here we go again’. But before you flip the page, consider how it could affect your life – if it hasn’t already – and your family or your friends.

Our school, Papatoetoe High, was the first to host Holden V8 Supercar driver Greg Murphy, gueststarring in the Holden Driving Towards a Future programme.

The programme was developed by NZ musician Billy TK Jnr, and uses musical and visual elements to present a hard-hitting message about the seriousness of road safety.

Too many deaths Greg, a skilled racer with 17 years of experience, says his involvement was driven by his passion for road safety and his concern for young New Zealanders who already have a licence, or are thinking of getting one.

“New Zealand has a very simplistic programme that doesn’t teach young drivers about what’s required to be safe on the roads in this country.

You can get a licence very easily, and there are a lot of deaths on the roads.”

He hopes that the programme will help reduce the carnage on NZ roads that has gone on for too long, especially involving young people.

Wakeup call While he was in Year 12 at school in Hawke’s Bay, Greg thought he was pretty cool and a pretty good driver, jokingly exclaiming that he was

mildly, the graphic videos were sad and shocking – none of the students had expected such a rude awakening.

The last disturbing video clip was the true story of a young New Zealander named Tamati, who had had big dreams and had been on the path to fulfilling them. He was an international athlete and full of determination.

While he and his family were driving one night, a drunk driver smashed into their car, killing himself and wiping away Tamati’s hopes and dreams in an instant.

Tamati was in a critical condition and remained in hospital for five months. He was then confined to a wheelchair and needed assistance for even the smallest things, such as using the toilet.

There were responses of tears and sad silence in the audience.

Brain injury The mood deepened when a young woman, who had been the driver in a serious car crash involving eight passengers, told us her story.

She had been going at 150kmh in a 50kmh zone under the influence of alcohol, when she swerved out of control. Everyone came out alive, but unfortunately she was in a coma for three days and suffered brain injury, which accounted for her forgetting parts of her speech on stage.

Get smart To everyone’s delight, the show ended on a happier note, as Billy and his band rocked the

She was in a coma for three days and suffered brain injury, which accounted for her forgetting parts of her speech on stage “God’s gift to driving”…until he crashed into a tree because of a lack in concentration.

It was a huge wakeup call for him and he says he was lucky nothing serious happened. He had a female passenger with him in the car, who suffered a broken limb.

From that day on he changed his attitude to driving. He explained that it was the scariest experience in his driving career, including in the V8 Supercars.

Disturbing videos Next, Billy TK Jnr showed a series of crash ads that haven’t been aired in NZ before. To put it 26 Tearaway June 2009

Greg Murphy

stage with two catchy songs from his new album.

According to Greg, the show has had a fantastic response already.

“We just want to get a message across about having respect for driving and being on the roads.

At the end of the day it can ruin your life. It can ruin someone else’s life.

“It’s very, very easy if you don’t have respect for it. The concentration level needed when you’re driving a car is enormous.

“If you’re smart about your life and what you want to achieve, and you’re determined to go places, you’d be foolish not to listen to something like this.”

Well said, Greg Murphy.

Photos: Ashleigh Reeves

Vox pops Jenny and Shrutika asked students in the audience what they learnt that might affect how they drive in the future.

Delaney Be more aware and more conscious about how you’re behaving and how everybody else is behaving.

Matthew Don’t speed, and like, don’t drink and drive.

Nandita Always wear you’re seatbelt, don’t drink and drive, look both ways before crossing the street and watch the speed limit.

Jade The whole thing about the speed limits.

Cameron Slow down, and don’t drink and drive.

Leave sooner, “Quote drive goes slower, here”live – Person longerQuoted – anon

IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE AA

tHe roCking Road saFETy caMpaIGn

WIn

Coming to YOUR SCHOOL!

It took me years of PRACTICE to become a champion racing car driver.

I love racing, I love speed… …but this is something I keep for the racetrack, not the streets. Never take risks by racing on the street.

Greg Murphy Motor Racing Icon

•Auahi Kore Bags, Bottles & CD cases •Billy TK Jnr CDs

Always a SmokeFree event!

Supported by your District Council and regional Road Safety Coordinator.

I travel lots of kms on the road to get to my next show. I never take risks and always reckon it’s better to get there alive and sometimes a little late, than dead on time.

Just like playing guitar, it takes PRACTICE to get good at driving.

Billy TK Jnr Guitar Icon www.billytkjnr.com www.myspace.com/billytkjnr

SPECIAL HOLDEN & AA OFFER TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY!

Buy any new Holden using this coupon and you get $500 discount* AND your school receives a $500 donation!

PLUS: How about this -

$38.50 for a Youth Membership offering 12 months AA Roadservice, free maps and guides, free technical and legal advice and much more AND $69 for AA Personal Membership for any parent joining AA, offering 12 months AA Roadservice, free maps and guides, free technical and legal advice, insurance and WOF discounts and much more.

THIS CAMPAIGN IS PROUDLY ENDORSED BY: May 09 *Vehicle discount offer valid for 12 months from the date of this voucher. Terms & conditions apply.

See: holden.co.nz/drivingtowardsafuature

MUSIC REVIEWS

Perfectly timed screams A Day to Remember Homesick Every year, Alternative Press compiles a list of their most anticipated records and for 2009 the five-piece hardcore pop punk band from Florida – A Day to Remember – made it to the top of the list.

Their new album Homesick begins with a heavy intro on The Downfall of Us All but moves on to more melodic verses and choruses. This continues on My Life for Hire with a little bit of screaming in the middle so by the third track you wonder when the really heavy influences will show up.

After another three middle-of-the-road songs, Welcome to the Family grabs your attention from the very beginning with the intense growls, and the title track is equally as memorable.

Holdin’ It Down for the Underground and You Already Know What You Are are two of the heaviest tracks on the album, but strangely the final song is a slow ballad.

Homesick isn’t as hardcore as expected but A Day to Remember have achieved something special with this album, a very nice blend of pop punk songs with perfectly timed and executed screams – EMMA WILSON

28 Tearaway June 2009

Kelly Clarkson All I Ever Wanted

Savage Savage Island

Empty pop trash never sounded so good.

Kelly Clarkson’s been around a while, and every album has been almost masterful in its generic-ness – instantly forgettable, similar-sounding love songs in a commercial pop voice.

Miss Clarkson seemed to be a pro at creating success with very few ingredients. With this latest album she continues the trend, but with a little more spice.

Her first single My Life Would Suck Without You really gets you jumping (if you’re willing to admit it), and the rest of her tracks keep the theme going.

Punchy songs with some real edge to them, it’s a totally worthwhile CD. You may forget it’s Kelly now and then, as she drifts between Pink and Pussycat Dolls in her bid to water down the genre as much as she can, but still – it’s Kelly Clarkson.

If you weren’t expecting more love songs on yet another pop princess album, you’re being naive. For her loyal fans however, this is a real jumpstart album sure to get you going – DAVID OSTEN GIFFORD

Bass. This album is bass.

If you take out the bass, you’ll be listening to an album approximately three minutes long.

I love the bass, and anyone with a subwoofer would agree with me. But lyrically, the album is mediocre at best.

Yes Savage, we know you’re from the islands (it says so on your arm) you don’t have to mention it in every song.

The killer for me was having the same track twice. Yeah, it is a remix, but they sound exactly the same except for Pitbull rapping on one and Soulja Boy on the other.

Savage is the pioneer for NZ hip-hop at the moment and I throw all support for him. However, I’m sick of hearing about hos, clubbing, fitting into jeans, drinking etc.

I want more tracks like I Like the Islands, more tracks that speak about something other than the stereotypical crunk lifestyle.

However, despite the typical ‘crack music’, the album on the whole is good. The way the beat makes you want to dance is just too good a pro to be cancelled out by the cons – DRUVIN SENEVIRATNE

Various Artists CHART Disc Vol 1 09

Various Artists Platinum Rock Vol 3

Christchurch is home to some of the best tap water in the country, and maybe that water has something to do with all the standout bands the city continues to produce.

This is all shown in CHART Disc, the latest offering from the Christchurch Music Trust.

From punk new wave to guitar pop this album showcases nine tracks of goodness from indie gems of the garden city.

Sparked up by the dynamite sound of Bang!

Bang! Eche!, the album moves through to showcase the stimulating electronic tone of The L.E.D.s, and even embraces a bit of folk pop with a song from Jimmy Zoom and the Beytown Grifters.

Be one step ahead of all your mates. Check this album and introduce them to some sweet sounds from Christchurch – CAM CARPENTER

Most rock bands have at least one defining song and that song might appear on a great album.

The band might go on to produce many great albums but that doesn’t produce a good playlist.

This is where compilation CDs come in.

The latest Platinum Rock CD is a varied twodisc collection with 34 songs ranging from 1999 to 2007, and an equally large range of genres.

The Killers start the first disc in style with their 2004 breakthrough hit Somebody Told Me. Three Australian bands feature – Airbourne,

Music doesn’t lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music – Jimi Hendrix

Thirsty Merc and Powderfinger – but are outdone by three of New Zealand’s favourite bands – Bleeders, Elemeno P and Shihad – along with newcomers The Valves.

Other great tracks on disc one include Kaiser Chiefs I Predict a Riot, the once overplayed Pretty Vegas from INXS, and Finger Eleven’s One Thing plus slightly newer tracks from Stone Sour and The Raconteurs.

Disc two begins with the classic Blink-182 immaturity of What’s My Age Again. This time Eskimo Joe is the only Aussie band to feature with The D4, Blindspott and Weta representing New Zealand.

At first, disc two seems to have fewer standout tracks than disc one, but after a quick skip through the list you will find The Fratellis, Stereophonics and the always adorable Glow by Alien Ant Farm.

The Rock radio station put together the track list and they’ve done a very good job. Even though most of the tracks are middle-of-the-road rock there is almost something for everyone here.

It would be perfect to play when you are suddenly surrounded by people who dislike pop music – EMMA WILSON

Spartacus R When the Fever Takes Hold For anyone who likes this band, do not hate me because I had never even heard of them before this.

However, in saying that, I am glad I had not. To me, this sounded like drugged-up jazz.

The only way I’d listen to this is if I were to get high, which I would never do. Therefore, I would never need to hear this again.

It’s not all bad though. The artwork is kind of funky, with interchangeable cover art, although the case looks like something you would get out of a Weet-bix box.

If you know these guys and their music and like it, then you’ll like this. My guess is, a lot of people will like this, so don’t be put off by me – ANNIE HAWKER

The Bads So Alive Anyone like me? Young and didn’t live their prime in the 80s? Parents who made sure you knew all about the New Zealand music scene back when you were too young to remember?

Then you should be well aware of When the Cats Away and The Mockers. Dianne Swann (When the Cats Away) and Brett Adams (The Mockers) are The Bads.

These two have been working together since ‘92 and it shows. Their new album, So Alive, shows how, as a group, they are in sync.

So Alive is a full-on country pop album, with a hint of folk.

For those who enjoy something different from the country genre, then this could satisfy.

Others, who are not sure, give it a go. This will not hurt you if you so dare, so no harm done – ANNIE HAWKER

Behind Crimson Eyes Behind Crimson Eyes They maintain they’re not selling out, simply putting the fun back in their music. I disagree, but I’m not the one with a press release.

Following their 2006 debut (which I thought was awesome), Behind Crimson Eyes toss out an album that is crammed with ‘jaunty’ little tunes and whatever else it is they’ve used to ruin their sound.

I may be wrong, but their goal of blunt messages and raw, uncompromising songs doesn’t come to glorious fruition when strummed to a tune Simple Plan wouldn’t touch.

Generic, forgettable tracks with the premise of being meaningful. What a let down.

But don’t worry – this CD isn’t a complete bomb. There are still a few songs in there that have a headbanging/thought-provoking result, however watered down it may be.

If this is the sort of music that you’re specifically looking for – soft pop-punk-rock with a hint of 80s chorus – then you’ll be happy.

I’m going to replay the last album and remember the good times – DAVID OSTEN GIFFORD

Various Artists Punk Goes Pop Volume 2 What do you get when you have semi-decent punk bands putting their spin on an array of cheesy, hit pop songs? A disaster, that’s what.

Punk Goes Pop Volume 2 is yet another product of the Punk Goes series to go alongside Punk Goes Acoustic, Punk Goes Metal, Punk Goes 80s and even Punk Goes Crunk (shudder).

Some of the bands have done a tolerable job and I found myself hitting the repeat button on a few of the tracks, such as A Static Lullaby’s take on Britney Spears’ Toxic, and Alesana’s version of Justin Timberlake’s What Goes Around.

The remaining 11 tracks are barely listenable.

Bayside’s attempt to make Sean Kingston’s Beautiful Girls sound half decent is pathetic, as is There For Tomorrow’s cover of Omarion’s Ice Box. I mean, it’s supposed to be a fun album but it’s really hard to swallow some of these covers and I was disappointed that most sounded no different to the original tracks.

It’s worth a listen for a laugh or two but it’s likely to be gathering dust in next to no time – KATE RUSSELL

www.tearaway.net.nz 29

DVD PREVIEWS

Flick fest Role Models Paul Rudd and Seann William Scott star as Danny and Wheeler, two salesmen who trash a DV6ROL company truck on an energy-drink-fuelled bender.

After their arrest, the court gives them a choice: do hard time or spend 150 service hours with a mentorship programme. They choose the mentorship. But after one day, jail doesn’t look half as bad.

When the centre’s ex-con director (Jane Lynch) gives them an ultimatum, Danny and Wheeler are forced to tailor their brand of immature wisdom to their charges.

The world’s worst role models will prove that, sometimes, it takes a village idiot to raise a child.

Marley & Me From the director of The Devil Wears Prada comes this heart-warming comedy based on the bestselling novel Marley & Me. DV6MAR Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson star as John and Jenny Grogan, a young couple contemplating the decision to start a family. Then along comes Marley... an adorable Labrador pup who flunks obedience school and quickly turns his new home into a disaster area.

But with a heart as big as his appetite for trouble, Marley sees the Grogans through the ups and downs of life and love, and they ultimately realise that the world’s worst dog truly brings out the best in them.

The Day the Earth Stood Still Keanu Reeves stars as alien life form Klaatu in this contemporary reinvention of the 1951 classic.

DV6DAY Klaatu’s arrival on our planet triggers a global upheaval. As governments and scientists race to unravel the mystery behind the visitor’s appearance, a woman (Jennifer Connelly) 30 Tearaway June 2009

and her young stepson get caught up in his mission.

As events unfold, they begin to understand the ramifications of his being a self-described ‘friend to the Earth’ – and it doesn’t necessarily mean a friend to humans.

Bedtime Stories Funnyman Adam Sandler stars in this family comedy that’s packed with adventure and lots of heart.

When Skeeter DV6BED Bronson (Sandler) babysits his sister’s (Courteney Cox) children, his imagination runs wild as he dreams up elaborate bedtime stories – always casting himself as the hero.

Entranced, the children add their own ideas to these once-upon-a-time tales of heroics and chivalry.

Then...magic happens. These night-time fantasies become Skeeter’s daytime realities, leading him on a real-life adventure in search of his own happy ending.

Hannah Montana Season 2 Part 2 Rock out the house with Part 2 of the second season of Disney Channel’s rockin’ original series Hannah Montana!

When her life DV6HAN as celebrity Hannah Montana gets challenging, Miley Stewart relies on her family and her friends, Lilly and Oliver, to remind her to be true to herself first.

Watch as Miley gets herself into some hilarious situations with her dual life as Hannah and Miley – sweet niblets!

The Spirit From the creator of Sin City and 300, The Spirit is the story of a slain rookie cop who returns from the dead to fight crime in Central City.

DV6SPI As he tracks a cold-blooded killer (The Octopus), he faces a bevy of beautiful women wanting to love, seduce or kill the masked crusader.

Starring Gabriel Macht (as The Spirit), Eva Mendes (as Sand Saref), Sarah Paulsen (as Ellen Dolan), Scarlett Johansson (as Silken Floss), Paz Vega (as Plaster of Paris) and Samuel L Jackson (as the Octopus).

And Arthur the Cat as himself.

American Teen Popularity is everything.

Breakups and missed jump-shots are the end of the world. A college acceptance is a dream DV6AMT come true and an email forwarded to the wrong person is your worst nightmare!

Experience senior year of high school through the eyes of five real-life American teenagers: the Prom Queen, the Heartthrob, the Jock, the Rebel and the Geek.

This revealing year-in-the-life feature documentary delivers the real heartbreak, hilarity, and – OMG – drama of senior year, firsthand from five very different viewpoints.

No matter who you identify with, everyone will relate to American Teen.

Another Cinderella Story It’s musical. It’s magical.

It’s Another Cinderella Story, the dancing-everafter fairy tale for the High School Musical DV6CIN generation.

In this joyous update, Selena Gomez (The Wizards of Waverly Place) is Mary, a modern Cinderella complete with dancing shoes instead of a glass slipper.

Drew Seeley (High School Musical on Tour) is Joey, a Prince Charming and dreamy new-guy-inschool looking for a girl to love. Could Mary be that girl?

With music and dance, romance and all kinds of surprises, Another Cinderella Story is a perfect fit.

Disaster Movie Taking aim at everything and everyone, the team behind Date Movie, Epic Movie and Meet the Spartans lampoon everyone’s favourite disaster flicks.

The planet is being DV6DIS bombarded by a series of natural disasters – Will (Matt Lanter) and friends, Calvin (G. Thang) and Lisa (Kim Kardashian), must embark on an adventure against all odds to rescue his trapped girlfriend (Vanessa Minnillo).

Along the way they meet a host of characters that help or hinder their mission.

DVDs for nix!

We’re giving away ALL these DVDs! So, grab the entry codes and head to www.tearaway.net.nz Film is one of the three universal languages, the other two: mathematics and music – Frank Capra

MOVIE PREVIEWS

MATT ALPE previews alternate universes, including the scariest

It’s life, Jim

of them all – George Dubya

But not as we know it Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian

Michael Bay returns to direct Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Tyrese Gibson and others from the first film, in this highly anticipated sequel to 2007’s Transformers.

With a budget of US$200m, expect dazzling special effects and action sequences.

Starscream returns home to Cybertron and brings reinforcements with him. Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) learns the secrets behind the origins of the Transformers, prompting the Decepticons to take him prisoner.

Megatron is back, but the Autobots are ready for war with reinforcements of their own!

Bound to be one of the biggest films of the year, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is one of those movies you need to see on the big screen and not on your laptop downloaded from the net.

The whole main cast featuring Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, Ricky Gervais and Steve Coogan return for this sequel to the 2006 smash hit The Night at the Museum. Any why not?

After the first film pulled in US$571m worldwide, it seems like it’s gonna be easy money!

Anarchy and chaos resume when the Museum of Natural History gets shut down for renovations. Everything gets moved to Washington DC, characters come to life again, and security guard Larry Daley (Stiller) tries earnestly to regain order.

Newcomers Amy Adams (Enchanted, Doubt) and The Simpsons people Hank Azaria and Christopher Guest make this a comedy overload!

W.

Land of the Lost

Now that Obama is in and George W Bush is out, it seems like a good time to reflect on the former president’s time in the White House, with an unbiased and fair depiction from Oliver Stone.

Haha, that deserves a Tui billboard ‘Yeah right’.

Josh Brolin (No Country For Old Men, Grindhouse, Planet Terror) stars as George W Bush, and turns in a stunning performance that shows the man in the Oval Office calling the shots, and also shows him in his college days when he got up to no good.

Also starring Thandie Newton and Richard Dreyfuss as Condoleezza Rice and Dick Cheney respectively, this is a film I would recommend if you are familiar with this interesting character and not necessarily American politics.

Another remake of an oldschool American TV show, Land of the Lost stars Will Ferrell (Anchorman, SemiPro, Bewitched), Danny McBride (Pineapple Express, Superbad) and Anna Friel.

Dr Rick Marshall (Ferrell) and his colleagues get sucked into a vortex and land in an alternate universe. They encounter giant animals, dinosaurs, monkey men and everything else in between.

Ferrell is at his wackiest and obnoxious best as the crazy doctor, so if you enjoyed him in Talladega Nights, Blades of Glory or any of his comedies actually, you’ll love this!

It’s good to see the man is back and making more comedies, especially since there are quite a few newcomers threatening to take his comedy crown away from him (Steve Carell, Seth Rogen, Michael Cera).

Directed by Lemony Snicket’s Brad Silberling.

Hannah Montana the Movie If you’re one of the 180 million people worldwide who’ve watched the Disney series, you’ll be stoked to see Hannah

Montana the Movie!

In Cinemas July 2 Help me! Help meeeeeeeee! – The Fly

Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus), like any teenage girl, struggles to juggle school, friends and family. As if that’s not enough to cope with, Miley also has a secret pop-star persona, Hannah Montana.

As Hannah’s popularity grows it threatens to take over Miley’s life.

Enter Dad (Billy Ray Cyrus), who takes Miley home to Tennessee for a reality check. Miley is forced to choose between embracing her smalltown roots and her pop-star alter-ego.

Her time-out in Tennessee turns out to be an adventure filled with the kind of fun, laughter and romance even Hannah Montana couldn’t imagine.

WIN with Hannah Montana the Movie We have four prize packs to give away, each containing a denim notebook, a headscarf and a double in-season pass. Grab the entry code and go to www.tearaway.net.nz to enter.

MV6HAN

www.tearaway.net.nz 31

GAME PREVIEWS ALEXANDER DONOHUE takes a break from visceral slaughter to whip up a healthy meal with two bananas and some baking soda

Batarang vs meringue Spore Galactic Adventures

Dissidia: Final Fantasy

DEVELOPED BY: Electronic Arts AVAILABLE ON: PC

DEVELOPED BY: Square Enix AVAILABLE ON: PSP

While Spore wasn’t quite the paradigmaltering triumph of open-ended gameplay it was hyped as, it was clearly received well enough to warrant an expansion pack.

Galactic Adventures includes new elements that look set to change the gameplay of Spore in some pretty radical ways. Focus has been shifted from guiding an entire race of creatures to developing distinctive, individual characters.

You’ll apparently be able to construct scripted scenarios for them to play through with the new Adventure Creator, turning gameplay into something more akin to a traditional action adventure.

Sounds ambitious; it remains to be seen whether the developers can make the changes work or not.

I’ve often wondered who would be the victor if Squall from Final Fantasy VIII and Tidus from Final Fantasy X were to fight. Would Squall’s dark emo power lead him to victory, or would Tidus’ brattiness and obnoxious optimism allow him to overcome his foe?

The upcoming Dissidia may actually allow me to determine the outcome of this hypothetical clash. It’s a versus fighting game, with a roster of 22 characters, both good and evil, representing the entirety of the Final Fantasy series.

The game seems to be receiving positive reviews in Japan, and as you would expect from a Square Enix game, the visuals look incredibly nice.

My Cooking Coach DEVELOPED BY: Ubisoft AVAILABLE ON: Nintendo DS/DSi

Technically this isn’t a game. However, My Cooking Coach may still hold appeal for any gamer wanting to move beyond a diet of instant noodles and tinned macaroni cheese.

So why not take a break from shooting things in the head and cook something nice? You can use the ‘virtual cupboard’ feature to come up with a recipe that uses ingredients you already have (what can I make with two overripe bananas and a box of baking soda?), or make something more ambitious (mmm, julienned tofu).

You can also use the DSi camera to superimpose your face on a cartoon chef’s body, so you’ll look like a competent cook even if you’re utterly incapable of preparing food like one.

Ghostbusters: The Video Game DEVELOPED BY: Terminal Reality, Red Fly Studio, Zen Studios AVAILABLE ON: Xbox 360, PS2, PS3, Wii, PC, Nintendo DS

After a stint in development limbo it looks like the video game adaptations of the cult comedy horror films are finally due for release.

I say ‘adaptations’ because it looks like the game will differ significantly across platforms; the Wii and PS2 versions are by a different developer to the other versions and have a much cartoonier visual style.

The game, which is being billed as a ‘third Ghostbusters movie’, boasts a story authored by the original writers of the films, with many of the actors (including the fantastic Bill Murray) returning to voice their characters.

Comedy in games is a difficult thing to pull off, but it looks like the various versions of Ghostbusters: The Video Game might be worth keeping an eye on.

Batman Arkham Asylum Collector’s Edition DEVELOPED BY: Rocksteady Studios AVAILABLE ON: PS3, Xbox 360, PC

I’ve actually covered Arkham Asylum in this section before, as the game itself looks mighty impressive. I’m revisiting it this month because a rather nifty collector’s edition of the game has been announced.

Not content with packing in the sort of paraphernalia you would normally find in a limited edition set – extra background material, a behind-the-scenes DVD, extra downloadable content and so on – the distributors have also decided to throw in a fourteen-inch long Batarang.

This has to be the coolest extra ever included with a video game. I mean, art books and the like are great, but can you take out someone’s eye with them? I think not!

Win Patapon 2!

TG6PAT

Get on the Patapon wagon by heading to www.tearaway.net.nz and winning a copy of your own!

32 Tearaway June 2009

Patapon 2 DEVELOPED BY: Pyramid, Japan Studio PUBLISHED BY: Sony Computer Entertainment AVAILABLE ON: PSP RATED: G REVIEWED BY: David Eng

In the true spirit of Japanese-style gaming, this is definitely one of those games that gets addictive very fast.

If you enjoyed playing the old favourites of Dance Dance Revolution (DDR), PS One’s PaRappa the Rapper, and everyone’s favourite, Lemmings, then you won’t be disappointed.

Patapon has all those rolled into one, taking a simple concept like a bunch of dancing black dots and turning it into a strategic

We came, we saw, we kicked its ass – Ghostbusters

Resident Evil 5 DEVELOPED BY: Capcom PUBLISHED BY: Capcom AVAILABLE ON: Xbox 360, PS3 (PS3 version reviewed) RATED: R18 REVIEWED BY: Alexander Donohue

Many people, myself included, were blown away by Resident Evil 4 a few years ago. It was a perfect blend of skilful gameplay, visceral horror and action-movie heroics that gave a much needed boost of energy to Capcom’s long-running survival horror series.

Resident Evil 5, the much-anticipated sequel, is set in Kijuju, a fictional African nation, and follows obscenely muscled series regular Chris Redfield as he investigates a new bioweapon threat, with the help of local operative Sheva Alomar.

Of course, things rapidly go to hell, with the majority of the local population being mutated into homicidal maniacs.

Don’t expect much from RE5 beyond this basic framing story; the game’s plot is generally uninteresting. Themes of partnership are thrown about to little real effect, and the tone is neither as charmingly melodramatic as the classic Resident Evil games nor as self-consciously cheesy as RE4.

Of course, most people will be interested in the gameplay of RE5, rather than its story. Thankfully, the extremely solid shooter gameplay that made RE4 such a success has been kept mostly intact, and there are numerous memorable action scenes.

However, a number of new elements have been added onto the gameplay.

Most of these are unnecessary and poorly designed, including pointless

control changes, a broken weapon upgrade system and an inventory system that probably ranks as the worst of any game I have ever played.

The most important of these new elements is Sheva, your computercontrolled partner who accompanies you for the majority of the game.

The artificial intelligence that controls her is oddly designed. She is freakishly competent in certain areas – when using firearms, for example. Yet at other times she behaves remarkably stupidly.

In particular, she will repeatedly pick up grenades and explosives that she never actually uses on enemies, wasting scarce inventory space.

There’s also no real way to control Sheva’s behaviour or coordinate tactics with her; she will recklessly chase after enemies and unload clip after clip into them, all of her own accord.

The unfortunate result is that it feels like the computer, rather than you, is setting the pace, forcing you to struggle to keep up with it.

This means the gameplay doesn’t feel quite as precise or rewarding as it did in RE4, with the game as a whole suffering as a result.

The cooperative play mode, which allows another player to control Sheva, may well correct some of the issues I had with the artificial intelligence, but in my mind any game that relies on multiplayer modes to correct weaknesses in the single player mode is doing something very wrong indeed.

game franchise so popular they released a sequel!

Patapon 2 continues the story of the Patapon warriors as they set out on their journey looking for the peaceful land called Earthend.

You have the power of God with the ability to control these miniature creatures, commanding them as they march forward and fight dragons, monsters and other tribes.

The most intriguing aspect of the game is how you command these small black specks. The controls on the keypad resemble the rhythmic war drums the Patapons worship which are played in a drum-like sequence ordering the tribe to move forward on the battlefield.

Different sequences you input can make the Patapons attack, defend, and even dance their way through the stages using Robopons, Mahopons and all sorts of other Patapon magic.

Sounds confusing to begin with, but it all makes sense once you get started.

Before any gameplay, there is quite a bit of back-story to go through. The overall storyline is fantastic, set out like a typical Samurai Jack episode, which makes the graphics even more impressive.

The game starts when the Patapons become shipwrecked and find themselves on a strange island. Your first task is to get the hang of the controls and learn how to move the Patapons, so it takes the first few stages using the same repetitive sequences to get used to it.

However, like any other game, as you progress and the sequences become more advanced, that’s when the real fun begins. After a few frustrating stages involving some dragons who just refuse to die, I found myself pulling off some very complicated dance moves.

Different environments present different challenges, some of which seem almost impossible. But that’s what makes it so addictive. Those who possess good rhythmic skills and the love of a decent strategy game will get a kick out of this.

Interestingly, Sony decided to release this game as a download-only game in the USA, suggesting that games for future versions of the PSP might be digital only. NZ and other regions are getting the game in traditional UMD format, however.

www.tearaway.net.nz 33

BOOK REVIEWS

Escape!

this way

Paper Towns by John Green

Teen, Inc. by Stefan Petrucha

Margo Roth Spiegalman is the coolest girl in the school.

Quentin Jacobsen is not cool. In fact, he’s the opposite of cool.

Funny to think that Margo and Quentin were best friends when they were younger. As they grew older the two fell apart – but who should show up outside Quentin’s window in the dead of night?!

Quentin finds himself on an epic journey with no other than THE Margo Roth Spiegalman, which turns into the best day/night of his life.

When Margo disappears the next day everyone thinks it’s typical Margo and casts it aside – but she doesn’t come back.

Margo has left clues for Quentin. So, alongside his best friends, he has to decipher the clues and find Margo before it’s too late.

This is a great book which gives you a new and different perspective on life and those around you. I found myself pondering who I am, who my real friends are and what the world is really.

I recommend this book to anyone – because to understand a person is to see things through their eyes.

Plus you want to know what ‘paper town’ means don’t you?!

– AROHA HUGHES

Jaiden Beale is the first kid to be raised by a corporation – NECorp. After Jaiden’s parents died by one of NECorp’s faulty valves, NECorp decided to adopt him – more as a publicity stunt than anything else.

Now that Jaiden is 14, he’s starting to make his own decisions and form his own opinions.

When NECorp ruin his first study date with the girl he likes, Jenny Tate, Jaiden runs away from the suits, out to the borders of town. This is where he gets into a lot of trouble, cuts his arm on a fence, and gets mercury poisoning from one of NECorp’s polluted rivers.

Meanwhile, after meeting Jenny’s dad (a conservationist trying to bring down NECorp), Jaiden starts finding out how NECorp has been lying to the world, and polluting it worse than ever.

Jaiden, Jenny and their friend Nate decide to get hard proof of NECorp’s destruction and get them shut down once and for all.

But how are three 14-year-old kids going to take down a massive corporation?

Full of environmentally-friendly motivation, humour and friendship, Teen, Inc. is a really good read – RHIAN LAWRENCE

Vampire Academy

by Richelle Mead Yes, this is a novel about vampires – * insert all vampire clichés here * – but no, this is nothing like Twilight.

For starters, it’s in a whole different genre – yes, that’s right, ‘vampire’ isn’t a genre of its own! This is a real fantasy novel.

In this vampire world, there are two different ‘breeds’ of vampires: the Moroi and the Strigoi.

Then there are the half-vampire/half-human Dhampirs, the Moroi’s guardians.

The Strigoi vampires are the evil ones, the ones that are immortal, and they crave Moroi blood.

Lissa, a Moroi royal, and Rose, a Dhampir, are best friends. To escape from internal threats at their school, St Vladimir’s, Lissa and Rose ran away and had been living in the real world for two years.

Now back at school, Rose has to catch up, and Lissa has to re-work her way into the royal circle, as she is the only remaining Dragomir, one of the twelve royal families.

But threats they never imagined now have them in a chokehold.

This book is awesome! If you’re into fantasy or just plain into vampires, this is definitely for you. I am hooked. And luckily there’s more! After Vampire Academy come Frostbite then Shadow Kiss and, when it comes out in August, Blood Promise.

This is a novel you can definitely sink your teeth into (sorry, I had to…) – HANNAH ROBSON

34 Tearaway June 2009

The covers of this book are too far apart – Ambrose Bierce

Dreams Made Flesh

by Anne Bishop

How to Ditch Your Fairy

by Justine Larbalestier

If you pick up this book, read a few pages in, and go “lol wth?!” then I totally understand why, and I can explain why you may come to that conclusion.

Before I start though, these next few paragraphs may seem negative, but in truth, the confusing flow of this novel makes it all the more spellbinding.

For starters, this book consists of an introduction and then three mini books after that. These books also have three separate storylines.

The first one The Prince of Ebon Rih, should be read after the second book in the Black Jewels trilogy, Heir to the Shadows. In this book, we are introduced to the confusing relationship between a warlord prince, Lucivar, and the high lord of Hell, Saetan, Lucivar’s father, as well as the intense emotions sported by men in this novel.

We also learn about Lucivar and Marian’s feelings, which are shown in a multitude of ways.

The second book, Zulaaman, is about Saetan’s past conflict with a country that no longer exists thanks to Saetan and his ex-wife Hekatah – Zulaaman.

This is to be read after The Prince of Ebon Rih as you encounter a mention of this tale in that book.

And if you aren’t confused enough already, the last book, Kaleer’s Heart – to be read after the third book, Queen of the Darkness in the Black Jewels trilogy – concludes with the all powerful Jaenelle becoming normal after using her power to save Kaleer, and her lover Daemon protects her with everything he can.

I understand that this review may seem awfully confusing, but that’s just how this book is. The writing is amazing and interesting, but the storyline gets muddled if you don’t read them in order.

I wish I could tell you more, but in order to preserve the stories, I suggest you read Dreams Made Flesh and see for yourself how a book this confusing can be so gripping – RHIAN LAWRENCE

In New Avalon, most people have fairies. Some, like Rochelle, have a ‘clothes shopping’ fairy which is ‘doos’ (cool). Others, like Fiorenze, have an ‘all boys will like you’ fairy, which seems ‘doos’ also, but really isn’t.

And then some people, like Charlie, have ‘parking fairy’ which is the most ‘injured’ (lame) fairy one could have.

Or so Charlie thinks.

Charlie attends New Avalon Sports, which is a school for sporty kids. The strict rules that contaminate the system force students, such as Charlie, to be on time, not cry, eat a specific amount of food a day and all this other hoopla, or else they get demerits, game suspensions or worse.

These strict rules affect Charlie personally as she tries to get rid of her fairy by walking everywhere. This lands her in a lot of trouble when she is late for school, tired from either walking or trying to get rid of her demerits by doing community service, and other ‘doxy’ (annoying) things.

This all gets too far out of hand until Fiorenze, who Charlie used to not like, comes up to her and asks her if she’d like to find out how to get rid of her fairy.

Charlie and Fiorenze find the easiest way to get rid of their fairies, by swapping, which leads them both into more malodorous trouble.

This is a story based around the meaning of growing up and the like and is all about Charlie coming to terms with what she wants to be, and how she wants to deal with life.

As she learns from her mistakes, she makes some great friends – such as a ‘pulchritudinous’ (good-looking) boy named Steffi, and Fiorenze – and comes full circle, understanding what is and isn’t important – RHIAN LAWRENCE

Whale Pot Bay

by Des Hunt Whale Pot Bay is a memorable and captivating tale.

Des Hunt beautifully illustrates New Zealand’s wild, seemingly untouched Wairarapa coastline, and takes the reader on a fascinating journey – a journey bursting with movie stars, scheming paparazzi and, of course, the beautiful whales that travel our coastlines.

Des Hunt likes to provide his readers with accurate scientific information, incorporated with intelligence and humour. This humour may be a bit hard to come by, but hey, it’s still there.

The tension as usual is climactic and is definitely not subtle. A very in-yourface attitude coupled with beautiful imagery that flows impeccably – DRUVIN SENEVIRATNE

www.tearaway.net.nz 35

BOOKS PAGE TAG

Win these books!

The Adamantine Palace

by Stephen Deas

Cry of the Taniwha

by Des Hunt

BK6ADA

BK6CRY

Betrayal, deceit, savage power-plays,

‘Sitting on the dark earth and staring up

brutal politics and dragons.

at him was a skull, the lower jaw below

The Adamantine Palace lies at the centre of an empire that grew out of ashes.

Once, dragons ruled the world and humans were just prey. Then, a way of subduing the dragons alchemically was discovered and now the dragons are bred to be little more than mounts for knights and highly valued tokens.

The empire has grown fat, and now one man wants it for himself. A man prepared to poison the king just as he has poisoned his own father. A man prepared to murder his lover and bed her daughter.

But, unknown to him, a single dragon has gone missing. And even one dragon on the loose – unsubdued, returned to its full intelligence, its full fury – could spell disaster for the empire.

But, because of the actions of one unscrupulous mercenary, the rivals for the throne could soon be facing hundreds of dragons…

ground so Matt didn’t have to cope with the thing grinning up at him. The empty eye sockets were scary enough . . .’

Matt Logan isn’t looking forward to spending the school holidays with his grandmother and her new husband. He has to fly to Rotorua, where he doesn’t know anybody, and he’s a bit wary of his new stepgrandfather.

Along with his worries, Matt packs his pride and joy – a homemade metal detector, because, you never know, he might find something interesting.

What he finds is Juzza, who lives over the back fence and wants to join a local gang. When the boys unearth a handcuffed skeleton, a chain of events begins to coil around them. Together they are thrown into a deadly search for treasure when the local gang boss decides to exploit their find for himself.

We have five copies of these books to give away! Go to www.tearaway.net.nz with the entry code to be in the draw.

Best books for young people The NEW ZEALAND POST BOOK AWARDS is an annual event that celebrates our best books for young people.

There are four categories for the awards: Young Adult Fiction, Junior Fiction, Non Fiction and Picture Book. Five finalists are selected for each category, based on impact, integrity, design and production values, use of language and creative writing.

Non-fiction entries are judged on accuracy of data, the use of illustrations and the integration of text and graphics.

Winner:

Winner:

Young Adult Fiction and Book of the Year

Non Fiction

The 10pm Question

by Kate De Goldi The 10pm Question has been on the bestseller list for months, and judges BK6PMQ predict it becoming a classic.

Frankie Parsons is 12 going on old man: an apparently sensible, talented year eight with a drumbeat of worrying questions steadily gaining volume in his head. Only Ma takes seriously his catalogue of persistent anxieties; only Ma listens patiently to his 10pm queries.

But of course, it is Ma who is the cause of the most worrying question of all, the one that Frankie can never bring himself to ask…

36 Tearaway June 2009

Back & Beyond: New Zealand Painting for the Young & Curious

by Gregory O’Brien

AND The other winners are: Junior Fiction: Old Drumble by Jack Lasenby Best First Book Award: Violence 101 by Denis Wright

BK6BAB

Kiwi rugby players, angels and aunts, moa and mountains, the bush and the beaches all play starring roles in this bird’seye view of New Zealand painting.

This book is alive with many of the paintings that have, over the past few hundred years, broadened the horizons of citizens, young and old, of our shaky island nation.

WIN!!

WIN

Picture Book: Roadworks by Sally Sutton, illustrated by Brian Lovelock Honour Award: Piggity-Wiggity Jiggity Jig by Diana Neild, illustrated by Philip Webb Children’s Choice Award: The Were-Nana by Melinda Szymanik, illustrated by Sarah N Anderson Want to read more about the winning books and their authors?

Go to www.tearaway.net.nz/digital

OK budding artists and bookworms, here’s your chance to score a free copy of one of these winning books! Log onto www.tearaway.net.nz to enter (with the entry codes!)

Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read – Groucho Marx

BOOK REVIEWS

The 10pm Question by Kate De Goldi Frankie Parsons is meticulously tidy and always worried. Worried about bird flu. About Chinese industrial pollution. About the dangers of kayaking. About Ma. Most of the people closest to Frankie seem wonderfully untroubled by worry. But Frankie can’t escape his constantly overactive and morbid imagination. There are too many things that can go wrong in the world!

The 10pm Question is full of a vivid and memorable cast of characters: Sydney, the dreadlocked new girl, who can bowl like a demon; Frankie’s older brother Louie, dedicated to charming all females, regardless of their age; a trio of obese, hilarious, cardplaying aunties, the last of the ‘great lady drinkers in the Western World’; and the loyal and generous Gigs.

Frankie and Gigs are the closest of best mates. Together they’re working on a brainchild science project – the effect of Frankie’s cat, The Fat Controller, on people’s stress levels. They even have a sophisticated secret language, Chilun – a mix of pig Latin, inverted syllables, truncated verbs and Russian.

Frankie is desperately worried about going to school camp, and comes up with a plan to skip it. It’s a foolproof plan except for one vital element – the unashamedly curious Sydney, who has a habit of asking more questions than Frankie himself!

How long will it be before Sydney unearths the one question Frankie can never bring himself to ask?

This is a great book with heaps of irresistible characters who we can all relate to. It’s funny and sad and will get you thinking.

The 10pm Question is a must-read for anyone of any age – anyone who’s ever been to school, been a member of a family, or been kept awake at night with questions! – RAIN FRANCIS

About Kate De Goldi Kate describes her teenage self as “alternately gregarious and reclusive”. She fought a lot with her mum. She read lots and listened to music. Sometimes she did schoolwork.

Kate once wrote a short story which won a competition. And so began her writing career!

One of Kate’s favourite places is Punakaiki on the West Coast of the South Island.

Kate is a big fan of The Godfather and The Godfather II.

Back & Beyond: New Zealand Painting for the Young & Curious

by Gregory O’Brien “Art is a balancing act involving what the eye sees, what the mind thinks and what the heart feels. It is about showing the world in new and original ways and – particularly in recent decades – taking risks.”

This is an essential book for anybody interested in art – New Zealand or otherwise.

It’s filled with full colour reproductions of artworks spanning the last 200 years.

There’ll be names you recognise – Colin McCahon, Rita Angus, Edith Collier, Frances Hodgkins – and a lot of new ones for you to learn about.

The pictures are accompanied by ideas and interpretations to get you thinking and looking beyond what you see at first glance – to give you some insight into what the artists may have been trying to portray.

It’s well written, but not too deep and over-the-top analytical as many books about art can be!

The artworks cover everything from Māori mythology to the time of Captain Cook to our unique landscapes and creatures.

It’s like a rich history of our culture, with a huge helping of imagination and innovation thrown in – RAIN FRANCIS

About Gregory O’Brien • Apart from two years working as an arts editor for TV3, Gregory has written and painted full-time since 1984.

• Gregory trained as a journalist but is well known for his poetry.

• His writing style is often called ‘surreal’ or ‘magical realism’.

www.tearaway.net.nz 37

BOOKS

100 Till days the end of the world...

Have you always been into writing?

Writing was always a weird pipedream, like being an astronaut. I gave it up as an unrealistic idea, then it sort of all happened.

I’ve always been into reading and my parents really encouraged that. A lot of the early stories I wrote were about a spaceship landing in my backyard and me being abducted by aliens.

Then it built and built and became this story about the end of the world… and now the initial thought is nowhere in the story at all.

What made it click for me was the idea of 100 days till the end of the world. I found that really compelling and started asking myself questions about that – who’s doing it, why is it happening, who’s going to stop it?

So you’re a sci-fi fan – anything else?

I was really into Michael Crichton for a while (Jurassic Park) but the science always went over my head.

I was into Animorphs, the series about children turning into animals to fight aliens; when I was in primary school that was pretty much everything I was looking for in a story.

And, more recently, the Narnia stories, and Harry Potter.

What do you do when you get stuck?

What inspired The Phoenix Files?

The initial idea was that some kids discover there’s buried treasure in their school and go looking for it.

So The Phoenix Files constitutes six books covering 100 days?

Yeah, the first book finishes on day 88. By the end of

I bang my head against the wall for a little while and I’m very unproductive. Then usually I’ll go away and do something else for a while and come back and go “of course, it’s so obvious”.

When that doesn’t happen, I’ll move onto another point, or I just write whatever. It’s a lot easier to edit a page of writing, even if it’s total junk, than it is to edit a blank page.

the sixth book, the whole story comes together and the countdown reaches zero and they save the world – or don’t – depending on how that works out!

Is Arrival your first published book?

I’ve done some ghostwriting which is all top secret but this is the first real book I’ve conceived myself and seen through to publication.

Did you approach many publishers with your idea?

No. I’m in this ridiculously fortunate position, which will probably infuriate a lot of aspiring writers.

I had a foot in the door with the other anonymous stuff I’ve been doing. The first publisher I approached was the one I was already working with and they said “yes, do it”.

So do you have any advice for young writers?

Making yourself aware of the opportunities and making other people in the industry aware of you

Read an extract at www.tearaway.net.nz/digital and chat online with the author at Read an extract at www.tearaway.net.nz/digital www.thephoenixfiles and chat online with the author . atinfo

www.thephoenixfiles.info Available where all good books are sold s $17.99 s Published by Hardie Grant Egmont.

Available where all good books are sold s $17.99 s Published by Hardie Grant Egmont.

38 Tearaway June 2009

I thought I’d written something that a handful of people might quite like – JK Rowling

Sci-fi junkie Chris Morphew was like any Aussie kid who fantasised about being abducted by visiting aliens. Now, at only 24, he’s just published Arrival – the first page-turning mystery story in a series of six books called The Phoenix Files. RAIN FRANCIS managed to tear herself away from the book long enough to interrogate Chris…

is a step in the right direction.

Read a lot and write a lot.

Also, you really have to have a sense of what is actually going to sell.

If you could hang out with any writers from history, who would you choose?

CS Lewis for sure, he’s an absolute genius. He’s been incredibly inspirational to me, on a lot of levels.

Also, JK Rowling. I think over the next 10 years we’re going to see this new generation of writers for whom Harry Potter was THE story.

What do you enjoy most about writing?

I like that I get to spend my day sitting on a couch, making up stories.

The idea of mystery has always been really compelling to me – the idea of the unanswered questions.

If people get to the end of the first Phoenix Files book and they want to know what happens next, then I guess I’ve done my job.

Review

The Phoenix Files: Arrival It may be a redundant question these days, but are you a fan of Harry Potter? How about Lost?

Arrival combines the best of both worlds – mystery, darkness, adventure – plus, it’s only the first book in what is going to be a highly addictive series!

BK6ARR

WIN WIN!!

WIN hot-off-the-press copies, signed by the author!

Conspiracy theorists will love the plot. I don’t want to give too much away, but in a nutshell – the end of the world is nigh! And it’s a massive secret!

Phoenix is a little town in the middle of nowhere. It’s a town that’s just been built by the massive corporate empire, the Shackleton Corporation.

Phoenix is picture perfect – so perfect it’s creepy.

Shackleton employees have been handpicked and lured from all over the country to brand new (identical) houses and the promise of a new life.

Luke Farmer and his recently-divorced mother are the last to arrive. Mrs Farmer may be too busy in her important new job to notice the weirdness of Phoenix, but Luke is on the case right away.

I mean come on – there are no cars anywhere in the town and there are no phones and no external internet. Spooky!

With the help of his new mates – tough and fearless Jordan and her biggest fan and veteran troublemaker, Peter – Luke goes on a mission to uncover the truth about Phoenix.

But the trio soon realise that whoever is in charge of the cover-up will go to ANY lengths to keep their dark secrets.

This is a fantastic story, which is almost impossible to put down. I finished it in three sittings only to find I had chewed off all my fingernails.

You’ll love the speed of the plot, the depth of the mystery and the frequent comedy!

Let’s hope book number two doesn’t take too long – I have to know what happens next! – RAIN FRANCIS

BOOKS

Here’s an extract from Arrival, to whet your appetite...

‘About time, Luke,’ said Jordan as I rode up next to the fountain in the morning. She and Peter were already sitting on one of the wooden benches, clutching coffee cups. ‘What took you so long?’

‘What do you mean?’ I glanced at Peter, who for some reason was looking extremely pleased with himself. ‘You said six-thirty, right?’

‘Huh?’ said Jordan. ‘You told me six.’

‘Did I?’ said Peter, quickly wiping the grin off his face. ‘Oh. Sorry.’

Jordan turned her attention back to the computer sitting open on Peter’s lap. I shot a confused look at Peter, who winked at me behind Jordan’s back.

He performed a silent fake yawn and mimed putting an arm around her shoulder.

‘Are you kidding?’ I said. ‘Do you have to pull that crap right now?’

‘Pull what crap?’ said Jordan, looking up again.

‘Nothing, don’t worry,’ I muttered, sitting down next to Peter. ‘Have you listened to it yet?’

‘No, we were waiting for you,’ said Jordan. She turned to Peter. ‘Go on.

Show us.’

‘Wait a sec,’ I said, glancing up and down the street, checking to make sure we wouldn’t be overheard.

‘Come on,’ said Peter impatiently. ‘As if anyone walking past is going to care what three random teenagers are looking at on their computer.’

‘Fine,’ I said, turning back to the screen. ‘Go ahead, play it.’

The clip was all muffled and distorted, like it had been recorded on a phone in someone’s pocket. There was a tapping sound, footsteps maybe, then a warbled voice.

‘I take it our final arrivals have landed?’ the voice said. It was a man. He sounded like he might have been around my dad’s age.

‘Yes, sir,’ said a second, deeper-voiced man. ‘Aaron is showing them to their living quarters as we speak.’

‘Nothing concerning to report?’ the first man asked easily.

There was the sound of a chair being pulled out. Then the second man spoke again. His voice sounded familiar, but it was hard to place through all the static.

‘No, sir. The boy has a father on the outside who he was quite fixated on getting in touch with, but –’ ‘That’s me!’ I said, suddenly realising. ‘I asked to call my dad as soon as –’ ‘Shh!’ hissed Jordan. I shut up and went back to the recording.

‘I assume you explained the situation to him,’ the first man was saying.

‘Yes, sir,’ said the second man. ‘Aaron made it clear that communication with the outside world is impossible.’

‘Good,’ said the first man. ‘I trust that Tabitha is prepared?’

‘Yes, sir. Dr Galton made the final adjustments this morning. We’re ready to begin, pending your authorisation.’

‘Excellent. Yes, by all means, begin the countdown.’

‘Yes, sir.’

I glanced at Peter and Jordan, but from the looks on their faces they obviously couldn’t make any more sense of this than I could.

There was a long pause. When the deep-voiced man spoke again, he sounded as though he was choosing his words very carefully.

‘Sir,’ he said slowly, ‘might it not be wise to commence final lockdown procedures ahead of schedule, now that all of our candidates are inside?’

‘Bruce, we’ve been over this before,’ said the other man wearily. ‘The town has already been secured. You’ve made sure of that yourself. Any further action at this point would only create panic.’

‘My men would be more than capable of subduing –’ ‘At what cost, Bruce? We have two thousand candidates. That’s all. We can’t afford a bloodbath.’

‘But, sir, if someone from the outside –’ ‘In a hundred days there won’t be anyone left on the outside! Until that time, it is imperative that the people of Phoenix remain under the belief that their lives are progressing as normal.’

There was another long silence. It took me a second to realise that I wasn’t breathing.

‘Yes, sir,’ said the deep-voiced man, eventually.

‘Of course.’

‘We’re on the home stretch now, Bruce,’ the other man said. ‘When the countdown expires, Tabitha will cleanse the outside world of the human plague, and we who are left can get on with the business of rebuilding things. Until then, you and your men just focus on keeping the peace.’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘A hundred days, Bruce. That’s all. A hundred more days and then this will all be over.’

The static crackled for a few more seconds and then the recording cut out.

© 2009 Chris Morphew. Extract published with permission from Hardie Grant Egmont.

40 Tearaway June 2009

ST JOHN

Emergency sim city The Festival is an annual week-long event which attracts hundreds of competitors and supporters from around the country.

“Cadets put in hours, months of clinical training in preparation for national competitions, and to compete and be crowned a national champion is something truly remarkable,” says St John Central Region Youth Manager and Festival Coordinator, Richard Hitchcock.

Fake blood, bruising and gore…

No, this isn’t another vampire spin-off – it’s the National St John Youth Festival!

Realistic accidents The competitors work both in teams and as individuals, and are judged on their ability in leadership, medical knowledge, team work and life-saving skills.

A lot of work goes into staging realistic scenes.

St John use casualty simulation kits, complete with fake blood, bruising and fractures. ‘Patients’ need to arrive at the venue several hours before the competitors, to have make-up applied.

“Competitors react in a way that mirrors how they would respond in actual accidents and medical emergencies,” says Richard Hitchcock.

It’s not all about competitions though. There’s dances, entertainment, sightseeing, forums and quiz nights.

Hooked Laura Kelly from Lower Hutt reckons the best part of the Festival, and of St John in general, is the social aspect. “I love seeing the camaraderie between everybody, especially once the comps are done,” says Laura.

“We all get together for the big dances at the end and everyone’s smiling and having a great time together.”

Three and a half years ago, Laura (now 16) went to a St John open evening and has been hooked ever since. She’s now a leader in her youth division, and teaches her skills to younger cadets.

“It’s awesome when the kids click on to what you’re saying, and you see the expressions on their faces when they get their badges!”

It’s not just health care and first aid skills that St John provides. “A lot of it is to do with communication,” explains Laura, “which makes it

Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible – Dalai Lama

Harry Clegg in action

so much easier to deal with people and situations.

So even in school we’re a lot more confident than we were before.”

You get everything...

Harry Clegg (16) of Wellington is also no stranger to competing in the National Youth Festival. He’s been involved with St John for over 10 years and has made some of his best mates there.

He holds a 10-year certificate, which is something not many people his age have. He was also selected to attend an international competition in England.

Harry often gets the chance to use his well practised skills. Part of his involvement with St John is doing duties at concerts and festivals. “You get everything there,” says Harry, “from minor injuries to unconscious patients.”

He encourages everyone to have a go at St John. “Just go for it. It doesn’t take too long to get really good, and then you get to start going away and competing, and it’s really fun.”

Having fun Fourteen-year-old Charles Williams from Upper Hutt agrees. “Join your nearest division,” he says.

“Be willing to learn and be well disciplined, and

just have fun all round.”

At this year’s festival, Charles was a member of the development team which meant he got to attend the festival but not compete.

He attended all the camps and training weekends and it’s his turn in 2010 where he will compete with the regional team at the International Youth Festival in Christchurch in January.

Where to from here?

Charles has a big dream – to be a Westpac Rescue Helicopter paramedic, and St John is setting him up well to achieve that dream.

Harry hopes to go to Otago University after high school, to study medicine. “I might go down the doctor path, or be a surgeon or paramedic,” says Harry.

Laura wants to be a geneticist in hereditary diseases, and also continue helping out within St John.

Laura says that when they first join a lot of people don’t seem to be overly confident, but “St John gives them so much and the opportunities are so great.

You can see them gaining confidence every day.

“Get in there and have a go!”

www.tearaway.net.nz 41

CHOICES PAGE TAG Who says toys and comics are just for kids? The BACHELOR OF APPLIED VISUAL IMAGING at UCOL gives you the skills to be any number of wildly creative things – designer, filmmaker, animator, illustrator, photographer and more! We talk to some of 2008’s top graduates, who have all found a way to play for a living.

LUKE FARMER Top video student

From: Bulls Currently: digital video/ post production freelancer phenomincorporated@gmail.com

Throughout my teen years I used to cut music videos and post them online for fun. It eventually evolved into something I wanted to do for the rest of my life.

I love the feeling of watching a creation – your own or someone else’s – come to life. I also love the hands-on work which distinguishes it from being a boring desk job.

Animated As a kid, I was into the vital things any growing boy with a crazy imagination needs – movies and toys. I was into drawing storyboards and comics and wishing I could make them into real films.

DEE MIDDLEMISS Top animation student

From: Palmerston North Currently: freelance illustrator www.redbubble. com/people/middledee My passion for animation first came into my life at UCOL: second semester, animation class #1. However, I’ve been drawing for my entire life.

Animation gives me the freedom to create absolutely anything I want – only my imagination can limit me.

One of my favourite parts of studying was

ALANA MOFFATT Top web design student

From: Dunedin, and raised on a farm in Clinton Currently: freelance web designer and business owner www.rottendollies.com I’ve always had an interest in drawing and painting. There is a lot of freedom within the creative industry and it’s something I want to be part of.

I used to love playing with my Barbies with my twin sister Tori. I also loved playing make-believe 42 Tearaway June 2009

The Bachelor of Applied Visual Imaging at UCOL involves video/sound, 2D and 3D animation, design, photography and web.

It’s good because you learn such a variety of skills from all aspects of the digital world and apply them to your own strengths.

actually the large workload. Particularly with 3D animation, you need to start working as soon as you get the brief, because you need to go through the entire process from concept, to modelling, to rendering.

All of the hard work you put in at the beginning pays off when you see the final product.

Focus

Play I learned so many skills, but I think the ones that I gained in animation have helped me the most.

Winning Student of the Year for video in ‘08 was pretty good. But my biggest achievement so far is having my short film play on TVNZ6.

I’ve also had some great memories over the years competing in the 48HOURS film festival.

I’m doing something I love, am passionate about, am good at and have fun doing.

Life at UCOL It was pretty relaxing at UCOL (except when dealing with multiple assignments due at the same time – ouch!)

All the people around you are there for the

animation skills as well as a good understanding of movement and secondary animation, which can then cross over into my 3D animation.

Currently I’m selling my illustrations on Red Bubble and doing some illustration work for bands like Osmium and for local business people. I’m just getting my name out there – the possibilities are endless, which is why it is so exciting!

Animation is still a developing field. The UCOL animation department allows its students to explore all of the media from traditional 2D animation and stop motion, right through to 3D animation using Maya.

I chose to focus on both 2D and 3D animation in my final years of study, which you can see in my show reel at www.vimeo.com/2130499.

This has allowed me to gain the traditional

How it all began

(witches etc), writing and of course drawing.

I gained a Bachelor of Applied Visual Imaging from UCOL, and I now have my own business – Rotten Dollies. Rotten Dollies are designer plush toys, designed, developed and created by myself.

The best part of this career path is having the freedom and the joy of being able to create for myself and others. Being able to think of an idea, develop it and then make it tangible.

With web design I love how far you can push things. With Flash, HTML and CSS we don’t have to have the same generic pages we did back in the 90s and early 2000s – they’re becoming a lot more innovative and creative.

I’m always thinking of fresh ideas so it’s just a matter of finding the time to get everything to fit and keeping on top of it all.

Fresh Initially UCOL’s Bachelor of Applied Visual Imaging degree involves getting your hands onto everything, from animation, graphic design, film, web design and photography. From there you get a knowledge of which field you want to enter.

To be honest there was never any profession that really stuck with me for a long time as something I wanted to do.

But the first time I saw an animation I had created – then I was hooked.

Doing art in high school helped of course, although I feel people should not put so much emphasis on the marks – especially the externally

Great way to learn I feel the skills I have learned whilst at UCOL are being endlessly applied to everything I now do, from idea and concept, to dealing with clients, to the final result.

UCOL is a great way to study. The lecturers are always at hand to answer any questions, I am still learning – Michelangelo

as you go same reason and are all like-minded, which makes the experience better.

What kind of person could do well in the film industry?

This depends on what you want to be. It’s helpful to have a passion for movies, a very good eye for detail and a lot of technical and conceptual skills.

Don’t let anyone have the pleasure of saying you can’t achieve it. If you have a dream and a goal and you work hard for it, you will get it.

moderated projects. If I did that I would be working in an entirely different field.

Variety The good thing about UCOL and the Bachelor of Applied Visual Imaging, is that in your first year you get to explore all of the different subjects.

This allows you to decide what you want to carry on with. I chose animation and design.

You learn a lot of practical skills as well as researching the history of different artists.

UCOL as a whole has a friendly environment, and you really get out what you put in to it. The lecturers are always available to help and no problem is ever too big.

The other students that you get to know are a good sounding board for your ideas, and you’ll meet some of your best friends there (I know I

to go over any work and give critical yet encouraging advice.

Whilst at UCOL I’ve had the opportunity to be taught by talented, motivational, inspirational and in-the-know people.

Since graduating I have returned to UCOL to get some more experience, which I feel will assist in all aspects of my career. I’m now studying illustration/drawing and design.

did).

My career gives me the freedom to be my own boss and have complete control over my own projects. I can also work for anyone, anywhere in the world from my computer in my room at home, in little old Palmerston North.

What kind of person could do well in animation?

If you’re the kind of person who likes to create things, is willing to work really, really hard (and once you start you just can’t stop), you would do well in animation. You just have to give things a go!

To succeed in this industry you need to be a patient, yet very creative person. If you are interested in textiles/toy design, recycling centres are a great way to start.

What kind of person could do well in this industry?

Do what makes you most happy. Be prepared not to have money for a while (you have to invest time and money into toy design – and most careers). www.tearaway.net.nz 43

ANIMATION

GRAPHIC DESIGN

ILL US TRATION

PHO T OGRAPHY

VIDEO

WEB/INTERACTIVE DESIGN

Explore new perspectives Create the unexpected with UCOL’s visual imaging degree

Ignite your creativity and discover the many exciting careers open to you in visual imaging.

UCOL’s three-year Bachelor of Applied Visual Imaging (BAVI) will give you all the necessary industry-ready skills for this vast field.

The programme will introduce you to a wide range of knowledge across the six main areas of visual imaging - photography, graphic design, web/ interactive design, animation, video and illustration.

During this foundation you’ll discover your true creative and technical abilities so that you can then focus on one major area for your final year.

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Enrol now as UCOL’S Bachelor of Applied Visual Imaging starts February 2010

COOKING

Slurp your way to meatball heaven with LAURA VINCENT’s easy-as recipes

Epic meatball sandwiches When it comes to home-cooked comfort food – the sort of thing you crave on a rainy day in winter – meatballs are high up there on the list. Am I right? You know it.

Yes, they seem really obvious, but there’s a reason – it’s because they’re so good.

And while spaghetti and meatballs are pretty dreamy, trust me, you haven’t quite lived until you’ve tried a meatball sandwich. It makes for an easy but epic Sunday night dinner.

I got the inspiration for this from a fantastic book called Italian Comfort Food by the Scotto family. If you’re a keen cook, I recommend you keep an eye out for it because it’s absolutely packed full of amazing Italian recipes.

Ingredients

500g good beef mince 2 slices or chunks of stale bread – preferably not the sliced stuff from a packet, but whatever Milk 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 egg 2 tablespoons chopped parsley 2 tablespoons chopped basil 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, crumbled (optional)

To serve Slice open some homemade or bought buns – again, you probably want something from a bakery, as regular packaged buns won’t be able to stand up to all that sauce – then pack in a couple of meatballs and drizzle over some of the sauce. I find that two meatballs per bun works well.

Serve with salad – I made a quick coleslaw of shredded cabbage and chopped apple – and lots of serviettes for mopping up the inevitable spillage.

This serves four, with leftovers.

1 jar good quality tomato pasta sauce

Method Soak the bread in the milk – about ½ a cup or so.

I tend to make this recipe quite a bit so if there are ever any stale ends or uneaten bits on a loaf of bread I bag them up and freeze them so I’m always meatball-ready.

Once it has absorbed as much milk as possible, add the soaked bread to the mince in a bowl with the rest of the ingredients and, using your hands, mix it all together to combine really well. Form into small balls.

Heat up a wide, deepish pan large enough to fit the meatballs and add a little olive oil. Gently fry the meatballs, occasionally turning with a spatula until they are lightly browned on all sides. When this has happened – and if you get the occasional broken meatball, life goes on – pour over the jar of pasta sauce, then half fill it with water, shake it up a bit and add that to the pan as well. Allow this to simmer gently for about 20 minutes till the meatballs are cooked through and the sauce has thickened a bit.

Spag ’n’ meatballs And of course you can always go for the classic spaghetti and meatballs approach.

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, and once it’s bubbling rapidly, add 100g spaghetti per person.

I find about 12-15 minutes on the stove usually does the trick.

Serve the meatballs and sauce over the spaghetti with plenty of cheese. www.tearaway.net.nz 45

PAGE TAG

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46 Tearaway June 2009

How to Enter 1. WEBSITE: register at www. tearaway.net.nz and use the entry codes to go in the draw.

Answers to news quiz, p4: 1-b, 2-a, 3-b, 4-c, 5-b, 6-c, 7-c, 8-a, 9-c, 10-b

Pimp your look with Dominate Waxx, NZ’s number one selling hair wax. The new Toffee variety is a 24-hour strong-hold style paste that gives a chewy funky style with waterproof hold for all day and all night, whatever your plans! Dominate products are available at all good supermarkets. Visit www.dominatehair.com. We have two packs to give away, each including a year’s supply of product and a Dominate t-shirt!

2. SNAIL MAIL: on the back of an envelope, write all of the products you’d like to win, along with your name, age, address, email and phone number. Send to Tearaway June Grabbag, PO Box 7351, Wanganui.

ENTRIES CLOSE June 30

Winning prizes is always a pleasure – Zlatan Ibrahimovic

CHOICES PAGE TAG After a six-month AFS exchange in Lecco, RACHEL DRIVER discovers there is much more to Italy than Vespas and spaghetti

Adventures in Lecco land One of the best moments I remember about January 25 2007 was laughing with my fellow AFS travellers as we realised we’d missed our plane. Despite our best efforts at sprinting, our connecting flight from Frankfurt to Rome had left 10 minutes ago.

While we were enjoying gummy bears and waiting for the next flight, I got butterflies in my stomach.

Since year nine at Hutt Valley High School I’d been learning Japanese, but I chose to go to Italy because I’d always wanted to experience their warm and happy culture.

What had I been thinking??

I wasn’t ready to fly to the other side of the planet and live for six months with a family I’d never met!

Adventure mode The rest of that flight passed in a blur, along with my nerves, and I started to get into adventure mode. In a few days I would be in my new home in Lecco, situated near Lake Como, north ITALY. Suddenly I couldn’t wait to meet my host family, explore my new home town, and soak up the Italian way of life!

Since I didn’t actually know anything about Italy (apart from the usual stereotypes about spaghetti and Vespa scooters) it seemed very exotic and made it all the more fascinating.

I had no idea what to expect, and was keen to get amongst it.

Always espresso Armed with my passport, and my shocking red suitcase, I jumped on the train from Rome to Milan, where my amazing Italian family were waiting.

Our house was in the centre of Lecco. There is a piazza (like a town square) at almost every turn, where people meet, share pizza, beer, coffee and music – so classically Italian and I loved being a part of it.

Home was just a 40 minute drive from Milan, which was awesome. I couldn’t believe I was so close to one of the most beautiful cities in the world!

Rachel (right) and host sister Laura in Tuscany

It was just unreal being able to take the train into the city and see huge famous buildings and churches everywhere – like the gothic Duomo – five-storey shops, and then relax with a coffee or panino in a cute bar.

One thing I noticed was just how many bars there were – coffee is a very important part of Italian culture, which suited me just fine! No matter what time or day, an espresso was always on the menu.

Crazy good times Like many, I’m completely in love with Italian food.

I’ll never forget my first night with my family – I’d eaten a delicious bowl of pasta, filled up on seconds, and then realised there were still two more courses to come!

Isabella, my host mum, was a fantastic cook and always made a feast.

My host family were so much fun – my dad Charlie was always having a laugh, Isabella taught me hilarious slang in their dialect, Laura was the sweetest sister ever, and for the first time in my life I had a brother, Matteo.

They made every moment a good one to remember, whether it was a crazy soccer game or going on an adventure with friends and getting lost in a nearby village.

I missed my sleep-ins for a while but on the whole school was pretty fun, especially on the last day when my friends’ band played in the courtyard and the whole school did the Macarena.

Despite not being able to speak Italian at the beginning, my friends and classmates helped me so much that by the time it came to leave, the beautiful Italian language was engrained in me and English didn’t seem normal anymore!

My friends became some of the best I’ve ever made and saying goodbye was really hard.

Soccer!

School days Wearing mufti every day at school was a welcome change from sporting my boring uniform in New Zealand, although it shocked me that we had to go to school on Saturdays!

Rachel (left) at Carnevale in Lecco

Student Exchange Text AFS to 5900 to find out more Freephone 0800 600 300 or visit www.afs.org.nz I met a lot of people in Europe. I even encountered myself – James Baldwin

All texts will be subject to the standard network fee of your mobile carrier

www.tearaway.net.nz 47

Y&R BNZ 2673_R

Short story.

Big prize.

The end.

CELEBRATING

50

YEARS

BNZ Katherine Mansfield Awards 2009 BNZ is proud to bring you the 50th Katherine Mansfield Awards.

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Premier award (Published Writers) – $10,000 Novice award (Unpublished Writers) – $1,500 Young writer’s award (Secondary School Students) – $1,500 for the student, a creative writing workshop with a New Zealand writer and $1,500 for the school.

Check the entry criteria at the website below and see how BNZ is helping New Zealand writers be better off. Enter between 1 May and 30 June 2009.

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48 Tearaway June 2009