Update Time...Again

Hey folks - well 2011 was the last time I posted anything, a lot has happened since!

At the end of 2011, I had the good fortune of shooting some films, the first was a feature film called "The Cure" in which I played the role of a security officer (anybody that knows me will know that this isn't such a huge stretch), for me it was a great opportunity to get back into acting, but also to work with some people that I had watched on TV and in film for a number of years. To be able to mix it with the professionals was pretty amazing stuff. Working on "The Cure" gave me the confidence to seek out other opportunities, I had an extra's role in a short film called "Expressionless" and then a lead role in another short film called "A Dash Of Wine", which I had a lot of fun shooting (it helped that my leading ladies were both amazing actresses') - these roles gave me the hunger to seek out other roles in the future.

2012, I managed to take part in the annual V 48 Hour Film Festival, which is basically a film making competition whereby teams have to write, film and edit a 5 minute short film in the space of 48 Hours. I had the good fortune of working with Kay Fretwell, Alex Plant, Raj Khushal, Bonnie Riley, Connor Rapley, Hannah Paterson, Ryan French, Josh Maessen, Callum Scott, Sanny Orr, Bella Goode & Rachel Roberts on our production of "The Curse Of That Damn Cat", which was all about a guy who had a black cat follow him home and all these bad things start happening in his life...I got to play the part of a bountyhunter/cat exterminator, and I also pop up as waiter (it was fun throwing coffee at Raj & Alex :-)

The rest of 2012 has left me writing up a few of my own ideas - in 2013 we will be shooting 2 short films "Bouncer" (an action/drama), which I will be co-starring with my good friend Lance Louez in and "Sisterhood" (a drama) which will see me once again working with some exceptional young talent (including Bella Goode, who has agreed to co-starring in this one!).

In addition to all these film projects I'll also be working with some directors/casts on some music video ideas for The Feckers that we have had floating around - I am quite excited to see these things come to life in 2013!

Update Time

Hey all - I know it's been a while since the last update....my only excuse is that I have been rather busy with working, writing, recording and also doing a bit of acting as well.

The Feckers - It'd Be Rude Not To
Recording sessions are now done, we're down to the mixing phase and shall have the album, and some bonus tracks released early in 2012. In addition a cover of a classic metal tune has been recorded and will preceed the album - although expect this rendition to be different, I can't say too much about it at this point in time without giving too much away.

The Feckers - A Second CD
That's correct, we've already begun work on recording tunes for the 2nd album, the plan is to conjur up more material than what we require (which we did do with the debut album, albiet not on purpose). A lot of the same musicians and singers will appear on the 2nd album (which will include the same production team of Chris Szkup & Stew Long), but also a lot of new additions to the group are definitely planned. Talks have been had with several good rockin' folks who have expressed a lot of interest in taking part and making a noise. The plan at this stage is to have this album released in 2014, giving us a chance to proper promote "It'd Be Rude Not To"

For more info on The Feckers:
http://www.thefeckers.net
http://www.facebook.com/thefeckers
http://www.youtube.com/welcometofeckerville

Chris Szkup & Richard Anderson - Welcome To Feckerville (The Feckers Interview)

1. How did you two manage to come into contact with one another ?

Richard:
Well firstly I have to say that Chris and I have not yet met in person, most of our dealings with one another has been via email and the occasional chat on the phone over the years - we first came into contact on the Brian May Mailing List (The Mayniacs) in 1998.

Chris:
It was such a long time ago, but it kinda seems like yesterday as well!! I seem to recall liking Richard's quirky humour on that list - it definitely stood out, as I'm the king of quirk!! The first stuff we ever tried writing was in 1998 too, so we probably started talking music, and off it went!!

2. Would you say that you've become friends through "meeting" online ?

Richard:
Most definitely - Chris has become both a loyal friend and also someone who has been a huge influence on me as a songwriter over the years, he's an inspiration realistically and truely - a brother in rock.

Chris:
Likewise to all of the above!! You can definitely tell in the age of spam that we're in who the genuine folks are, and that kiwi bugger over there is one of them!!

3. How did you guys come to writing tunes together ?

Richard:
At the time of our meeting I had been writing a few tunes with various people all over the world, and the initial plan I had was to assemble a group of people to write and record together, over the years we had tried with varying levels of success to put different projects together - the biggest hurdle we had was finding likeminded people who were not only talented but also had the right commitment to the cause, unfortunately it can be more of a hurdle to find the right combination in people - so until GONE WILD came about a lot of those plans to work together sat in waiting.

Chris:
Yeah I guess to a point we were both a little put off with all the flakes we'd dealt with, and that lead to just putting our little thing on hold, even though we didn't really verbalise it so much. Really it felt like we needed to go and do our own thing for a while, and when the time is right we would absolutely revisit our collaborations.

4. What happened with the A.S.A project that you guys were both involved with ?

Richard:
The third member of the team, David Austin had other commitments so we were unable to complete an albums worth of material. Chris and I both felt artistically we were headed in a different direction at any rate, although some good demoes were recorded we felt they weren't quite album quality, but looking back some of the bare bones ideas were pretty good.

Chris:
I guess it wasn't meant to be hey. Sometimes no matter what you do, things just aren't going to align and have everyone end up on the same page. Things were definitely learned during that time though and am glad that we did what we did!

5. Will any of the A.S.A recordings see the light of day or will any of those tunes be revisited ?

Richard:
One tune called "The Keys To The Kingdom" is a track that Chris and I co-wrote, it's seen itself go through several different guises, including being demoed by A.S.A - unfortunately none of the different versions that have been recorded over the years have really had that definitive sound that Chris envisioned - so we've decided to include it on The Feckers album, it's a definite for the album. As for the rest of the songs, I'm not sure - but there's no plans for an A.S.A reunion at this point in time. David Austin has re-recorded some of them old A.S.A songs and released them as part of his latest solo album "Revisions" which sounds pretty good, he did some new versions as well as tweaked some of the older recordings.

Chris:
One thing the last handful of years have been about musically for me is doing everything you possibly can to get out what's in your head with a song and make it the best it can be. Call me a douche, but yeah, I never felt that song was nailed as good as it could be. People might hear this version we do and say it sucks, but at least I'll know we gave it our all!!

6. How has it been revisiting some of the older songs that you both co-wrote ?

Richard:
I'm sure that Chris has had fun demoing the older songs, he must have done as it has inspired him and I to write all new material specifically for The Feckers. Hearing these tunes re-demoed and re-arranged has made me realise not only what a great player Chris is, but also what a good ear he really has for melody...these new arrangements are exactly where I think we both knew these songs could be headed.

Chris:
Thats too kind of you Sir!! Yeah I've had real fun digging them out. It's funny that a lot of the stuff way back then I'd be playing the melodies of the lead vocals on guitar because I was way too shy to try and sing them, and in some cases I tried but couldn't. Coming back to them has been fun to see the growth in confidence and ability I've gained as a singer in that time, but you also forget how good some of the music is too if it sits in the closet for 5 years!! There are some beauties in this bunch for sure!!

7. Are you looking at The Feckers as a "band" project ?

Richard:
In some ways I think it's more of an all-star collaboration as far as the other people we are working with -but essentially the songs are Szkup-Anderson tracks, with the odd exception that may slip in there as well - there is one track that Chris has given to the cause that was initially something he was going to use on his second album. Really The Feckers is our shared baby.

Chris:
Yeah that track Richard mentions is the most out there metal stuff I've ever written, so to say I'm looking forward to doing it is an understatement!!

8. How are you finding it working together to put The Feckers album together ?

Richard:
Chris has been great to work with, he always has been. I really like the fact that no matter how crazy the idea, if we both have ideas we're able to bounce them off one another without worrying about the fact that the other guy might not get it - we're both open to meeting in the middle where arrangements and structures are concerned, we're cool with whatever happens as long as the songs rock and we are true to the songs themselves. Another thing that I have enjoyed about working with Chris over the years is that he has always remained humble and is always the first person to tell someone when they have done good, he's honest and has a huge amount of integrity, which I can tell you I have found a rare thing over the years - the GONE WILD chaps would be the other blokes that I would put in the same category.

Chris:
Wow - what can I add to that?! Haha. Too kind again. I just find the working together on stuff totally natural, a breeze and a pleasure really!! Richard is basically up for anything that doesn't flat out suck, which is how I am as well, so it's a perfect fit.

9. Will The Feckers album sound anything like GONE WILD or Chris Szkup solo ?

Richard:
Obviously with Chris' playing being the thing holding it together musically, it will be closer to sounding like his solo material than it will a GONE WILD album - we're trying our best to make it sound different from GONE WILD in terms of style and production - I like the idea of mixing things up so that we have a unique indentity happening here.

Chris:
I'm excited to hear the answer to that question to be honest!! We shall see. I'm sure all the different musicians will add their bits and put their own slants on things that will give the music it's own identity, even though you will definitely get bits and pieces that will absolutely sound like the us that people might know!

10. You have a singer named Roy Bratbakken onboard for this album, how did you come about his work ?

Richard:
I heard him online and thought what a cool voice he had, his voice reminded me of Sammy Hagar in places...so I simply asked him if he would like to work on something oneday, he said he was up for it so I put the idea to Chris, who thought he would be perfect for "Master Of My Own Destiny" - which has proved to be correct as when we heard his vocal track we both thought "this is it!!!", funnily enough we both immediately thought of asking Roy to sing on a second track called "Under The Gun", the penny dropped at the same time to us that Roy's voice would suit that song.

Chris:
Yeah that was cool how it happened. I was holding off suggesting it until we were able to get a bit closer to working on that second track with Roy, but definitely had it in my mind. When Richard said about us maybe asking him about the 2nd track, I pretty much laughed at how on the same page we are!! Luckily Roy was into it as well. Hearing his vocal track was really something on that first song. Good times!!

Richard:
Needless to say we have a few things in the pipeline with Roy on vocals and are looking forward to working with him more and more in the future.


11. Was it always a given that you'd have Rob Smith (GONE WILD) sing a track ?

Richard:
I don't know about a given, as he is a busy bloke, But he was kind enough to offer his services should we need it....to which Chris had said to me "that's a must!" (laughs). I was really cool with that as long as we threw a song at him that was challenging and different to Rob's solo material and also anything that GONE WILD have done, we like the idea of showing off another facet of Rob's talents. The song that Chris has written that Rob is singing on is a beaut too I have to say!

Chris:
It shall be real interesting hearing a man who has basically done it all over a long time as far as music is concerned getting something new and possibly foreign to him to do!! I'm really excited to hear that one come together as I mention before!

12. Are you guys going to be singing any of The Feckers tracks ?

Richard:
That was something we were always going to do yeah, I liked the idea that we could pick and choose for ourselves what songs we wanted to sing. The thing with demoing things first has been great in that we can tell for ourselves weither something is going to work or weither our voices will suit certain songs. I'll be singing a couple of tracks - one of them has been a bit of a challenge, but it's a real asskicker, so that'll be cool to see what people think of it when it's a done deal. I've put some work into arranging my vocals for it - even Chris isn't 100% in the know yet as to where I am going with that track (laughs). There is another track that we will be sharing the vocal duties on - it's been funny listening to the demoes as my mother and my niece have heard different tracks and thought that Chris' singing was me (laughs), so we should be able to blend together well. I'm mindful that this is a collaborative project so didn't want to have Chris and I singing all of the songs - we'd probably get bored with hearing ourselves too much...besides we can endulge ourselves all we like with solo projects, part of the fun of The Feckers is being able to hear all the songs with their own different voice.

Chris:
People should note that for years there would be ribbing going on between us as far as singing goes too!! This will be cool to finally do some of that stuff on the same album of songs!! Who would have known back then?!

13. You guys are also making The Feckers a bit of a family affair...

Richard:
That we are - Chris' brother Matt has been asked to come onboard, He and Chris work really well together and get on really well. When you have that amount of talent in one family it makes sense to capture it I think, it also helps that Matt is a rocker himself and gets where we are coming from...at least I hope he does (laughs). Chris also came up with the idea of asking my niece Kayla if she would be happy to sing some backing vocals on a song for us - which she was quite honoured to have been asked, as an aspiring singer/songwriter herself, this I think will be her professional debut...Chris and I are all about encouraging other people, which is another reason for having so many friends and family onboard, hopefully this project will inspire everyone involved to continue on with their own endeavours and continue to pursue things with a kick ass attitude.

Chris:
My Bro is just such a great partner to have in your corner when doing music, and he's basically up for anything, so if I'm thinking about doing some music, I immediately think of getting him involved somehow. That's what happened here. Richard knew he played lotsa stuff, and I pretty much knew we'd have him on there somewhere too.

As for Kayla, of course! That's what it's all about. Not that we're over the hill just yet (although in lotsa ways I definitely am haha), but you have to do what you can for the younger folks getting into music. Especially if they're related to your bandmate!! That song we're thinking of for her I always heard a younger voice on there, so it all makes sense! I can't wait to get to it!!

14. What do you most hope to achieve with The Feckers ?

Richard:
Just like with anything I am involved with, I just want to work with cool people on a project that involves some good songwriting, some awesome playing - and to enjoy the processes of it all coming together. Already we have achieved that and it's only really been the demo phase that we've been in, although we do have one or two keepers for parts of songs sitting in the can.

Chris:
I have no expectations other than being satisfied with what we do, and to make sure we do it for the love of doing it. No bollocks allowed!

15. Will you guys be meeting in person ?

Richard:
That is definitely on the agenda, I was hoping to get over to Melbourne to record my vocals for The Feckers with Chris in person - but unfortunately my schedule hasn't allowed for that this year - but next year I am definitely going to head on over to spend some time with him - we'll no doubt have some fun working on some song ideas. I suspect this album will not be the last time we'll work together - actually I know it won't be (laughs).

Chris:
I've tried to get to NZ for the last couple of years, but that has been tough with everything that's been going on. Next year the beers will flow!!

16. Are there any plans for any of your tunes to be performed live ?

Richard:
That is something we will look at down the track, one or two things have been mooted....I am cool with whatever, as long as we get to have a bourbon and meet up with brother Chris!

Chris:
No I don't have any concrete plans, but you never know. I'm not really doing any live stuff as of late, but I'm sure that will change down the track.

David Austin - ? (2010)

David Austin - "?"
(Released - 2010)
Produced by David Austin

2010 see's the release of a new David Austin album, which we're not yet sure what the title of the album is, but we're able to confirm the following tracks will be appearing on the album:

1. Recover (D.Austin, R.Anderson)
2. Slave To Reality (D.Austin, R.Anderson)
3. Cry Freedom (D.Austin, R.Anderson)
4. Over The Edge (D.Austin, R.Anderson, L.Schouten)
5. Forever Yours (D.Austin, R.Anderson)

Notes by Richard Anderson:
It's pleasing to me that these old tunes of ours are finally going to see the light of day on an album release. Originally we wrote 4 out of the 5 of our co-writes for a project that we had going called A.S.A (Austin, Szkup, Anderson or Anderson, Szkup, Austin) - but as we were working on several other projects at the time, we were unable to commit to the project fulltime. Both Chris and myself felt that we were heading in a different direction songwise, but nonetheless there was some hope that oneday these songs would be revisited in some form. In 2009, David mooted to me the idea that he wanted to re-work some of our collaborations for his next solo album, which I was all for.

"Recover" was concieved a lullby type thing, I remember sending David a file of me singing it without any music - on the initial demo we worked up both our voices were used to a remarkable effect, remembering at the time I wasn't actively recording anything.

"Slave To Reality" was something altogether different and I remember quite liking the hook, it could almost have been rocked up a bit if the arrangement had've been thought of at the time.

"Cry Freedom" was another unusual thing, in that it was the closest thing that I had ever conconcted to a country song. Once again this song was concieved as a vocal thing that David put the music to. I always had a bit of a soft spot for this tune for some reason.

"Over The Edge" has seen itself put through a few guises, although what will be on this album will be a completely new version of this track. On the original demo, both myself and my friend Leon (who co-wrote the lyric - although he didn't know it at the time I took bits and pieces of conversational pieces and used them in several different songs that will appear on a few different projects), he and I did a backing vocal session with David when we finally met in person for the first time (see attached picture for evidence of this actually happening) - however those backing vocals don't appear on this version, sorry Leon we all end up on the cutting room floor eventually.



"Forever Yours" is a track that David wrote but had a bit of a hard time finishing the lyric, so he asked me to contribute...it's quite a mushy lyric really, but at the time I meant what I wrote. Originally this song appeared on the original version of his debut album "A Changing Sky" in 2001, and it's re-release in 2003. But David felt that it wasn't really in keeping with the rest of the tracks on his 2009 re-release (a double album re-release accompanied by his second solo album "The Face Wall"). What has transpired now is that this is a completely new arrangement.

Rob Smith - Never A Dull Moment (2009)

Rob Smith - Never A Dull Moment
(Released 2nd July 2009)
Released by Polar Music New Zealand
Produced by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand
"Free Spirit", "Tears Of The Sun" & "Let Me Out - Produced by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand
Mastered by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand

- Rob Smith (Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Keyboards, Programming)
- Nils-Ole Finbak (Keyboards - "Cinderella")
- Matt Sturgess (Bass - "On Common Ground")
- Richard Anderson (Narration - "On Common Ground")

1. Cinderella (Rob Smith)
2. It's Getting On Top Of Me (Rob Smith)
3. Never A Dull Moment (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
4. What Happened To My World? (Rob Smith)
5. Free Spirit (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
6. Freedom To Be Who I Am (Rob Smith)
7. You Say You Want To Be Free (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
8. On Common Ground (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith, Matt Sturgess)
9. Tears Of The Sun (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
10. Good Memories Are Made To Last (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
11. Let Me Out (Rob Smith)
12. You're Free (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)

Written and recorded during several different sessions, this collection is Rob's 3rd official solo album. "On Common Ground", "Good Memories Are Made To Last", "What Happened To My World?" & "Cinderella" were all written and recorded during "GONE WILD II" sessions. "Tears Of The Sun" was the first ever song that Rob Smith and Richard Anderson co-wrote together.

Notes by Richard Anderson:
Rob was initially going to begin recording this album in 2007, but testament to him being a team player, he put aside the bulk of his attention to complete writing and production of both the "Something To Remember" and "GONE WILD II" collections (as well as finishing up work on the Houston Wells collection "Now & Then", and
also remastering several of his own archived releases).

Whenever the moment took him and whenever the muse was kind, Rob was able to write and record several of the songs that make up this album during the middle of the previously mentioned sessions. This in itself shows what a talent Rob is, being able to flit between genre's as if it wasn't a problem at all...it still astounds me.

Other tracks that make up "Never A Dull Moment" have been sitting in the archives for a wee while waiting for their moment in the sun (or rain), it was a pleasure to have been once again involved in the writing process and seeing that Rob's 3rd solo album is brought to light as we had discussed, we have a motto in that if we say we are going to bring an album out, then we will do our best to complete each project.

GONE WILD - Ditto II (Unreleased Track) (2008)

Produced by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand
Mastered by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand

- Rob Smith (Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Keyboards, Programming)
- Nils-Ole Finbak (WILD Guitars)

1. Ditto II (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith, Nils-Ole Finbak)


Notes by Richard Anderson:
Initially recorded during "GONE WILD II" sessions, this song wasn't something that suited where we were as a band at that particular time. But Rob rose to the challenge (after I bet him a bottle of bourbon that he couldn't turn Nilsys guitar track into a legitimate song), and I was then challenged to write a lyric to suit. The finished recording has grown on me.

Hayley Oliver, Rob Smith & Richard Anderson - Something To Remember

Hayley Oliver, Rob Smith & Richard Anderson - Something To Remember
Released April 2009
Released by Polar Music New Zealand
Produced by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand
Mastered by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand

- Hayley Oliver (Vocals)
- Rob Smith (Vocals, Guitars, Bass, Keyboards, Programming)
- Robin Wellaway (Sax - "How Many Ways")

1. Drifting Away (Rob Smith)
2. I Can't Help But Feel The Way I Do (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
3. Something To Remember (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
4. The Silence Of It All (Rob Smith)
5. Let's Get To The Heart Of The Matter (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
6. Love You Forever (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
7. Through The Heart (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
8. How Many Ways (Rob Smith)
9. I Believe In Angels (Rob Smith)
10. The Simple Things In Life (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
11. You Might Think (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
12. Days Gone By (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)

Rob Smith teamed up with English country singer Hayley Oliver on this wonderful collection of ballads, this marking Rob's first complete collaboration album outside of New Zealand.

Notes by Richard Anderson:
Working with Rob and Hayley on this project was a priviledge, all of the songs are packed with lots of emotional content and every song is a gem. It was an interesting experience working on songs of a different nature, gelling the pop-rock with country was something that we found both challenging and appealing. Rob and I both liked how we were able to show we were versatile as songwriters, and working with a vocalist of Hayley's calibre was certainly a blessing.

GONE WILD - GONE WILD

GONE WILD - GONE WILD

GONE WILD + Friends @ Facebook

Released January 2007
Released by Polar Music New Zealand / GONE WILD Productions
Produced by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand
Mastered by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand

- Rob Smith - Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards, Programming
- Richard Anderson - Vocals, Narrations
- Nils-Ole Finbak - Norske Narration, Piano, Keyboards, WILD Guitars
- Matt Sturgess - Bass
- Carol Smith - Harmonica - "Don't Need Them Blues"
- Chris Szkup - Lead Guitars - "Montage"
- Robin Wellaway - Sax - "The Good Ole Boys", "Heavens Above" & "Don't Need Them Blues")

1. Don't Wanna Be A Star (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess)
2. Escape (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
3. The Good Ole Boys (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
4. GONE WILD (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
5. Heavens Above (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
6. Achilles (Instrumental) (R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
7. War Of Words (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
8. Don't Need Them Blues (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
9. Montage (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith, Matt Sturgess, N.Finbak)
10. El Pronto Mofo (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
11. Ditto (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
12. Comfort Within (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
13. Introspective/Outrospective (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)
14. Turn Off The Lights (R.Anderson, R.Smith, M.Sturgess, N.Finbak)

Notes by Richard Anderson:
Both Rob Smith and Tim P Hall had been at me to put together a solo album of my own at some point, but I didn't really think anyone would want to be hearing me do my thing. As a compromise I had said to Rob that perhaps we should pool our efforts alongside Nils-Ole Finbak, who I had been writing a lot of material with (and also Rob had some material he was working on with him) and create a hard rock project that we could be listed within as equals rather than a solo album. Rob was at first keen to come onboard to play some guitar as needed, but then he thought about it further and suggested that why don't we go the whole hog and have him come onboard fulltime as both guitarist and producer?. Given that Rob had other projects he was working on we felt that he must have indeed been quite serious in his wanting to come onboard, so we took him up on the offer - and thus GONE WILD was born. Actually the name was supposed to be GOING WILD but somewhere along the line one of us (we've blamed Nilsy) typed the wrong name in an email. During one of his get-togethers (christened Ratapiko Rockfest) at his place I met Matt Sturgess and having heard good things about him from Rob, we struck up a conversation and I mentioned to him how Rob, Nilsy and I were going to be working on a hard rock-blues rock based collection of songs and that we would be keen for him to come onboard as a bass player if he wanted. Matt didn't have to take a second asking, he was keen as. The "GONE WILD" album took only 4 months to complete.

More information on the making of this album and also some reviews will be added to this blog soon.


You can purchase this album by simply emailing: robertsmith@xtra.co.nz or breakfree74@hotmail.com

Rick Bone & Friends - MS Blues

Rick Bone & Friends - MS Blues

Released January 2007
Aching Bone Music
Produced by Scott Rose & Rick Bone

1. MS Blues (Rick Bone)
2. Positive Light (Rick Bone, Scott Rose)
3. Help Me (Rick Bone, Scott Rose)
4. Surfin' Monkey (Rick Bone)
5. We Look Good (Rick Bone)
6. Don't Be Afraid To Love (Rick Bone)
7. Cry Through The Pain (Richard Anderson, Rick Bone)
8. Flying Free (Debbie Kelson, Rick Bone)
9. Pity Party (Debbie Kelson, Rick Bone)
10. The Cavern Monkeys Song (Rick Bone)
11. Payin' For The Rich Man (Rick Bone)
12. Cryin' Out (Rick Bone)

Proceeds from this release were and are donated to MS Research.

Notes by Richard Anderson:
Rick Bone is a friend of Scott Rose, he suffers from MS. "Cry Through The Pain" was my lyrical tribute to Rick, I was amazed at how he would power through his illness to pick up the guitar and play even though all the time he would be in pain. My good friend and co-writer Chris Szkup leant his talents to the cause and played lead guitar on that track too. Chris and I were only too happy to lend our time and efforts to this project, especially given the fact that proceeds were being (and still are) donated to help aid MS research in the US. Since the release of this album, Rick has forged ahead with the Broken Feather collaboration with Debbie Kelson, keeping the MS Awareness vibe flowing.



- Review by Lin Sarnecki-
www.nytedancer.com/MSChat/monster
A professional musician during the '70s and '80s, Rick initially gave up his music career back in 1983 to raise a family. Before that job was done (is it ever,really?) he was diagnosed with MS in 1999, which progressed to the point he was forced on disability in 2001.

Rick became very depressed over the loss of many things, as we all do, but especially over his inability to create and sing his music. For anyone with a passion, to lose it is tantamount to losing a huge part of oneself. We also must compensate for changes in our methodologies as well as adapt to changes forced by MS.

For a long time, Rick was convinced he could never sing or play again - especially at the level he did before MS. He couldn't feel his guitar strings because of the numbness in his fingers, he couldn't be in his studio long due to MS fatigue, he wasn't able to write songs and music due to MS cognitive loss, and he felt his voice quality was forever impaired. I am one of his friends with MS who knows we can do far more than we sometimes believe if we just try. I also knew how beautiful his voice was and is, and have urged him, scolded him, begged him, and even at times yelled at him to get back into his music! At long last, he has.


You can purchase this album here

Scott Rose - Deep Sumthin'

Scott Rose - Deep Sumthin'

Released in 2006
Country Rose Productions
Produced by Scott Rose

1. Deep Something (Scott Rose)
2. Born To Play Country (Scott Rose)
3. See You Later (Scott Rose)
4. Out Of Order When Lit (Scott Rose)
5. Baby Girl (Scott Rose)
6. She's A Red Head, Red Neck (Scott Rose)
7. The Caulk Sucker (Scott Rose)
8. Kentucky Fried Knight (Scott Rose)
9. Positive Light (Scott Rose, Rick Bone)
10. Miracles Happen (Scott Rose)
11. All In The Cards (Scott Rose)
12. Don't Forget Me, When I'm Gone (Richard Anderson, Scott Rose) - originally titled "When I'm Gone"

"Don't Forget Me, When I'm Gone" was a re-working of "When I'm Gone" which was demoed by Richard Anderson in 2004.

Notes by Richard Anderson:
I came across Scott Rose by way of Nils-Ole Finbak who I had been working with, Scott leant his talents to a track we had written and recorded called "Never Let You Down". We discussed perhaps working together on something - little did I know at the time that a song I had demoed would be moulded into an album-worthy track. Normally I am not the biggest country fan on the planet but I thought in keeping with the spirit that I would lend my support to a good friend and sincerely had hoped the album would turn out well - and it did.

You can still purchase this album here

Rob Smith - Actions Speak Louder Than Words

Rob Smith - Actions Speak Louder Than Words


Released in 2006
Released by Polar Music New Zealand
Produced by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, Ratapiko, Taranaki, New Zealand
Mastered by Michael Hill @ Killermoa Music Studio's, Waitara, Taranaki, New Zealand

- Rob Smith (Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards, Programming)
- Catherine Smith (Backing Vocals - "An Angel Flies")
- Laura Smith (Backing Vocals - "An Angel Flies")

1. My Sanity (Rob Smith)
2. Why Did We Fall So Far (Rob Smith)
3. Actions Speak Louder Than Words (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
4. An Angel Flies (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
5. What Don't Kill Me Will Just Make Me Strong (Dawn Sinclair, Rob Smith)
6. What I Would Do For You (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
7. Let's Get To The Heart Of The Matter (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
8. In The Bottom Of A Bottle (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
9. I'm Gonna Miss You Baby (Rob Smith)
10. Forget Yesterday (Dawn Sinclair, Rob Smith)
11. Can't Stop Loving You (Rob Smith)
12. Inside Me (Rob Smith)
13. How Do You Feel? (Rob Smith)
14. The Woman I Never Knew (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
15. When The Wind Blows (Rob Smith)

Rob's second official solo album.

Notes by Richard Anderson:
After the release of "Be Careful What You Wish For", it was easy to see that there were still other tracks there left over from the same sessions that could be used for a second solo album. So we put aside some of those tracks and also co-wrote some new material specifically for what was to become "Actions Speak Louder Than Words".

Another lyricist was brought into the fold, English lyricist/poet Dawn Sinclair, who had been writing a fair bit with other artists, but took an instant liking to Rob's writing and recording style. As a thanks for her support, Rob included 2 Dawn Sinclair co-writes on "Actions Speak Louder Than Words".

I liked the fact that Rob was able to progress musically into rockier places where need be on this album - whilst it still sounding like a Rob Smith album, there was indeed some progression rather than just getting caught into repeating an exact formula, something we wanted with this label's releases was to always keep mixing it up. Thankfully Rob is inspired by a lot of different types of music and artists (and life experiences too), and as those things are all thrown into the pot with his own experiences the Rob Smith sound is always going to be varied.

It was an interesting experience seeing this project come together, as we had written some things that we both felt rated up there (and still do) as some of the best and most heartfelt things either of us had written, I take great pride in knowing that we were able to follow-up a great album that is "Be Careful..." with something equally as brilliant.

Rob Smith - Be Careful What You Wish For

Rob Smith - Be Careful What You Wish For

Released 2005
Released by Polar Music New Zealand
Produced by Rob Smith @ Polar Music New Zealand Studio's, New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand
Mastered by Michael Hill @ Killermoa Music Studio's, Waitara, Taranaki, New Zealand

- Rob Smith (Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards, Programming)
- Otto Beesling (Bass - "Le Merci" & "Wish")
- Robin Wellaway (Sax - "Wish")
- Catherine Smith (Backing Vocals - "Wish")
- Laura Smith (Backing Vocals - "Wish")

1. One Heart (Rob Smith)
2. Emerald Isle (Rob Smith)
3. It's Over (Rob Smith)
4. Mary Doesn't Need Tomorrow (Rob Smith)
5. Le Merci (Rob Smith)
6. Lost Without Your Love (Rob Smith)
7. The Memory Of Us (Rob Smith)
8. Nobody's (Rob Smith)
9. Wish (Rob Smith)
10. Lately (Rob Smith)
11. The Time Of Your Life (Rob Smith)
12. In The Beginning (Rob Smith)
13. Without You (Richard Anderson, Rob Smith)
14. We Won't Be Forgotten(Rob Smith)
15. Toddyar (Rob Smith)

Polar Music New Zealand was formed especially to release Rob Smith related recordings, "Be Careful What You Wish For" having the distinction of being the first release from the label, as well as being Rob's first official album.

Notes by Richard Anderson:
I met Rob at Music Services in New Plymouth early in 2004, at the time I had been doing some online promotion for the Tim P Hall Band, Rob had heard about what I had been doing for them and wondered if I might be able to help him do the same. It quickly became apparent to me that Rob really did have a gift way beyond his humble saying "I dabble a bit", so I discussed with him some goals and how he should really set about releasing his material to the world, so we put together the independent label Polar Music New Zealand.

My intial role was to help manage Rob and to also take care of online promotional actitivies. We also co-wrote a few things together, "Without You" being the first official release, but "Tears Of The Sun" was in fact the first song we co-wrote, Rob also gave me some titles to write lyrics to with the plan being that he would set those lyrics to music and we'd release them on various projects we had planned on putting together over the next few years (we have actually sat down and wrote a few ditties in person too...more on those later)...needless to say this album itself is very special to the Polar Music New Zealand family as a standalone entity, but also in the grand scheme of things it helped create a vision.

Pleasingly, 5 years after this albums release we still get people commenting on the songs favourably, new people have taken an interest and it continues to sell (thats right folks you too can own a copy if you want to contact me about purchasing a copy that'd be great!)

003 - Not For Sale

003 - Not For Sale

Released in 2001 in Japan

Produced by 003

Shun'ei - Vocals, Keyboards
Luigi - Guitar, Bass, Backing Vocals
Roman - Drums, Backing Vocals

1. Chasing The Sun (Richard Anderson, Luigi Yamagata)
2. Welcome Song (Luigi Yamagata)
3. Morning (Luigi Yamagata)
4. Birthday (Luigi Yamagata)
5. Horizon (Luigi Yamagata)
6. Sakaba no Taishou (Luigi Yamagata)
7. Afternoon (Luigi Yamagata)
8. Angel (Luigi Yamagata)
9. Tadeima (Luigi Yamagata)
10. Mitsukenikui Sagashimono (Luigi Yamagata)
11. Ashita no Hako (Luigi Yamagata)
12. Sorahe (Luigi Yamagata)
13. Yamato Daikon
14. Sakaba-Daikon (Live Take) (Luigi Yamagata)

Notes by Richard Anderson:
From memory I think this collection served as a kind of "Best Of" collection, so was rather pleased that 003 would deem our little ditty worthy of inclusion alongside some of their own material.

003 - Chasing The Sun

003 - Chasing The Sun

Released in Japan in 2001
Produced by 003

Shun'ei - Vocals, Keyboards
Luigi - Guitar, Bass, Backing Vocals
Roman - Drums, Backing Vocals

1. Afternoon (Luigi Yamagata)
2. Tadeima (Luigi Yamagata)
3. Ashita no Hako (Luigi Yamagata)
4. Chasing The Sun (Richard Anderson, Luigi Yamagata)
5. Mitsukenikui Sagashimono (Luigi Yamagata)
6. Sorahe (Luigi Yamagata)
7. Yamato Daikon (Luigi Yamagata)

Notes by Richard Anderson:
I came across 003 online, and whilst all their music was in Japanese (which I couldn't understand a word of) I appreciated their efforts and their great ear for melody, so I sent the lead vocalist/guitarist Luigi Yamagata a note to ask him if he would be interested in co-writing a song in English, thankfully he was up for it.

"Chasing The Sun" was inspired by a conversation I had on a bus trip with a chap named Terry Blake in 2000, he had seemed like an inspirational type of gent, often wandering off on his jaunts for weeks at a time. It struck me as to what his family might be thinking while he was off wandering - he said to me "I am chasing the sun",which I thought would make a great song title...in the end I used our whole meeting as inspiration for this tune.

003 even wound up having a picture of a car with the number plate reading "003" on the front cover of this collection, which I thought was rather cool.

Later, 003 performed "Chasing The Sun" live in a reggae kind of format, thankfully I was able to obtain an mp3 of this performance (I once had the video footage too, but thats since seemingly been lost unfortunately), it really worked quite well in this style, I was stoked to have had a co-write performed so far away live for the first time.

Unfortunately this was the only song that we collaborated on, 003 have since seemingly split up.

Kween - Journey In A Labyrinth

Kween - Journey In A Labyrinth
(Released 1998 - Japan)
Produced by Kween

1. Keeper Of Genesis (Hiroshi Kuribayashi & Yohei Eto)
2. Love Comes, Love Goes (Yohei Eto)
3. The Goddess' Beloved Songs (Richard Anderson, Yohei Eto, Nobuhisa Kihira)
4. I Am Not To Blame (Richard Anderson, Yohei Eto, Kenji Wakibuchi)
5. Make Believe (Darren Liby, Kenji Wakibuchi)
6. Musicman (Yohei Eto)

Notes by Richard Anderson:
I was introduced to the music of Kween by longtime supporter and Queen fan Tim Davis, Tim ran a web-hosting business that housed Kween's and the Mayniac's website (now the official home to Queen's guitarist Brian May).

Lead Vocalist, Piano Player (and sometimes guitarist) Yohei Eto (sometimes referred to by his stage name Annan) corresponded with me and in 1997 I emailed him some lyrics to check out - mostly material I had written as a teenager.

"I Am Not To Blame" lyrically was based around a 3-piece lyrical writing (about a girlfriend named Rebecca who had dumped me to go out with some other guy - at the time I thought was the end of the world) which I had split in 2, but Yohei saw fit to put them together and with some changes, thus my first writing for an official recording was born.

"I Am Not To Blame" was not to be the only song on this album I was involved with however, drummer Nobuhisa Kihira had written a song called "The Goddess' Beloved Songs", he had a concept for what he wanted to say within this song but his English wasn't very good - so Yohei sent me a demo of the song with only humming for vocals in certain parts, to which I set about writing what I thought might work, with some tweaks what I had written was included within the final track which was nice.