Posts by Hugh Wilson
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I read Liam Dann's piece this morning and thought it was a pretty honest assessment of the situation - I for one know many people who 'got in' just before AKL prices really started moving, and some of them happened to moved back from OZ when they were getting 1.30:1 on the exchange rate (an extraordinary gain).
Australia's PM is quite fond of the 'luck' narrative, clearly as a means to connect to the man on the street and encourage people to 'have a go' as clichéd as it is (for all his well known wealth, he effectively grow up in a single parent state house, similar to that other bloke John).
The 'there but for the grace of god' line makes me think of Machine's disco smash, as thats where I first heard the line:
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Polity: Geography and housing options, in reply to Mikaere Curtis,
Mikaere
A couple of quick thoughts …
All cities experience population growth (as in natural growth, not migrations) – on account of this alone Auckland needs more houses, and this trend will not go away. About 3% pa is normal.
On the migration side ‘economics’ or the ‘market’ should help disperse people around to other centres. Things like the UFB rollout should notionally help this, but ‘this’ can be dependent on some workplace flexibility …. As others have noted there is already some incidence of people moving to other centres, but due to various ‘connections’ – family, friends, work, cultural etc – and employment considerations the ability to relocate isn’t necessarily available to everyone
I’m not too sure what policy settings are impacting real estate investment in AKL, but personally I think things are getting out of control and the end point will not be pretty. I don’t live there now, but do recall the glumness of the place following the 87 crash (when I was 12). The issue with these policy settings – which will go to things like capital gains – is that clearly many benefit, and for that reason they don’t want any action taken. Such short sightedness characterises a number of policy settings in Australia, including negative gearing,superannuation and various tax concessions. Housing is not a productive use of money, so the fact it attracts so much capital should be a concern for all, especially as it is largely funded by debt.
This leaves Auckland in a situation of having to do better with its lot, in expectation of ever more people. By extension, current residents will have to accept change, and resisting it will only further heighten current inequalities
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The idea that AKL is full is laughable, really
I’ve no doubt there is plenty of scope to increase density, and stats would reveal that density is much lower than many other cities … a key reason for increasing density as opposed to increasing sprawl goes to infrastructure. Specifically densification lets you utilise infrastructure already in place – sure some upgrades might be required but they would be many times cheaper than extending reticulated water and sewage networks, electricity and roads etc to new housing areas (not to mention public transport) … I suspect few have little idea about how expensive these things are, they’re more concerned re: NIMBY
Somewhat ironically, opponents of densitifcation perpetuate some of the problems which people experience daily re: traffic. More compact population centres enable more effective public transport and less traffic, providing people give up their cars. Sound radical? Go to Japan and see how Tokyo manages with a population over 13 million
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Hard News: BRB, at UNGASS, in reply to Rich of Observationz,
That gentrification has been happening for a while*, but the intersection of Ludlow and Rivington – where the cover of Pauls Boutique was shot – is still there (and vaguely recognisable)
*The Tenement Museum is a testament of sorts to the Lower East Sides prolonged gentrification, and is well worth a visit if time permits
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Hopefully Wilderpeople and Tickled get some AUS distribution, we shall see I guess …
One thing I’ve been enjoying is this bloke Cortez’ jazz mix Niles (DL available):
https://cortez.wordpress.com/2015/12/22/mix-niles/The second track in particular was really catching my ear, and when I double checked the tracklist I realised I have the Trunk reissue filed in the shelves! Speaking of Trunk, aka Johnny Trunk, his latest tome of library music album covers has just been released and would be a good addition to coffee tables everywhere … I scooped at a nice price on Ebay
http://fuel-design.com/publishing/music-library-2016/And I’m sure you’ll have no shortage of things to do in NYC Russell, but if in East Village and strolling along 5th ave keep an eye out for Good Records, a tidy boutique type record shop. In my experience you can get some good soul/jazz/funk stuff there (i.e. in the US & at Good) at a fraction of what it would cost in these parts of the world. Williamsburg market can also be a good place for perusal as well
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Hard News: Friday Music: You are among friends, in reply to Russell Brown,
The Lijadu / McRae spot is a good one, well done!
Theres another Lijadu Sisters song which is semi well known – Life is gone down low
I happened to find the Lijadu Sisters ‘Double Trouble’ album in an op shop last year (alongside Don Cherry & Buddy guy albums no less!) – a ‘needle in the haystack’ moment for sure, but hopefully not my only one :)
re: Afro Disco, not sure if you saw my post referencing voodoo funk’s Frank Gosner about two weeks back – I think his excavations / releases could be up your alley, as would the mighty William Onebayor (theres a good documentary on him as well, which is worth tracking done – Mr Fantastic or something, if my memory serves me well)
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On the summer festival tip, came across this recent ‘Rainbow Serpent’ set by Mista Savona, download button too:
https://soundcloud.com/mistasavona/rainbow-serpent-festival-2015-mista-savona-dj-set -
On the African tip, Frank Gosner from Voodoo Funk warrants a quick mention. He has an interesting back story, but in essence was based in Guinea for a few years and found new wells for his pre-existing interest in music & funk in particular. The Guardian did an interesting profile on him in 2014:
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26654516
Moreover, he put together a lot of mixes over the years flossing some of his discoveries – a bunch of these can be accessed from the link below:
http://voodoofunk.blogspot.com.au/2010/08/3-new-mixes.html
Mulatu Astake is a good entry point for those not so familiar with African music. He has enjoyed a renaissance of sorts in recent years & toured Australia several times. Can recommend the comp which Strut put out. Personal bonus beat was getting a high five from the man himself as he left a gig a few years back.
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Oh, and I forgot to mention Sydney. Not a lot I wanted to add, but having spent 4 weeks there over the past two months - and having lived there for 3 years in the late 90s - the decline is very visible. Oxford st close to the CBD is plain awful - it used to be so humming, but now its like a ghost town thoroughfare. Didn't venture deep into the Cross but gather its a similar story there ..
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A minute late to this one
Good looking on the Ska clip. The accompanying reference to Jamaican political figures of the 70's prompts me to mention Marlon James' 'A brief history of seven killings', the 2015 Booker winner. I'm still reading it, but as it is set in the 1970's (in Jamaica) its undoubtedly given me a deeper and richer understanding/perspective on that period and how reggae, and Bob Marley in particular, interfaced with it. Simple sentences, such as time for the big tree to meet the small axe, really cut through (excuse the pun). Recommended.
On the early reggae tip, I've been enjoying the mixes down by a chap named Dj Bluewater for many years now - he seems to specialise in rocksteady 45 mixes - there are a bunch on mixcloud and they can also be downloaded from his site here:
http://djbluewater.com/rocksteadymixes.htmlAnd on the Booker T front, I am pretty sure I have Uptight on a (Stax) NZ pressed 45 but would have to have a forage to confirm 100%. Thinking about how things must have worked back then really intrigues me - local offices, local pressings etc - noting that similar set ups also existed in Australia. My Friend Kris Holmes has an amazing collection of NZ pressed 45s which I've always thought would make good fodder for a Waxpoetics special or similar, but nothings ever materialised on that front. Maybe its just me (and one or two others) who find these things interesting!