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Posts Tagged Bill Direen

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November 8, 2021 by Simon Sweetman

Free Public Reading: Slapping Culture In The Face – Writers Against National Library Disposals

This Thursday, November 11, 2021 – from 7-9pm at St. Peters Anglican Church, Willis St, Wellington, there will be a public reading featuring writers against the National Library disposals. All details are here. I’m honoured to be on a list put together by Bill Direen that also features Dame Fiona Kidman, Mark Pirie, Chris Bourke, Lindsay […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 2021, Bill Direen, Free Public Reading: Slapping Culture In The Face - Writers Against National Library Disposals, November 11, Poetry, Readings, St. Peters, Thursday, Wellington, Writers Against National Library Disposals ·

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July 13, 2018 by Simon Sweetman

Sweetman Podcast: Episode 124 – Bill Direen

Welcome to episode 124 of Sweetman Podcast with support from our sponsors – T Leaf T, Yeastie Boys and Le Petite Chocolat. I was chuffed to finally get to have a good long yarn with Bill Direen; to meet him even. We’d never met though we had corresponded. I had reached out to him a while back to podcast – and […]
Posted in Blog, Podcasts · Tagged Album, Bilders, Bill Direen, Book, Builders, Chat, Conversation, Doco, Documentary, Dunedin, Episode 124 – Bill Direen, Experimental, Flying Nun, France, Free, Gig, http://william.direen.free.fr/, Interview, Le Petite Chocolat, Music, Novels, Podcast, Poem, Poetry, Simon Sweetman, Sweetman Podcast, Sweetman Podcast: Episode 124, Sweetman Podcast: Episode 124 – Bill Direen, T Leaf T, Talk, Tour, Travel, Vinyl, Wellington, William Direen, Work, Writing, Yeastie Boys, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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June 30, 2018 by Simon Sweetman

Bill Direen: Mean Time – EP

Bill Direen Mean Time – EP 666494 Records DK A four-track EP from Direen, released early in 2018 – it finds Bill in a gentle, folk-ish-pop-song mood at least as far as opener Fewer Than Few is concerned. In fact, this has such a Go Betweens-type charm you could be convinced you’re listening to something […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Bill Direen, Bill Direen: Mean Time - EP, EP, Mean Time, Mean Time - EP, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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June 20, 2018 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 397

Builders, Beatin Hearts (1983) Where did Bill/William Direen come from? I tried to find out a bit more about that just the other week – I had him around for a podcast. It’ll be up soon. It was my first time meeting him. Though I know a lot of his music and have read some […]
Posted in Blog, The Vinyl Countdown · Tagged 1983, Album, Beatin Hearts, Bilders, Bill Direen, Books, Builders, Dirty And Disgusting, Flying Nun, Kiwi, LP, Magpies, Music, Record, The Vinyl Countdown # 397, Vinyl, William Direen, Writer, Writing ·

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July 19, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

Bill Direen – A Memory of Others: Film

Bill Direen: A Memory of Others Director: Simon Ogston Bellbird Pictures Simon Ogston is making the New Zealand music/arts docos where you can’t believe your luck – your favourite cult act, finally, is being correctly, lovingly examined. At a previous film festival it was his take on The Skeptics – and his work returns to […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged A Memory of Others, Academic, Art, Artist, Arts, Bellbird Pictures, Bill Direen, Bill Direen - A Memory of Others: Film, Bill Direen: A Memory of Others, Doc, Doco, Documentary, Dunedin, Film, Film Festival, Film Review, Guitar, International Film Festival, Movie, Movie Review, Musician, NZ Film Festival, NZ Tour, Poet, Sheen Of Gold, Simon Ogston, Skeptics, Songwriter ·

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July 16, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

Five Films That Stay With Me: Simon Ogston

Simon Ogston is an Auckland-based producer, director and camera-operator.  Among other things, Simon has made a number of feature-length films about New Zealand bands.  These include Rumble & Bang, Gone With The Weird, Antarctic Angels and the Unknown Blues and Sheen of Gold. His latest film is about Bill Direen, A Memory of Others and it screens at this year’s New […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Memory of Others, Antarctic Angels and The Unknown Blues, Back To The Future, Bell Bird Pictures, Bill Direen, Cherry 2000, Director, Doco, Documentary, Film, Film Festival, Filmmaker, Five Albums I'm Loving Right Now, Five Films, Five Films That Stay With Me, Five Films That Stay With Me: Simon Ogston, Gone With The Weird, http://www.bellbirdpictures.co.nz/, Movie, Movies, NZ International Film Festival, Raising Arizona, Rumble & Bang, Sheen Of Gold, Simon Ogston, Special Guest, The Trump Presidency ·

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October 12, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Bill Direen: Enclosures 2

Enclosures 2 Bill Direen Percutio Bill Direen’s latest “novel” is another excursion through cross-genre literary wanderings. Here in fact is not one novel but separate instances of poetry, stories, journal entries and narrative fiction combined under the pages of a single volume. It’s a website-approach to print and publishing, the banner being the theme – […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Bill Direen, Book, Book Review, Enclosures, Enclosures 2, Experimental, Fiction, Journal, Jules, Kiwi, NZ, Poems, Poetry, Stories, Travel, William Direen ·

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September 8, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 635

The Bilders, The Utopians (2014) A 7”inch 3-track EP – click here to check out all the songs if you like – that arrived in the mail just recently; signed by Bill Direen. Pretty chuffed to have this – not least because of the music. But imagine trying to collect up everything Bill’s done, everywhere […]
Posted in Blog, The Vinyl Countdown · Tagged 2014, 3-Track, 7, Bill Direen, Builders, EP, LP, Mardy, NZ, Record, Single, The Utopians, The Vinyl Countdown # 635, Vinyl, William Direen ·

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November 7, 2013 by Simon Sweetman

The Phantom Billstickers Cafe Reader: Issue # 2

The crew from Phantom Billstickers have sent issue number two of the Café Reader out to the streets. You’ll find it in music stores, cafés, bars and restaurants around your town. If you can’t find it let them know I reckon they’ll find a way to get a copy to you. It’s a FREE magazine […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Bill Direen, Cafe Reader, Cafe Reader # 2, Chris Mooar, David Eggleton, Fiction, Frankie McMillan, Gerald Stern, Janet Frame, Jay Clarkson, Jim Wilson, John Dix, Phantom Billstickers, Phil Judd, Poems, Poetry, Reading, Short Stories, Summer 2013, Summer Edition, Tusiata Avia, Writing ·

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