NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Entertainment

Blacklistt: Out of a black spot

NZ Herald
12 Sep, 2013 01:00 AM5 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The debut album by Blacklistt (left to right, Gareth, Marcus, Damian and Karl) picks up where Blindspott left off, only sounds bigger and more accomplished.

The debut album by Blacklistt (left to right, Gareth, Marcus, Damian and Karl) picks up where Blindspott left off, only sounds bigger and more accomplished.

After a tumultuous few years, the lads from Blacklistt are about to hit the road to tour their debut album. They talk to Scott Kara.

The first time I met the lads from Blacklistt, they were drinking beer in a garage in West Auckland and listening to System of a Down. That was way back in 2001, when they were called Blindspott, and the afternoon gathering was a pre-drinks warm-up before the Tool concert at North Shore Events Centre.

As the night wore on, the boozing and bad behaviour made for a great yarn about a bunch of guys who, over the next few years, would become New Zealand's biggest rock band with songs such as Nil By Mouth, Room to Breathe and ballad Phlex, which peaked at No3 on the singles charts.

"We just missed out on No1 from those American Idol guys," remembers guitarist Marcus Powell today of Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard taking the two top spots.

There was no such miss with the release of debut album Blindspott in 2002, which hit No1 and went on to sell more than 50,000 copies.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Since then, things have changed. They still like a few beers. But in 2007, after two albums, line-up changes, and personal differences got in the way, Blindspott broke up.

However in 2010, Powell, keyboard player and turntablist Karl Vilisini and bass player Gareth Fleming started jamming again and, with singer Damian Alexander soon on board, were back in business as Blacklistt.

A bitter battle over the rights to the name Blindspott with former bandmate Shelton Woolright, which has now been resolved, was a slight glitch in their comeback, but there was no doubt they still had a solid fanbase after headlining Wellington's Homegrown in 2011 and 2012, and a sold-out tour throughout May and June last year.

This month they head out on a 12-date nationwide tour in support of Blacklistt, the band's debut album, which is released tomorrow. The tour kicks off with an all-ages show on September 28 at Zeal, in their old stomping ground of Henderson, and includes a show at the Powerstation on October 17.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Looking back [to the Blindspott days] we were all pretty ego-driven," says Powell. "Who knows. Maybe our prefrontal cortex wasn't quite developed, and all the booze stunted it for a while. We made some pretty bad mistakes and I don't think we had the tools at that time to sit down and talk it out with each other.

"This time round everything is out in the open. We agree on everything, and the Apra [royalty] splits are finally all evenly cut. It's just a better vibe and we're just jamming because we love to jam."

This newfound unity comes through on the new album. It picks up where Blindspott left off, only it sounds bigger and more accomplished.

"I love the album, I've been thrashing it," laughs Powell.

Discover more

Entertainment

Tour news: Blacklistt, PNC, Whiskey Live Series

09 May 05:30 PM
Entertainment

Blacklistt fire up for tour (+video)

13 Jun 09:00 PM
Entertainment

Tour news: Blacklistt, Passenger, City and Colour, Imagine Dragons

17 Jul 07:00 PM
Entertainment

Rocker to stand trial on charge of hiring hitman

17 Sep 03:05 AM

But he admits a decade ago they would never have been able to make this album. First, technology has come a long way and new single Home makes Phlex sound empty in comparison.

"We bought a program called Contact for this album, and it's like, if you want to sound like Alicia Keys you just hit this button. Or the Deftones? Hit that button. It's amazing what you can do these days.

"But we still make up the riffs and the hearts of the songs is still ours."

And second, they've all grown up and feel at ease with being more musically ambitious.

"By throwing that rulebook out we got to try more things. It's quite an emotional and creative album."

In turn, the songs are more sophisticated and elaborate and much of the time driven by Vilisini's more quirky and unusual musical outlook. So there's everything from taonga puoro on call-to-arms opener Tell Me Who ("It's about making a statement"), through to sad and touching serenades such as Home (a poignant and catchy track penned during a "writing weekend" on Waiheke Island, which is something Blindspott would certainly not have done) and Sky Tonight (about a family member of Alexander's who died in a helicopter accident).

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

But then there are the trademark angry tunes such as Burn (with swearing and cursing like the Blindspott of old) and the brutal and deathly Icon, a track that takes you back to that boozy garage party in West Auckland.

"I turned up to band practice in quite an angry mood," recounts Powell, "and I can't remember what I was pissed off at, but yeah, I came in quite grumpy and I said, 'Right, we're going to make a Westie anthem tonight', and it ended up being that."

It's remarkable that for a band who made their name in the age of nu metal and rap rock, a genre that was seemingly very much of a certain time, that Blacklistt still sound current and have maintained a rabidly loyal fan base while most other bands from that scene have faded into obscurity.

Powell puts it down to the fact they play from their hearts, and as well as doing it for themselves they also make music for their fans (some of whom contributed backing vocals on Home).

"Fans have said to me, 'I feel like part of the band'," he offers. "And we also keep up with all the new music that comes out. But there's just an honesty about us. We play from our hearts."

Who: Blacklistt
What: The band formerly known as Blindspott are back with a new album
Line-up: Damian Alexander (vocals), Marcus Powell (guitars), Karl Vilisini (keyboards, turntables), Gareth Fleming (bass)
New album: Blacklistt, out tomorrow
Also listen to: Blindspott (2002); End the Silence (2006)

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Follow @nzherald_ent on Twitter for all the latest entertainment news.

- TimeOut

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Entertainment

World

Ozzy Osbourne's final Black Sabbath gig draws thousands in Birmingham

06 Jul 02:09 AM
New Zealand

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

06 Jul 12:48 AM
Premium
Entertainment

Lights! Camera! But not enough action in a fading, worried Hollywood

06 Jul 12:00 AM

Sponsored: Get your kids involved in your reno

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Entertainment

Ozzy Osbourne's final Black Sabbath gig draws thousands in Birmingham

Ozzy Osbourne's final Black Sabbath gig draws thousands in Birmingham

06 Jul 02:09 AM

He performed with his original bandmates for the first time in 20 years.

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

NZ actress accuses Australian policeman of using CCTV to spy on her

06 Jul 12:48 AM
Premium
Lights! Camera! But not enough action in a fading, worried Hollywood

Lights! Camera! But not enough action in a fading, worried Hollywood

06 Jul 12:00 AM
Noel Edmonds to marry again: British TV star proposes in hot tub in NZ

Noel Edmonds to marry again: British TV star proposes in hot tub in NZ

05 Jul 09:00 PM
Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper
sponsored

Sponsored: Why heat pumps make winter cheaper

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP