Stapled Noise is a project for Ōtepoti's alternative music scene. A non-profit handbook guide for students and creatives new to Dunedin for them to discover what this scene is all about. Distributed in mass around the uni campus, venues and cafés across the city, Stapled Noise is made within the scene and showcases local talent.
Stapled noise is a not-for-profit publication reflecting Ōtepoti’s current alternative music scene - a handbook guide to the scene for students and creatives new to Dunedin. This will be mass-distributed across the local university campus, as well as the venues and cafes, to be accessible for anyone who comes across it.
This project is created, designed and edited by Ash McFarlane, an up-and-coming Dunedin graphic designer with a goal to merge the aesthetics of local music and the DIY zine ethos. He has partnered up with Radio One, utilising aligning kaupapa and values to advocate for local students and creatives.
Otepoti's music has always been a prominent part of the culture, but right now it is making a spectacular comeback, with some describing it as the next Dunedin Sound. Recently everything has been lining up with the return of the punk/grunge tone, the all ages scene, and the passion is growing. It is is the perfect time for a free and accessible zine to reflect what is happening right now. There is a big disconnect with Dunedin students/newcomers understanding of the alternative music scene, so this project will offer the solution to spread creative voices and spaces.
For this project to make an impact on Dunedin, it needs to be printed. Stapled Noise is 100% dependent on fundraising to be printed, as it will not create any monetary profit. Whatever money that can be made will go directly to covering production costs, which includes the paper stock, printing, trimming and binding. Ash is not a musician, so he is putting his all into this design project to give back to Dunedin's music scene.
Stapled Noise has the responsibility to uplift voices of all backgrounds and cultures, in a way that physically connects to a diverse range of communities.
This project aims to embed an understanding of enhancing Mauri, the energy and creative passion that is much of Ōtepoti’s driving life force. The balance of strengthening connections and nurturing wellbeing through creative expression.
This work needs to be seen, heard, and experienced because it captures the heart of Ōtepoti’s alternative scene, advocating for the people and spaces who make it thrive.
The goal of this project is to create free and accessible copies. If you care about this culture, this project depends on you.
Keep Dunedin Loud
Venues in Otepoti
Dunedin's oldest music venue, The Crown, stands strong after decades of changing scenes – from the 80s Dunedin Sound era to today's rich variety of rock, noise rock, hardcore, and more. Bald, sweaty men emerge from hiding to blast everyone with their body heat; a force not even the singular fan can cope with. Bonus points for the pool table, jukebox, and Jones' lavish food spread for bands.
Yours is the beating heart of the music, drag, and arts scene. This cooperative café and venue is home to potato lovers, crafters, folk jammers, the all-ages scene and everything else under the sun. These damn woke radicalists simply can't help but make this vibrant, art-coated space a home to you, too! And boy, do they make a very good loaf of bread.
RdC is the best outcome of walking down a dimly lit alleyway. What they lack in ceiling height, they make up for in their army of knitted creatures and soul-warming sandwiches. They stock local music merch, hearty batches of bread, and plenty of vegan/vegetarian options. Some afternoons, Harsh Noise Soft Coffee shows gather the noise artists. Someone you know is a noise artist. Maybe even someone you love.
DropKicks has been rebirthed as sleek, minimalist, and uni-centred. They offer affordable (free!) venue hire to uplift the creatives, whether that be uni bands, DJs, or touring artists. Watch out – their stage lights use the power of a thousand suns to hunt down and floodlight audience members. We all miss the pretty red curtains, but Dive’s spirit lives on in the sticky floor.
Nestled beneath the heart of the Uni campus, U-Bar entices students eager to procrastinate their studying. Wednesday Pint Nights and bountiful harvests of fresh student bands keep the floors sticky, the air humid, and the barricades creaking against schmoovin’ crowds. It’s the home of breathers, surf rock, and first-years discovering that live music and cheap pints are a rad combination.
The Dunedin Musicians Club was founded over 50 years ago, a hotspot for Dads to rock out on the weekends. Nowadays, they host jam nights, fundraiser gigs, and touring artists, maintaining a strong community and connecting generations of musicians. Their president is none other than Karl Brinsdon of the acclaimed Saurian! Drummers are caged behind a see-through enclosure, supposedly for soundproofing.
If you’ve ever wanted a life-size ET guardian angel watching over you, Maggies is the place for you. Amongst arcade machines and enormous globe paper lights, this café transforms into a cosy bar setting for folk, indie, and alternative rock shows. They’re dog-friendly, host occasional art exhibitions, and have a beautiful supply of teaspoons.
Even with an audience of three people, Inch Bar feels full and welcoming. There might even be a dog! Regular open mic nights, comedy, jazz, folk, and drag ensure all the North East Valley hipsters are kept well fed. An excellent people-watching spot, but not when you make eye contact with people on the bus while performing.
When breather season is out and the Aucklanders crawl back to their parents’ villas, Castle Street is left with nothing but tumbleweeds, smashed glass, and the occasional corpse of a once-loved couch. But when they’re back in town, DnB blasts over the sea of street party-goers. Six60 flatted here, so that’s cool too, I guess.
After changing hands in 2023 to a pair of musicians, Moons began hosting events to help fill Ōtepoti’s venue hole. It’s a modern, airy restaurant and brew lab, complete with a mezzanine dining area. Plenty of comedy, rock, blues, and folk shows draw the craft beer enjoyers to their downstairs events room.
The Regent Theatre is certainly a step up from the humble bars and cafes of Ōtepoti, with a 1,650-seat capacity. This elaborate building in the centre of town dates back to 1928, when it was a cinema for orchestra-accompanied silent films. It changed hands in 1973 to become a performing arts venue. Everything from music to ballet, theatre, and comedy unfolds under the Regent’s ornate ceiling and cascading red curtains.
Port Chalmers
Port Chalmers’ Pioneer Hall has brushed off the dust for busloads of swarming high schoolers, eager to mosh as far as physically possible from parental supervision. Community hall by day, gig venue by night, but in a perpetual state of jovial festivity with the permanent Christmas stars strung above the stage. Dress your best, because the teenagers will show you up.
About Me
Ash McFarlane
Creative, Graphic Designer, Loving Father
Kia ora! I’m Ash, and I grew up in the small harbour town of Ōamaru, eventually moving to Ōtepoti Dunedin to study. This transition happened to lead me towards becoming a full-time groupie within the local alternative music scene. I’m not a muso, so design is my way of accessing and giving back to this wonderful community.
My design philosophy is simple: make designs that stand out and bring people together. I tend to work best in the realm of gig posters, street art, and real community-driven projects, with my skills centred around experimenting with hands-on design methods. I am now lucky enough to be a recent graduate of Otago Polytechnic’s School of Design.
In my first year of study, I needed to make some friends. So, I worked up the courage to befriend a dude in my class who I’m gonna call “band t-shirt guy”. He introduced me to the local scene, taking me out to gigs and parties where I met a bunch of musos, and at the time I thought these were the coolest people ever – I came to realise they were just kinda cool. Nonetheless, I made it my goal to become the biggest groupie known to man, to the point of going on a nationwide tour with a band I wasn’t even in. I am so glad to have infiltrated this wonderful community.
This project is for first-year me, and for those newcomers who haven’t found their own ‘band t-shirt guy.’ It acts as a hand guide that will introduce you to what the music scene has to offer, addressing the disconnect between the ‘uni-scene’ and ‘alternative scene’. It’s important to experience a heap of different gigs and venues to see what works for you, and keep this creative scene alive.