Kiwi Power POP: ZOWIE

I have found that little ol' New Zealand never quite gets the love it deserves.  The general public seems to only know New Zealand as the backdrop for Lord of the Rings (not to mention the musical & comedic genius behind Flight of the Conchords) - but what of the lesser known Kiwi stars?  Why don't they get some appreciation too?

I'm on a personal little mission to change this.  In my next few posts I want to introduce our audience to some very worthy Kiwi Power POP stars, starting with the fun, funky and fabulous Miss Zowie!

Zowie is the name of Zoe Fleury, a drummer, singer-songwriter, & all around supergirl.  Zowie, an alter-ego of sorts, grew out Fleury's original musical character Bionic Pixie in Auckland, New Zealand.  Zoe Fleury studied contemporary music at MAINZ (the Musical and Audio Institute of New Zealand) & grew up in a very musical environment, as her father performed in a band.

Zowie's music is unique, quirky, synthpunk POP, fit for lovers of anyone from Karen O to Ke$ha.  A truly creative chick, Zoe is intimately involved in every aspect of her performance art; she designs nearly all her outfits with her good friend and fashionista Serena Fagence & finds musical inspiration from a variety of sources, including Michael Jackson & time travel.  And girlfriend's got big talent along with style!  Give a good listen to Smash It  & you will see that Zowie has it all: big beats, hand-claps & chant-alongs in a Kiwi Power package. 

Just to insert a personal anecdote here - as a graduate of History I am familiar with the work of Zoe Fleury’s grandfather, a historian of Sikh culture whom I greatly admire (but I won’t bore you with a list of my favorite historians right now!).  Unbeknownst to many, being a historian & author is a very creative process.  With the influence of her father and of her grandfather, is it any wonder that Zowie is creative artist in her own right?  I think not!

Thankfully, the past two years have been good for Zowie. In 2010, Zowie's first single, Broken Machine, reached #9 on the New Zealand charts.  By 2011, she accompanied Mark Ronson and Katy Perry on their Australasian tours.  She even caught the attention of MTV!  Finally, my absolute favorite song by Zowie, Smash It, was featured on Pretty Little Liars . So exciting!

This POP starletis on the rise. We can't wait for her 2012 debut!  If you're as excited as we are, check out more of Zowie's music on iTunes .

Zowie, we can’t wait to see what you’ll do next.  We're gonna jump on that vessel to the year 3000 with you, girl.  Kiwi power!

Unapologetically,

Minna

Hairvetica. Pubic Hair Alphabet & Other Wild Type Designs by Vladimir Koncar.

Condoms, pubic hair, cigarette butts, raw meat, pills, Gummi Bears, beer caps, cactus, four leaf clovers and more are used to comprise complete alphabets in a typography project by Croation designer Vladimir Koncar.



Diary Type is a personal typographic diary that Vladimir started as a experiment in 2007. He collects various objects and from them form the letters of the alphabet. With those letters he writes his thoughts down and they are a symbolic link between the font and the reflections.

Hairvetica- an alphabet designed from actual pubic hair (whose? I do not know):


Condom Alphabet:



Cigarette Butt Alphabet:




Pill Alphabet:




Raw Meat Alphabet:




Gummi Bear Alphabet:




Beer Cap Alphabet:




Cactus Alphabet:




Four Leaf Clover Alphabet:




Vladimir Koncar:

All images used with express permission from Valdimir Koncar.

To see his alphabets made of soil, paper clips, daffodils, beans, teabags and toothpicks, check out his site.