February 3, 2025 • 9 mins
Music legends Toto have announced a gig in Wellington, performing at the TSB Arena in April. But who is the special guest joining them?
Also, Sir Paul McCartney has hit out at the rise of artificial intelligence - but is his stance slightly hypocritical given The Beatles utilised AI in their latest single?
To answer those questions, Nick Mills was joined by Wellington Mornings music guru James Irwin.
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Wellington Mornings podcast with Nick Mills
from news Talk.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Said b.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
HIGs new releases and keeping tabs on local artists his
music time on Wellington Mornings.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
I'm lucky enough to have a music euro walking working
right next door to me in his studio and I
get to have a chat to him now and again,
and we hang out a little bit in the studio.
James James Irwin, James, I know you want to talk
about the Beatles and AI, because I mean McCartney's come
out and done this big thing about AI and the Beatles.
I know you want to do something about that. But
(00:43):
first another big gig come Wellington gigs.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Yeah, and we did gigs a couple of weeks ago
when we last talked. And then I get a lot
of people who email me and go, oh, you missed
this gig. I did have people email me same. We
missed the six sixty gig. But I didn't think six
sixty needed promoting.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Well, so they were brew Town.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
There was a big, big gig, and I didn't think
they need any promotion.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
So the Latest Range Row got everything.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Yeah, well they got the house there there living the dream.
But there's a big gig. Toto is playing Thursday, April
twenty fourth. It's been announced since we last spoke tickets
through ticket Master. I had a look this morning. Cheapest
seats around one hundred and thirty bucks, which I thought
is pretty reasonable. They're playing with Christopher Cross, who I
do find a little yacht rock.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
One song, what was that? One song was.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Sailing and Arthur's theme, Yeah, or the banging you know,
I mean he had a gazeeon sales of his album.
So yeah, Toto. They've got one original member, Steve, Steve Lukathera,
who's the gat and the Vox. They've got a lot
of longtime session players. They've got a long time a
lot of guys who played with them since the mid eighties.
(01:49):
So yeah, yeah, it's not the original originals, but you know,
I think it's the band that's been the most consistent
over the years. Let's have a listen. You all know
this song, so that so they're more than just this
next song, but we all have those next stop dancing.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
It's a great, great All three songs are great.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
Love And here's Christopher Cross.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
It's your rock because that's what you call it. I
like him.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Yeah, Yeah, it's nice. His nice, nice buttery shard in
the background.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
I'd like to see him like I'd like to go down.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
I think it's a great concept. Again, that's another one
that yourself and myself and and Ethan can all go
to it up there in the mosh.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
But so will there be a most people will be seated.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
Probably be seated, won't tease. They do a lot of
seed gigs, don't they.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
I don't want to be seated, but seated, I don't
want to go to I can stand.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
We'll talk at the promoter and if me and you
and Ethan could be up the front, I.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Don't want to be out the front. I'll be at
the back. But I just don't want to sit in
a seat like like I'm going to church going.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
What are you going to do down the back?
Speaker 2 (02:59):
Those people.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Dangerous? I don't know what's going on in those corners
this week, Christopher Crash.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
That should be good.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
So April twenty fourth, get your tickets only through ticket Master.
I always say it, don't go do those dodgy sites.
Go to ticket Master if you want to go to
that that gig. It's been on sale since yesterday, so
Paul McCartney's been throwing out a few massives this week.
Let's have a listen to Mecca.
Speaker 4 (03:22):
They write a beautiful song and they don't own it
and they don't have anything to do with it, and
anyone who wants can just rip it off. The truth is,
the money's going somewhere, you know, when it gets on
the streaming platforms, somebody's getting it, and it should be
the person who created it. It shouldn't just be some
tech giant somewhere. Somebody's getting paid, so why shouldn't it
(03:43):
be the guy who sat down and wrote yesterday.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
So maca is basically saying that, you know, these big
tech giants are going and they're stripping out all the songs.
They're listening to all these songs on Spotify and Apple Music.
They're getting copies of it, and then they're recreating through AI, creating.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Music that's very similar.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Yeah, very similar. And I can do it myself in
my studio just writing's doorn it.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
You've done it before. I've done it before.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
So it's you.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Notice the way he says song, He says song, Yeah,
he did its song. Yes, it's a song, it's a song.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
Paul Surple, Yeah, that's the Liverpool accent, isn't it. Yeah.
So yeah, So it's a little bit of irony because
McCartney and Ringo used AI to recreate that song that
what was it called now and then now and then
last year or end of twenty twenty three, that Beatles
song where they used John Lennon. Now they used We're
(04:34):
just having this little argument with the producer, not regenitive AI,
so not learned it was machine AI where they stripped
out the vocals and cleaned it up a bit like
how Peter Jackson used it for the for the TV
series on the on the Beatles on the Amazon series.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Have you seen it?
Speaker 3 (04:52):
Yeah, it's spectacular. Even if you don't like the Beatles.
That is just a musk must watch Amazon. So I'm
not a huge fan of AI. It's killing. It's Disney
Plus not Amazon. Sorry, it's I'm not a huge fan
of AOI. I do think it kills creativity, and you know,
I think.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I think, yeah, I want someone to get paid.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
I want to be paid. And so I had a
search around this morning and we listened to one of
these guys last year, the AI Beatles, which is solely
just learning from the Beatles. Let's have listened to an
AI Beatles song.
Speaker 4 (05:25):
I'm not parmer cudly, not even partly. I've been created
by an a John lend Us not just incredible, won't and.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
I'm not George Harris.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
Never.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
One oo.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Best, but.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
We ivy beat incredible. Yeah, it's incredible.
Speaker 3 (06:03):
And so if you want to hear more from the
AI Beatles, head into YouTube will find more of it.
It's some quite fun stuff. But that's showing how you
know that these machines are learning.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
They could do a whole album.
Speaker 3 (06:12):
They could do a whole album. There's a great one
for Aisis, which is Oasis. Yeah, of course, yeah, same thing.
So they got me thinking, you know, why do we
need AI when there's bands out there that who love
the Beatles and have recreated the Beatles sound. Maybe not
by choice, but but maybe. But so I started hooning
(06:32):
around the internet and I found a few here. So
let's have a listen to this next lot that's kind
of in the vein of Sergeant Peppers and the White
Albums with dashings of Revolver. Here's Apples in Stereo and
a band called dtor Dog.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
This is very Beatles to me.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
This is apples hysteria, the whole psychedelic era. And here
comes Doctor Dogs. I think half of us even with
the strawberries, so lucy in the sky with diamond and
(07:16):
here's this is called Dr Dog from twenty ten. Yeah
is it a big song?
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Yeah, we're big of tiptop. See that that's why the
kids love the Beatles. She has the story. Oh I
just I told the story to the listeners. A couple
of weeks ago. I was walking down the street and
these four kids that were first year high school, very small,
young kids, walking down the road singing a Beatles song.
I just couldn't get it. Yeah, come on, man, I
didn't you know walk down the road when I was
(07:49):
a kid humming a Beethoven song.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
Hey, here's another one is his one? What we all know?
Let's play. Here's another couple of Beatles sound alike. Crowded house.
Juvie had to Neil and says, this is an O
to the Beatles when he wrote this stunning, So we'll
(08:22):
just let that roll. So that got me thinking, you know,
we don't need AI. And luckily we don't need AI
to listen to a new Beatles song because Ringo on
the tenth of January, only three weeks ago, released a
country album called look Up. And it's following in the
footsteps of Bergardis like post Malone and Beyonce, who incidentally
won and won with Album of the Year last with
(08:44):
Cowboy Krter. So they're all doing this, these country songs,
country albums. Ringo's got a new country album. I listened
on the way to work this morning.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
It's great.
Speaker 3 (08:55):
It's not not my particular cup of tea, but it's Ringo.
It's playing drums and singing.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
From me to know, from me too.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
Yeah, I think it's a no from me as well.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
Yeah, leave it to beyon buddy.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
Yeah, and thirty year fifty six years ago. Last week
that the Beatles played their final concert up on the rooftop,
up on the rooftop Apple for the let It B sessions.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
And you want to push Porter of Rocks, Yeah, Pori
of Rocks Saturday, May third.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
We talked about it last time. It's a cracker. It's
going to be a banger. The big concert we should
support in Wellington, go Pori.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Ro Rocks and Groover Martin.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
About our seventh of March TSB. That's for all the
goods yep.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
All right, Thanks James Erwin. Always great to talk music.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
For more from Wellington Mornings with Nick Mills, listen live
to news talks It'd Be Wellington from nine am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
You're listening to the Wellington Mornings podcast with Nick Mills
from news Talk.
Speaker 2 (00:11):
Said b.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
HIGs new releases and keeping tabs on local artists his
music time on Wellington Mornings.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
I'm lucky enough to have a music euro walking working
right next door to me in his studio and I
get to have a chat to him now and again,
and we hang out a little bit in the studio.
James James Irwin, James, I know you want to talk
about the Beatles and AI, because I mean McCartney's come
out and done this big thing about AI and the Beatles.
I know you want to do something about that. But
(00:43):
first another big gig come Wellington gigs.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Yeah, and we did gigs a couple of weeks ago
when we last talked. And then I get a lot
of people who email me and go, oh, you missed
this gig. I did have people email me same. We
missed the six sixty gig. But I didn't think six
sixty needed promoting.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Well, so they were brew Town.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
There was a big, big gig, and I didn't think
they need any promotion.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
So the Latest Range Row got everything.
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Yeah, well they got the house there there living the dream.
But there's a big gig. Toto is playing Thursday, April
twenty fourth. It's been announced since we last spoke tickets
through ticket Master. I had a look this morning. Cheapest
seats around one hundred and thirty bucks, which I thought
is pretty reasonable. They're playing with Christopher Cross, who I
do find a little yacht rock.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
One song, what was that? One song was.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Sailing and Arthur's theme, Yeah, or the banging you know,
I mean he had a gazeeon sales of his album.
So yeah, Toto. They've got one original member, Steve, Steve Lukathera,
who's the gat and the Vox. They've got a lot
of longtime session players. They've got a long time a
lot of guys who played with them since the mid eighties.
(01:49):
So yeah, yeah, it's not the original originals, but you know,
I think it's the band that's been the most consistent
over the years. Let's have a listen. You all know
this song, so that so they're more than just this
next song, but we all have those next stop dancing.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
It's a great, great All three songs are great.
Speaker 3 (02:16):
Love And here's Christopher Cross.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
It's your rock because that's what you call it. I
like him.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
Yeah, Yeah, it's nice. His nice, nice buttery shard in
the background.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
I'd like to see him like I'd like to go down.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
I think it's a great concept. Again, that's another one
that yourself and myself and and Ethan can all go
to it up there in the mosh.
Speaker 2 (02:41):
But so will there be a most people will be seated.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
Probably be seated, won't tease. They do a lot of
seed gigs, don't they.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
I don't want to be seated, but seated, I don't
want to go to I can stand.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
We'll talk at the promoter and if me and you
and Ethan could be up the front, I.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
Don't want to be out the front. I'll be at
the back. But I just don't want to sit in
a seat like like I'm going to church going.
Speaker 3 (02:58):
What are you going to do down the back?
Speaker 2 (02:59):
Those people.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Dangerous? I don't know what's going on in those corners
this week, Christopher Crash.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
That should be good.
Speaker 3 (03:07):
So April twenty fourth, get your tickets only through ticket Master.
I always say it, don't go do those dodgy sites.
Go to ticket Master if you want to go to
that that gig. It's been on sale since yesterday, so
Paul McCartney's been throwing out a few massives this week.
Let's have a listen to Mecca.
Speaker 4 (03:22):
They write a beautiful song and they don't own it
and they don't have anything to do with it, and
anyone who wants can just rip it off. The truth is,
the money's going somewhere, you know, when it gets on
the streaming platforms, somebody's getting it, and it should be
the person who created it. It shouldn't just be some
tech giant somewhere. Somebody's getting paid, so why shouldn't it
(03:43):
be the guy who sat down and wrote yesterday.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
So maca is basically saying that, you know, these big
tech giants are going and they're stripping out all the songs.
They're listening to all these songs on Spotify and Apple Music.
They're getting copies of it, and then they're recreating through AI, creating.
Speaker 2 (03:59):
Music that's very similar.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Yeah, very similar. And I can do it myself in
my studio just writing's doorn it.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
You've done it before. I've done it before.
Speaker 3 (04:07):
So it's you.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
Notice the way he says song, He says song, Yeah,
he did its song. Yes, it's a song, it's a song.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
Paul Surple, Yeah, that's the Liverpool accent, isn't it. Yeah.
So yeah, So it's a little bit of irony because
McCartney and Ringo used AI to recreate that song that
what was it called now and then now and then
last year or end of twenty twenty three, that Beatles
song where they used John Lennon. Now they used We're
(04:34):
just having this little argument with the producer, not regenitive AI,
so not learned it was machine AI where they stripped
out the vocals and cleaned it up a bit like
how Peter Jackson used it for the for the TV
series on the on the Beatles on the Amazon series.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Have you seen it?
Speaker 3 (04:52):
Yeah, it's spectacular. Even if you don't like the Beatles.
That is just a musk must watch Amazon. So I'm
not a huge fan of AI. It's killing. It's Disney
Plus not Amazon. Sorry, it's I'm not a huge fan
of AOI. I do think it kills creativity, and you know,
I think.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I think, yeah, I want someone to get paid.
Speaker 3 (05:14):
I want to be paid. And so I had a
search around this morning and we listened to one of
these guys last year, the AI Beatles, which is solely
just learning from the Beatles. Let's have listened to an
AI Beatles song.
Speaker 4 (05:25):
I'm not parmer cudly, not even partly. I've been created
by an a John lend Us not just incredible, won't and.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
I'm not George Harris.
Speaker 4 (05:45):
Never.
Speaker 3 (05:48):
One oo.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
Best, but.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
We ivy beat incredible. Yeah, it's incredible.
Speaker 3 (06:03):
And so if you want to hear more from the
AI Beatles, head into YouTube will find more of it.
It's some quite fun stuff. But that's showing how you
know that these machines are learning.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
They could do a whole album.
Speaker 3 (06:12):
They could do a whole album. There's a great one
for Aisis, which is Oasis. Yeah, of course, yeah, same thing.
So they got me thinking, you know, why do we
need AI when there's bands out there that who love
the Beatles and have recreated the Beatles sound. Maybe not
by choice, but but maybe. But so I started hooning
(06:32):
around the internet and I found a few here. So
let's have a listen to this next lot that's kind
of in the vein of Sergeant Peppers and the White
Albums with dashings of Revolver. Here's Apples in Stereo and
a band called dtor Dog.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
This is very Beatles to me.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
This is apples hysteria, the whole psychedelic era. And here
comes Doctor Dogs. I think half of us even with
the strawberries, so lucy in the sky with diamond and
(07:16):
here's this is called Dr Dog from twenty ten. Yeah
is it a big song?
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Yeah, we're big of tiptop. See that that's why the
kids love the Beatles. She has the story. Oh I
just I told the story to the listeners. A couple
of weeks ago. I was walking down the street and
these four kids that were first year high school, very small,
young kids, walking down the road singing a Beatles song.
I just couldn't get it. Yeah, come on, man, I
didn't you know walk down the road when I was
(07:49):
a kid humming a Beethoven song.
Speaker 3 (07:55):
Hey, here's another one is his one? What we all know?
Let's play. Here's another couple of Beatles sound alike. Crowded house.
Juvie had to Neil and says, this is an O
to the Beatles when he wrote this stunning, So we'll
(08:22):
just let that roll. So that got me thinking, you know,
we don't need AI. And luckily we don't need AI
to listen to a new Beatles song because Ringo on
the tenth of January, only three weeks ago, released a
country album called look Up. And it's following in the
footsteps of Bergardis like post Malone and Beyonce, who incidentally
won and won with Album of the Year last with
(08:44):
Cowboy Krter. So they're all doing this, these country songs,
country albums. Ringo's got a new country album. I listened
on the way to work this morning.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
It's great.
Speaker 3 (08:55):
It's not not my particular cup of tea, but it's Ringo.
It's playing drums and singing.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
From me to know, from me too.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
Yeah, I think it's a no from me as well.
Speaker 2 (09:08):
Yeah, leave it to beyon buddy.
Speaker 3 (09:10):
Yeah, and thirty year fifty six years ago. Last week
that the Beatles played their final concert up on the rooftop,
up on the rooftop Apple for the let It B sessions.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
And you want to push Porter of Rocks, Yeah, Pori
of Rocks Saturday, May third.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
We talked about it last time. It's a cracker. It's
going to be a banger. The big concert we should
support in Wellington, go Pori.
Speaker 2 (09:30):
Ro Rocks and Groover Martin.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
About our seventh of March TSB. That's for all the
goods yep.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
All right, Thanks James Erwin. Always great to talk music.
Speaker 1 (09:40):
For more from Wellington Mornings with Nick Mills, listen live
to news talks It'd Be Wellington from nine am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio
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