If we're to believe what we see on television at the moment, New Zealand is obsessed by the twin lures of music and food.

Since this isn't a cooking column I guess it's okay to ‘fess up and admit that here at the Watusi Country Club we're glued to 'that hopeless little screen” (as Leonard Cohen put it, obviously before the days of the ubiquitous 55 inch plasma beast) every time Masterchef or My Kitchen Rules comes on. Which is pretty frequently.
And I do wonder whether chefs watch – or avoid – these shows with the same aversion I feel for their musical equivalents. Which also pop up with alarming frequency. We currently seem to have a deluge of X-Factors, Idols, Got Talents and Voices, all assaulting us simultaneously in different guises from different countries.
What we have to keep reminding ourselves about these televisual talent quests is that they're not about music – they're about television. But who am I to complain? It just means joining an increasingly long line of moaners. If you doubt my words just throw 'slams TV talent shows” into Google and see what comes up.

Popular order
Here's a brief sample, in order of popularity: 'Ne-Yo Slams TV Talent Shows”; 'Sir Elton John Slams TV Talent Shows”; 'Dave Grohl Slams TV Talent Shows”; 'AC/DC Singer Slams Reality TV Talent Shows”; 'Will Young Slams TV Talent Shows”; 'Paul Weller Slams TV Talent Shows”; 'Harry Potter Actress Julie Waters Slams TV Talent Shows”; and so it goes on...
(Perhaps you're wondering who Will Young is, amongst all those famous names? He won an 'Idol” a few years back. No wonder you haven't heard of him.)
It'll be interesting to see what controversies the latest round of competitions here in New Zealand throw up. We've already had a teenage duo, The Steamrollers, kicked off Got Talent for 'taking the mickey” out of the whole exercise. More power to them I say. Sadly Mount Maunganui's own Stan Walker, who himself sprang to fame on a talent show, told them to 'walk off now” and labelled their indifferent attitude as 'shocking”. But fair enough. After all, the programme makers and producers and creators plan to make serious money from the contestants. Taking the mickey disrupts the cash flow.
OK. Enough venting. I never watch those things anyway. (But can anyone beat Aaron on Masterchef? – now that's really important stuff.)
Back in the real world I was chatting with the good folk of Bonjour Swing, who seem to be keeping busy with their usual wide range of projects.
Singer/songwriter/guitarist Marion Arts is over at the Mount this Sunday afternoon playing at Brazilian restaurant/bar Armazem with Brazilian percussionist Carlos Souza. They play from 4.00 till 7.00pm, a mixture of original songs and instrumentals, including lots of groove-based stuff, and Brazilian and French songs. Although this is the second Sunday of the month you can more regularly catch them there every first Sunday.

In full swing
And, talking of Marion, her guitar and ukulele teaching season is entering full swing. Her Monday morning group for slightly-beyond-beginners is starting again on Monday (13 May) and currently has vacancies - see her website www.marionarts.co.nz.
Meanwhile, Marion's multi-instrumentalist Bonjour Swing partner Robbie Laven has also been hanging at Armazem. He plays most Thursday nights there from 10.00 to 1.00am with Brazilian guitarist/singer/songwriter Atilla Cardoso though, in typically fluid Brazilian style, it's not necessarily every Thursday. Their repertoire includes Samba rock and Forro, R ‘n' B à la John Mayer, Samba reggae and original funky material. Robbie can play most instruments known to humans but for this gig he sticks to lap-steel guitar, percussion, flute, tenor sax and fiddle. He's obviously taking it easy.

In breaking news
And finally, in breaking news of the celebrity variety, newly married and absolutely bona fide New Zealand citizen Richard O'Brien is to be honoured by Waikato University next week when he will be awarded a Master of Arts for his contribution to the arts and commitment to the Waikato arts community.
When asked for reaction on his upcoming elevation to the hallowed title of Richard O'Brien MA, the Rocky One mused: 'With my school record, becoming an honorary academic makes me aware of how standards have fallen.”