By Dan Satherley
Real Groove has announced its October issue, out this Monday, will be its last.
After 18 years on newsstands, the monthly Kiwi music magazine is merging with its little sister, weekly freebie The Groove Guide.
"It's a response to the demand that's out there – or rather, the lack of demand for physical publications," says editor Sam Wicks.
The Groove Guide will relaunch in November, in a larger format, that Mr Wicks says will bring the best of both magazines on a weekly basis – Real Groove's content and writers, and The Groove Guide's timeliness and price.
"We're just gonna tweak The Groove Guide to include a lot of the Real Groove content and contributors," he says, changing its focus from being just a gig guide, to "sorting the wheat from the chaff".
Just how much Real Groove DNA will seep into The Groove Guide though remains to be seen.
"It's really hard to get our head around at the moment," says Mr Wicks.
Real Groove has invested a lot into its online presence in the past couple of years, and Mr Wicks says this will continue.
Both magazines are published out of the Real Groovy record store in Auckland.
The magazine's 196th and final issue, featuring Leonard Cohen on the cover, is out Monday.
3 News
source: newshub archive
