Alien Weaponry
Alien Weaponry is a New Zealand metal band from Waipu, formed in Auckland in 2010. The band consists of drummer Henry de Jong, guitarist Lewis de Jong and, since August 2020, bass player Tūranga Morgan-Edmonds. All three members have Māori ancestry and a number of their songs are written and performed in the Māori language.
Alien Weaponry was formed in Auckland in 2010 by two brothers, drummer Henry Te Reiwhati de Jong and guitarist/singer Lewis Raharuhi de Jong, who were only 10 and 8 years old respectively. Their mother and their paternal grandfather are of Dutch descent, and their father and paternal grandmother are Māori. Their tribal connections are with Ngāti Pikiao and Ngāti Raukawa. The brothers named the band Alien Weaponry after watching the film District 9. After moving to the small town of Waipu they were joined by bassist Ethan Trembath in April 2013. Trembath replaced Wyatt Channings who had briefly played bass for the band the previous year. The band were managed by the de Jong boys' father Niel, himself an experienced rock musician and audio engineer who also filled the role of front of house sound engineer when they toured. Their mother Jette is also involved with the band, tour managing and acting as the band's publicist.
On 19 August 2020, it was announced that bassist Ethan Trembath would be departing the band and he would be replaced with high school friend Tūranga Morgan-Edmonds, also Māori, of Ngāti Rārua, Ngāti Wai and Ngāti Hine.
Alien Weaponry released their debut EP The Zego Sessions in August 2014 and began work on their debut album at Neil Finn's Roundhead Studios in Auckland with record producer Tom Larkin in September 2015. In November 2016 Alien Weaponry released their single and music video for "Urutaa" as the first offering from their upcoming album. February 2017 saw the release of their second single "Raupatu" and in July 2017 they released "Rū Ana Te Whenua".
In January 2018 the band went back into the studio with producer Hammerhead to continue work on their first full length album which included some of their biggest hits, Kai Tangata and Holding My Breath. On 1 June 2018, their album Tū was released, debuting at number five on the New Zealand album charts, the top New Zealand album of the week.
On 17 September 2021, they released their sophomore album Tangaroa. also produced and mixed by Hammerhead at their studio in Waipu New Zealand.
Alien Weaponry's debut single, "Urutaa", is sung partly in the Māori language and was originally about a clash of ideas and expectations leading to stress and unhappiness, which was likened to a plague or urutaa (an outbreak). The Māori lyrics refer to events that occurred in the Bay of Islands in the 1800s and what followed after a pocket watch was inadvertently dropped into the harbour. The misunderstanding culminated in the burning of the Boyd, a grim set of events in New Zealand's colonial history. The band says, "This incident is used in this song as a metaphor for the misunderstandings that continue to plague us today – between cultures, generations and individuals who torment each other through lack of understanding."[citation needed]
The band's second single "Raupatu" (released in February 2017) is about land confiscations by the New Zealand colonial government in the 1800s and the legislation of 1863 that allowed it to happen. Their third single, "Rū Ana te Whenua" (the trembling earth), released 1 July 2017, refers to the mighty battle at Pukehinahina/Gate Pa in 1864 where the brothers' great great great grandfather, Te Ahoaho, lost his life. The band's musical style has been described as "nü-metal tinged thrash" and "thrashing groove-metal", with the band naming Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, and Lamb of God as inspirations. They are also often likened to a Māori version of Roots-era Sepultura, both for their musical style and infusion of indigenous culture into their music.
Guitarist Lewis de Jong cites Stevie Ray Vaughan, Lamb of God, System of a Down, Meshuggah, and Polyphia as influences.
Alien Weaponry was formed in Auckland in 2010 by two brothers, drummer Henry Te Reiwhati de Jong and guitarist/singer Lewis Raharuhi de Jong, who were only 10 and 8 years old respectively. Their mother and their paternal grandfather are of Dutch descent, and their father and paternal grandmother are Māori. Their tribal connections are with Ngāti Pikiao and Ngāti Raukawa. The brothers named the band Alien Weaponry after watching the film District 9. After moving to the small town of Waipu they were joined by bassist Ethan Trembath in April 2013. Trembath replaced Wyatt Channings who had briefly played bass for the band the previous year. The band were managed by the de Jong boys' father Niel, himself an experienced rock musician and audio engineer who also filled the role of front of house sound engineer when they toured. Their mother Jette is also involved with the band, tour managing and acting as the band's publicist.
On 19 August 2020, it was announced that bassist Ethan Trembath would be departing the band and he would be replaced with high school friend Tūranga Morgan-Edmonds, also Māori, of Ngāti Rārua, Ngāti Wai and Ngāti Hine.
Alien Weaponry released their debut EP The Zego Sessions in August 2014 and began work on their debut album at Neil Finn's Roundhead Studios in Auckland with record producer Tom Larkin in September 2015. In November 2016 Alien Weaponry released their single and music video for "Urutaa" as the first offering from their upcoming album. February 2017 saw the release of their second single "Raupatu" and in July 2017 they released "Rū Ana Te Whenua".
In January 2018 the band went back into the studio with producer Hammerhead to continue work on their first full length album which included some of their biggest hits, Kai Tangata and Holding My Breath. On 1 June 2018, their album Tū was released, debuting at number five on the New Zealand album charts, the top New Zealand album of the week.
On 17 September 2021, they released their sophomore album Tangaroa. also produced and mixed by Hammerhead at their studio in Waipu New Zealand.
Alien Weaponry's debut single, "Urutaa", is sung partly in the Māori language and was originally about a clash of ideas and expectations leading to stress and unhappiness, which was likened to a plague or urutaa (an outbreak). The Māori lyrics refer to events that occurred in the Bay of Islands in the 1800s and what followed after a pocket watch was inadvertently dropped into the harbour. The misunderstanding culminated in the burning of the Boyd, a grim set of events in New Zealand's colonial history. The band says, "This incident is used in this song as a metaphor for the misunderstandings that continue to plague us today – between cultures, generations and individuals who torment each other through lack of understanding."[citation needed]
The band's second single "Raupatu" (released in February 2017) is about land confiscations by the New Zealand colonial government in the 1800s and the legislation of 1863 that allowed it to happen. Their third single, "Rū Ana te Whenua" (the trembling earth), released 1 July 2017, refers to the mighty battle at Pukehinahina/Gate Pa in 1864 where the brothers' great great great grandfather, Te Ahoaho, lost his life. The band's musical style has been described as "nü-metal tinged thrash" and "thrashing groove-metal", with the band naming Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, and Lamb of God as inspirations. They are also often likened to a Māori version of Roots-era Sepultura, both for their musical style and infusion of indigenous culture into their music.
Guitarist Lewis de Jong cites Stevie Ray Vaughan, Lamb of God, System of a Down, Meshuggah, and Polyphia as influences.
