The Upbeats Celebrate Aotearoa With The Release Of Brand New EP, ‘No Sleep ‘Til New Zealand’
Fresh from destroying festival dancefloors alongside Shapeshifter, Tiki Taane and Sunshine Sound System on their Summer tour, The Upbeats deliver the brand new four-track EP No Sleep ‘Til New Zealand, the second chapter in The Upbeats No Sleep ‘Til… series.
The continuation of an EP idea which began with Jeremy Glenn and Dylan Jones’ travels to Japan and Icelend in 2018, No Sleep ‘Til New Zealand brings the global collaboration concept back home for round two. This time it’s all about shining a spotlight on our own local talent and unique landscapes and culture.
The EP opens with the emotive summer anthem Uncharted featuring the vocals of P.Digsss. Sitting alongside is the grimy second single release from The Upbeats, Tiki Taane and Workforce, CTK4000 which made it’s debut through the world’s number one drum and bass media entity, Drum & Bass Arena early January. Further collabs with Shapeshifter on the atmospheric Nautilus and the serene Aotea round out the tight collection of aurally contrasting tunes.
“No Sleep Til New Zealand was recorded on Great Barrier Island (Aotea), on location in Bay of Plenty and in Tiki’s studio. Without the constraints of the usual sterile recording surrounds, the opportunity to take a far more organic and inquisitive approach to recording has lead us to a more spontaneous and immersive sound – complete with cicadas.”
For an in-depth look at the recording process, Part 1 of the No Sleep Til New Zealand mini documentary, filmed and directed by Mark Russell, is on The Upbeats YouTube channel now. Part 2 will release on EP release day, Friday 17 January.
The summer tour with Shapeshifter may be over, but The Upbeats continue to take their show on the road, and defy international date lines, with a solid series of live dates scheduled for the coming months:
Sat 18 Jan Frank Bar, Whanganui
Sat 25 Jan Back Bar, Hamilton
Sat 8 Feb Dimension, Dargaville
Fri 14 Feb Cyber @ Volume Club, Kiev, Ukraine
Sat 15th Feb Bladerunnerz @ Akvarium Klub, Budapest, Hungary
Sat 15th Feb Welcome to the Jungle, Kaiwaka
Thurs 20 Feb Catacombs, Dunedin
Fri 21 Feb Le Zoo, Geneva, Switzerland
Sat 22 Feb Electric Avenue, Christchurch
Sat 22 Feb Form Space, Cluj Napoca, Romania
Sat 7 March Winter Festival 2020, Granada, Spain
Fri 20 March Beyond Wonderland, California, USA
No Sleep Til New Zealand releases Friday 17 January and will be available for stream and purchase through all digital outlets.
The Upbeats:
Shapeshifter:
