24 June 2022 - 0 Comments

Troy Kingi & The Upperclass present Pū Whenua Hautapu, Eka Mumura, the reworked Te Reo version of the award winning album Holy Colony Burning Acres.

New Video : Watch - Ka Tipu - HERE

This incredible reworking of the third instalment of Troy Kingi's aspirational 10|10|10 Series (ten albums in ten genres in ten years) will be released this Matariki on the 24th of June.

Holy Colony Burning Acres / Pū Whenua Hautapu, Eka Mumura is a record that focuses on major issues facing indigenous peoples all around the world – This form of politically charged reggae has barely been heard since the days of Herbs and their fight against nuclear power in the Pacific.

This is a hard hitting deep roots album offering reminiscence of such bands as Abyssinians, Congos and Upsetters, all underscored with empathic Marley-inspired political consciousness.

Holy Colony Burning Acres, won the prestigious 2020 Taite Music Prize, and a nomination for the coveted Silver Scroll Award for Mighty Invader. The album also earned Kingi two awards at the 2019 Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards – Best Roots Album, and for a second consecutive year, Best Māori Artist.

Holy Colony Burning Acres / Pū Whenua Hautapu, Eka Mumura, will be released June 24th on all Digital Platforms and on Vinyl Dec 2022

Digital Preorders HERE

Vinyl Preorders HERE

“Like many of us on the journey of re-connecting with whakapapa, I feel extremely fortunate to have been given numerous opportunities and invitations to grow into and embrace the fertile, holistic plenitudes of Te Aō Māori.

Troy's lyric citing hīnātore as a metaphor for hope in a hopeless situation (He Kākano), sparked my own reflections on the numerous ongoing challenges of iwi taketake (indigenous peoples) around the world, and the sustained campaigning against systemic hegemony. One korero tells us that Hīnātore (phosphorous light) was the first piercing glimmer out of the dark expanse of the nothingness (Te Kore), that our Ātua saw when Tāne separated Ranginui (Sky Father) from Papatūānuku (Earth Mother). It is generous, ngakau nui creations like this album that collectively pierce through the din for ALL of us to embrace and reflect. The entire album is imbued with a multi-layered, conscious celebration of all things Indigenous; from the joyous collage or linguistic chaos of Taku Taku (Tower of Babylon), to the tasty eudaemonic ‘dubs’; a homage to Lee Scratch Perry scattered throughout. This piercing glimmer and celebrated continuum of indigeneity could not be any more celebrated in this stunning yet hearty collection of songs and story telling. To weave all of the threads of sublime production, with the highest calibre of exquisite musicianship and lyrical inteniont of a taiaha is no easy feat. In this album (and all his others!) Troy delivers. E hara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa taki tini. In Te Ao Māori, individual actions and considerations are for the benefit of the many. And in this increasingly, fast-paced, dynamic world, our brother Troy makes time for us all. He invests his creative energies and aroha for us all. We mihi back to him and his beautiful whanau, and acknowledge their collective aroha embodied within this taonga, Pū Whenua Hautapu Eka Mumura. And because this album comes from the ngakau (heart), in my humble opinion, it soars high above any music industry metric. It pierces through the thick, multi-layered din of distraction and reminds us that through shared knowledge comes collective understanding, and from collective understanding comes kotahitanga / togetherness.”

Love you brother.

Associate Professor Warren Maxwell

(Ngāti Whare / Ngāi Te Riu / Ngāti Rākaipaaka / Ngāi Tūkairangi)

All Songs written by Troy Kingi (Pseudo Ego Troy Kingi and Rob Ruha)

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