Alien Weaponry: Thrash Metal Meets Indigenous Māori Influence
Hailing from the beautiful country of New Zealand, heavy metal band, Alien Weaponry, will be making a rare performance in Missoula when they open for Black Label Society at the Wilma on Sunday, September 15, 2019.
Several of their songs are written in Māori, an Eastern Polynesian language spoken by the Māori people, the indigenous population of New Zealand. The trio consists of brothers, Lewis and Henry de Jong, and Ethan Trembath — each of whom have Māori ancestry. Their first three singles “Urutaa,” “Raupatu,” and “Rū Ana te Whenua,” all have lyrics that refer to actual historical events surrounding the Māori.
Their debut full-length studio album Tū came out in 2018. Loudwire noted that the popular song, “Kai Tangata” refers to Tūmatauenga — the Māori god of war, from which the album’s name is derived. Neil Arnold, of Metal Forces Magazine, gave Tū an impressive 9/10 stars and wrote that Alien Weaponry is “one of the best bands I’ve heard for a very long time.”
The band has cited Metallica, Pantera, and Rage Against the Machine as influences. Kerrang described them as “nü-metal tinged thrash.”
If you’re heading to the Missoula show for Black Label Society, make sure to show up in time to see Alien Weaponry’s explosive live performance. Details here.
