A tribute to my late stepfather Barry Ngawhika. An incredible gentle, wise, sweet man.
This song is filled with elements that reference our shared experiences.
All the percussion in the song is made from treated recordings of Caramello wrappers crunching. When he first began dating my mother, Barry would bring Caramello bars for my sister and I, until we began to expect them every time and Mum made him stop. 
The birds which begin the song were recorded at his home in Pukehina and the waves which end the song were recorded at Pukehina Beach, a place we both loved.
Sometimes on family drives he would play Freddy Fender tapes in the car and I remember loving one song in particular: "Before The Next Teardrop Falls". As a tribute to Barry I borrowed a few notes from that song and used them in my own. 
You may notice a change in mood halfway through the song, that's very much intentional. I wanted the song to celebrate our relationship and what he meant to me, but also to express my loss and grief that he is no longer with us.  
What you may not notice is the sound of a plane overhead. Originally simply background noise when I was recording the birds for the song, the sound came to symbolize Barry's passing itself - a quiet departure as it were. So it became important to keep that sound, and at that point in the song specifically.
Piano by Micah Wolfe / Stray Theories

Lunar Tunes

Tuakanakore

Short live set from experimental electronica night in Dunedin, New Zealand

Live at dadaTempo 2025

New ambient piece, played live at Solstice party. This is an edited-down 25 minute version - the 45-minute version I played at Solstice was apparently a little self-indulgent for some people's taste...

Night Ambience

Eggs For Tea (The Man Who Loved Eggs Too Much mix)

Eggs For Tea (Sharkweek Remix)

Recorded live at the Voyage party in Canterbury New Zealand, November 27 2010

Moonrise Over Kerala (live at Voyage)

Robospacejesus (live at Voyage)

Dark Matter (live at Voyage)

Ableton jam session of my nsu remix, which also appears on Archeology Volume One:
nsuonline.bandcamp.com/album/archeology-volume-one

Neutron Star MMX (Late-Night Blob live mix)

Sharkweek is the brainchild and solo-project of Dunedin, New Zealand, artist and musician Peter Lewis.

Debut album "The Hammerhead Nebula" was released in 2006 to positive praise:

"Layers of keyboard wash form convection currents through which primitive drum machine rhythms clatter. Spoken vocal snippets introduce galaxial and other themes while a prowling keyboard bass glues things together. Sharkweek pulls back from the brink of chaotic overload to simmer with a repressed mania and the effect is serotonin re-uptake inhibition."

In 2008 the second album, "Egyptian Lions" was released, offering similarly lush soundscapes punctuated with surreal samples, playful melodies and manipulated found sounds. The musical themes drift between ambient, pop and dub. The songs are sometimes dreamy, sometimes deliriously playful. There's obvious evidence of Lewis' musical growth, yet it's also familiar enough to be unmistakeably 'Sharkweek'.

"A mystical journey through lands afar ... trippy soundscapes, psychedelic ambient dub, futuristic space adventures and glitchy electro pop .. an ear orgasm of sounds that twist and turn evolving into a collection of songs that is intriguing, beautiful and a dose of epic electro trippiness. It has an otherworldly feel, yet is warm and inviting, like friendly aliens .. it's a trek into the deep dark unknown."

"Sharkweek creates worlds within which any number of stories may be told. Listening to the tracks on this album will educate the senses and reorient one’s views to the vast possibilities the ambient mode can bring."

2010 sees the release of the new remix collection "Gimme Gimme Shark Treatment". Ranging from progressive trance to ambient soundscapes both light and dark, from psychedelic lounge music to weirdo funky hip hop, this album has something for everyone.

"Sharkweek's first official collection of remixes for other artists will satisfy and surprise at the same time, With this collection, he takes on 7 diverse original pieces, dissects them, and puts them back together but not before applying his very own signature "Shark treatment" touch. There's hints of the familiar ambient and psychedelic sound-scapes in "Part Of Me" and "Far From Comfort" while on the other end of the scale, "Wii Break" is a serious full-on dance-floor assault. "Harmonia" is one of the standouts here - this gradually ascending journey of over 11 minutes starts out as deep, moody and intoxicated, but by the end is nothing but uplifting. Highly recommended listening from one of Dunedin's finest."

Spheres of inspiration include outer space, all manner of pop culture, and infomercials. Musical influence comes from varied sources such as The Orb, Future Sound Of London, Orbital, Boards Of Canada, Lemon Jelly, Astralasia, Banco de Gaia, and New Zealand luminaries like Module and Pitch Black. This eclectic mix, coupled with some stellar guest appearances from other musicians makes for an evocative and sometimes surprising listening experience.

SharkweekNZ

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