Auckland, NZ · alt-pop · funk-pop

Balu Brigada

3 upcoming festivals ↓

Kiwi brothers making slinky, falsetto-led alt-funk — Auckland groove-pop polished to a late-night sheen, with basslines that do most of the flirting.

Balu Brigada started in Auckland in 2016 as a four-piece, originally named Baloo after the Jungle Book character before a rename to avoid trouble with Disney. Henry Beasley sang and played guitar, his older brother Charles played drums, younger brother Pierre took keyboards, and childhood friend Guy Harrison played bass, with early singles "Weekend" and "Ricochet."

Charles and Harrison left over the following years, leaving Henry and Pierre to become dual vocalists and multi-instrumentalists who write and produce the band's material themselves. In 2022 the pair signed jointly to Warner Music Australia and Atlantic Records, relocated from Auckland to New York City, and released their debut EP, I Should Be Home, that September.

A second EP, Find a Way, followed in 2023, built around the singles "Designer" and "2Good," and pulled the band back to New Zealand and Australia to tour. A compilation, Balu, appeared in 2024, and the debut album Portal was released in August 2025.

The band expanded to a four-piece again on the road, adding Harper Finn on keys and Jacob Stockman on drums to support Twenty One Pilots across the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America and Europe. Balu Brigada then headlined its own small-venue Can't Be Your Dog Tour in early 2025 and made its television debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, performing "So Cold."

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alt-popfunk-pop