After years of putting in work, Ease Up has finally announced that they will be releasing their debut full-length album! The self-titled album is due out on Tuesday, March 4th and will be supported with an album release party and the month-long Buds & Brews Tour.
With the 2010 release of their first EP, it is safe to say that this album has been at least 4 years in the making. Ease Up has gone through many changes throughout the years, but one thing has always stayed the same; their hard work ethic. The guys from Southern California have made a name for themselves by playing show after show, up and down the Cali coast. They were also featured on last year’s Unity Festival, select dates for the Vans Warped Tour and the official Cali Roots 2013 After Party.
The band originally announced plans to release their first full-length in the early months of last year. Since 
then, they have released multiple singles while pushing back the album’s release date only to make sure they were putting out Ease Up’s best material possible.
According to lead singer, Rico Estrada, “We wanted to create an album for our fans that they could play back-to-back, on repeat, and be stoked on. We’re all diggin’ how the album turned out, and we’re even more excited to share it with our fans and the world!”
Known for producing some of the biggest hits to come from the reggae-rock community, Lewis Richards of 17th Street Recording Studio has been the man behind the mixing and mastering of Ease Up’s music from the very beginning. The album features 4 digitally remastered tracks from their 2 previous EPs, 2010’s “If You Only Knew” and 2011’s “On The Fly.”
With guest appearances from Travi Bongo of Fortunate Youth, Tim Wu of Long Beach Dub Allstars, Matthew Liufau of Seedless, Jon Olazabal of the Dirty Heads, Moi of Tomorrow’s Bad Seeds and the multi-talented Micah Brown, you can expect Ease Up’s self-titled album to be well worth the wait.
Following the release of the album, Ease Up will be heading on a regional tour in order to promote the new music. The Buds & Brews Tour begins on March 8th, with an album release party at Winston’s in Ocean Beach and will take the band up the coast of California for the entire month of March.
On tour, Ease Up’s long time bassist, Nathan Ledgerwood, will be making the transition from bass to lead guitar. Founding member, Rico Estrada, will remain as lead vocals while the 2nd longest member of the band, Darryl Brown, will continue to bring the HIGH energy on the drums. Their most recent addition, Mark Nakamura, is a young bassist who is also no stranger to working hard for success.
When asked how he felt about joining Ease Up at such a pivotal point in the band’s career, Mark responded with, “It’s very surreal to be thrown into an opportunity like this so quickly but my previous insight has ‘trained’ me well for joining the Ease Up team at such a crucial point…After following the Pier scene for nearly 8 years and trying to creep on with my past band (Bellyfull), I’m so grateful to be working with a solid crew of humble, like-minded artists and I’m very anxious for the future of the band!”
Check the dates below to see if Ease Up will be bringing their surf-ska-punk-reggae style to your town while making their way up the west coast! Also make sure to purchase Ease Up’s highly anticipated debut album on March 4th!
You can Pre-order the self-titled album by clicking HERE!
Ease Up – Ease Up Track-list
1.My Number One
2.Undercover Lover
3.Liquor Store
4.UCSB
5.Play All Day
6.Now And Then
7.Another Saturday Night
8.One Of Those Days
9.With You
10.If You Only Knew
11.Feelin’ Irie
Album Guest Appearances:
Travis Bongo (Fortunate Youth) – “Play All Day & Now And Then” (percussion)
Tim Wu (Long Beach Dub All-Stars)- “If You Only Knew” (sax)
Jon Olazabal (Dirty Heads)- “One Of Those Days” (percussion)
Micah Brown- “One Of Those Days & With You” (backup vocals, guitar)
Matthew Liufau (Seedless)- “Feelin’ Irie” (vocals)
Ease Up Links:
Ease Up Facebook
Ease Up Reverb Nation
Article By: David Garcia
Listen: Ease Up – Feelin Irie (ft. Matt of Seedless)
Listen: Ease Up- Undercover Lover
Listen: Ease Up- One Of Those Days (ft. Moi of Tomorrows Bad Seeds & Jon of The Dirty Heads)