Iya Terra
Moses
June 17, 2022
Iya Terra is a Los Angeles, California-based American roots reggae and dub band. Iya Terra was founded in 2012 by vocalist and lead guitarist Nathan Feinstein and long-time friend and bassist Nick Loporchio, who chose the name “Higher Ground” as the band’s name. Both began their musical careers in the summer of 2013 while jamming together on the UCLA campus. In the spring of 2014, the duo expanded their band by adding Luis Tovar on the keyboard and Danny Monar on percussion. The band recorded its first raw album with the new members, a 6-song self-titled EP that was released in the spring of 2014.
Albums
Full Circle
They released their first studio album, Full Circle, on April 14, 2015, after adding Blake Bartz on drums in the fall of 2014 and Nick Sefakis on rhythm guitar in March 2015. J.P. Hesser, an award-winning producer, engineered the 10-song album, which was recorded at Castaway 7 Studios in Ventura, California. It debuted at #4 on iTunes’ Reggae Charts and #12 on Billboard’s Top Reggae Albums.
Sacred Sound
Sacred Sound, Iya Terra’s second album, was released on March 17, 2017, and included numerous reggae artists, including Stick Figure and E.N Young from Tribal Seeds. On April 8, 2017, the album reached #1 on the Billboard reggae albums chart.
Coming to Light
Despite the departure of Blake Bartz, Tanner Arebalo joined Iya Terra on drums in 2019. Coming To Light, the band’s third album, debuted at #2 on the Billboard Top Reggae Albums chart on July 26, 2019. The Movement, Zion Thompson of The Green, and Jesse Royal were among the reggae performers who performed. Iya Terra Live @ Sugarshack Sessions, a live acoustic CD, was published on May 29, 2020. With their track, “Monterey Sunshine,” produced by Collie Buddz and mixed by Stick Figure’s touring guitarist, producer Johnny Cosmic, Iya Terra was featured as one of several reggae bands on Collie Buddz riddim album, Cali Roots Riddim 2020.
Iya Terra was featured on The House That Bradley Built, a charity compilation commemorating Sublime’s lead singer Bradley Nowell and assisting musicians with substance abuse, in September 2020. On the Deluxe Edition, they covered Sublime’s “Mary.”
On July 30, 2021, Ineffable Records published the band’s fourth album, Ease & Grace. On the Billboard Reggae Albums chart, the album reached #11, just missing the Top 10. According to sales tracker MRC Data, Ease & Grace debuted at #1 on the current chart after selling 372 copies in its first week in the United States (formerly Nielsen SoundScan). The album sold 974 units in total, including pure album sales and stream equivalent albums. In the United States, there were 743,160 audio streams and 5,083 video streams.
Tours
Iya Terra’s maiden tour, which was planned by Nathan and Nick L. without any further management, was a success in August 2014. With Ital Vibes, it was dubbed “The Link Up Tour.” After The Link Up Tour, the band signed with Rude Entertainment Productions and went back on the road, performing with Arise Roots, Barrington Levy, Black Uhuru, Collie Buddz, Easy Star All Stars, The Expanders, The Green, House of Shem, John Brown’s Body, Julian Marley, Ky-Mani Marley, Marlon Asher, Matisyahu, Nahko, Pepper, Stick Figure, Yellowman, and others.
In August 2015, the band made their debut at the 31st annual Reggae on the River festival in Humboldt County, California. Then there were gigs with Tomorrow’s Bad Seeds and Hawaii’s own Ina Vision to follow. Iya Terra will open for Stick Figure on their Once In A Lifetime summer tour in 2020. That same year, they were also set to support Iration on their Heatseekers spring tour. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, both tours were canceled. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the group instead performed as part of the “Cali Roots: Can’t Stop The Music An Online Music Festival Experience,” despite having initially announced their participation in the 2020 California Roots Music and Arts Festival before it was canceled.
Awards
Iya Terra came in third place for the fans’ pick “2021 Album of the Year” by Surf Roots TV & Radio on December 26, 2021, with the third highest votes from Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter users for their album Ease & Grace. This is the band’s first nomination with Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and Roku’s reggae rock streaming TV channel.
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