Back in NYC, Derevlany succumbs to the wicked charms of Messieurs Johnny Walker and Jack Daniel's.  Moritz, meanwhile, sets about restaffing the UTUP rhythm section.  After a prolonged search, he locates drummer Stacy Morze -- a practicing Wiccan witch whose resume includes a stint as Lambchop in the touring company of Fame. Credentials secure, Morze joins the band.  Filling out the bottom end, classically-trained flautist Martin Kihn sits-in on bass.

Once again, UTUP is riding at the crest of the nation's renewed interest in all things ukulele.  During a label showcase at Brownies in Manhattan's East Village district, Derevlany, now clean and sober, delivers a blistering slide ukulele performance on a cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd's classic "Freebird" during which Moritz emotionally whispers into microphone "This one's for Robin and Gideon, wherever you are."

The next few months bring an onslaught of national media coverage including profiles in New York magazine and East Coast Rocker.  It is a comment in the influential Central New Jersey Home News, however, that once again throws a monkey wrench into the mouth of success. Responding to a question about the band's purported desire to break free of restrictive commercial stereotypes, Moritz tells the reporter, "We are a dorky band with aspirations of being a bloated classic rock band." Derevlany, ever the ukulele traditionalist, is markedly upset by the statement and returns to the nurturing comfort of the bottle.  In the aftermath of the article, a festering creative feud develops between the two UTUP founders.  One side for the Pursuit of commerce, the other for the purity of a craft.  The stage is set for an explosive on-stage confrontation in the not so distant future.