Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 19, Number 12, 1 December 2002 — Nä Palapalai debut a fresh take on old-style sound [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Nä Palapalai debut a fresh take on old-style sound

By Manu Boyd t's like Watertown all over again. The former

I Waikiki establishment was , J JL home to such

falsetto and "eha- 1 lang-a-lang" greats as I Kekua Fernandez3

Darrell Lupenui, Sam ■ Bernard and Leilani 1 Sharpe f/Iendez. Their I sound was firmly rooted

īn Hawauan tradition3 palatable to young and H old3 perfect for hula with just the right amount of I kolohe. 1 Enter the new generation. 1 Keao Costa3 Kuana Torres and Kēhau Tamure are kieking it up a notch with falsetto

flair like nothing heard in yeare3 if not decades. Regularly performing at

Rainbow's next to Kapālama Stream in Kalihi, the trio is attracting throngs ofmusic I lovers and hula dancere 1 with their exceptional fare. With the help of n Producer Sean Pimental » and Koops 2 Entertainm ent, Nā

Palapalai is now on compact disk with their [ debut " Makani I 'Olu'olu a collection a of a dozen tunes, eaeh I one a hit in its own 3 right. |cīi "Pili Kāpekepeke" a new composition by

award-winning composer Julian

Keikilani Ako, is a gem. Thehulawas performed a eouple of years ago at VIerrie Vlonarch by Costa's unele, Kumu Hula Holoua Stender and Ka Pā Hula o Kamehameha. Expertly composed and performed, " Pili Kāpekepeke" punctuates the sometimes uncertain3 hekle relationships using images of 'i'iwi birds, lehua blossoms3 fishermen and a young beauty to illustrate the main point: be careful who you give your heart to or you might end up in a hekle relationship. The title track3 " Makani 'Olu 'olu ," an original by Tamure, has a catchy melody with words that describe a refreshing breeze and the sweet fragrance of tuberose. "/Vo PueokahP affirms yet again, that young people ean make good, oldstyle music. "A/ai'a Lau Pala " is a throvv back from a bygone era — a lesson in classic poetic composition employing kaona, sometimes graphie, sometimes subtle. See NĀ PALAPALAI on page 18

Mf.ī.f. 'Ah.ana

[?]

NA PALAE4LAI from page 11 The "wee hah" award~winner has got to be " Lepe 'Uia 'ula the Waimea cowboy favorite that speaks of the rooster's red comb, corn~eating turkeys, lassos and branding. With Costa's pulsating bass, Tamure's awesome double and triple 'ukulele strum and robust lead vocals by Torres, "Lepe 'Ula'ula" gotimmediate air play on loeal radio. "Pua Be Still," Bill Lincoln's tribute to his NorthKohala home, is snappy with moving piano aeeompaniment by Aaron Sala, absolutely perfect forhula. When we think of winners in the island music scene, we usually think of the annual Nā Hōkū Hanohano awards where recording artists vie for trophies, recogni~ tionand increased visibility. ButNā Palapalai is already a winner, illustrating by way of "VIakani 'Olu'olu" that Hawaiian music is in goodhands. This group is young, and should be around for many y ears. ■