DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Microscopic Syllables, (clockwise from bottom) Lahela Hekekia (percussion), Seph I (MC), Kelii Wong (drums), Alex Akamine (guitar, keyboards), Josh Conley (bass) and A2Z (a.k.a Mike Morgan, DJ).
Genre-bending hip-hoppers will
headline the latest 'Summer Jam'
'Original, live, hip-hop music." That's the modus operandi for one of the island's more inventive bands, Microscopic Syllables. Much like the name, each of the six Syllables brings in a flava of their own musical strengths to try and create an organic potpourri of earthy sounds.
The band will headline the latest volume of Summer Jam at the Wave Waikiki tonight (with another one coming up on Aug. 12), and will include SubZero of the Stone Groove Family and his Strong Arm Crew, R&B singer Kimo James with MC Trace and two westside rappers known as EyeSoulAted Mindz.
In concert
The Pussycat Lounge presents Summer Jam Vol. 2 with Microscopic Syllables, Sub's Strong Arm Crew, MC Trace & Kimo James and EyeSoulAted MindzWhere: Wave Waikiki, 1877 Kalakaua Ave.
When: 9 p.m. today
Admission: $5 cover before 10, $7 afterward. Must be 21 or over
Call: 941-0424
It's with shows like this that the Microscopic Syllables are at their most confident and comfortable -- intimate settings with a smallish audience that can vibe with the groove they're laying down.
That groove can be felt in the cozy and dimly lit rehearsal room at Junk Studios late on a Saturday night. As the group goes through some of the earlier material (like the clever "Dopeish") and a new ska-reggae tune guitarist-keyboardist Alex Akamine just brought to the group that night, you can hear how each member's contribution adds to the natural flow of the music.
It's something the band wants to nurture and maintain in the months ahead.
"We want to move into a space where we're able to do what we want to do in our future gigs," drummer Kelii Wong said. "That's by organizing shows with a more mellow atmosphere."
"But the first thing we have to focus on is finishing up our CD," DJ A2Z added. "We have to have something in hand to help us build on some California shows we'll be doing and broaden our connections."
"Plus maybe do some T-shirts and stickers," said percussionist Lahela Hekekia.
The band hopes that out of the 16 songs in their repertoire ("with five of them finished," Wong said, half-jokingly), they hope the bulk of them will make the CD.
With the exception of Akamine -- who came more from a funk-rock background, a self-professed "(Red Hot) Chili (Peppers) disciple" with local bands like the Bassdads and Kamakazi Kong -- everyone else has been part and parcel of the local hip-hop scene over the years.
"Playing in the Microscopic Syllables," bassist Josh Conley said, "we're striving for a more cross-pollination of sounds."
"This band definitely makes the statement of 'This is who we are,'" A2Z continued. "You're gonna feel it, regardless. It's always great to win over new fans -- even at shows we've done that had bills with predominately Jawaiian bands. We've had people tell us after our set 'Ho, braddah! Solid!'"
Part of that new appeal would have to be due to MC and lyricist Seph I, whose social consciousness is wrapped in a light and easy verbal flow, right on the knowledge tip. Always referring to his little note book filled with inspired jottings, Seph acknowledges that, "I write a lot of poetry and verse, and during these rehearsal times, I just absorb the music and be the translator." His fellow Syllables say they're always amazed at how he adapts his skills to theirs.
"He knows how to melt into and infuse the music with his MCing," said A2Z.
"It's amazing how he can keep his rap flowing even through the offbeats," Hekekia added. "He's able to keep it abstract at times."
The Microscopic Syllables, with its current lineup, passed its one-year anniversary last month, and the band is committed to its fearless melding of everything they love musically.
"We're willing to incorporate any element in our sound," said A2Z. "Like, in the samples I play on the turntable, you'll hear everything from rock, hip-hop and jazz."
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