STAR-BULLETIN / 2001 Robert, left, and Roland Cazimero are nominated for a Grammy Award.

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inspires Cazimeros

IN MORE than 30 years of singing and playing music, the Brothers Cazimero have made 36 albums, won 25 Hoku awards and sold out venues such Carnegie Hall and the Hollywood Bowl. And still Robert and Roland Cazimero seem as approachable as old friends, rather than the musical trailblazers and stars they are.

Grammy Week In the days leading up to Sunday's Grammy Awards, we will present daily profiles of the artists nominated in the new Hawaiian music category. Monday: Charles Brotman, producer of the compilation "Slack Key Guitar Vol. Two" Tuesday: Ho'okena; nominated for "Cool Elevation" Yesterday: Amy Hanaiali'i Gilliom and Willie K; "Amy and Willie Live" Friday: Keali'i Reichel; "Ke'alaokamaile" Saturday: The Grammy process, demystified Sunday: Hawaii's artists partake of the L.A. experience leading up to the Grammy Award ceremony.

They consider it an honor to be among the first five artists nominated in the first Grammy award category for Best Hawaiian Music Album for their recording "Some Call It Aloha ... Don't Tell."

"I know my parents would have been proud of what we've done all these years, and my teachers can see how much Roland and I have progressed culturally," Robert says.

In the early 1970s, when Hawaiian culture began undergoing a major resurgence, the brothers' unique style sparked new interest in music performed in the Hawaiian language, combined with a contemporary sound.

The Grammy's significance is its honoring of the Hawaiian culture, the state and "then us, " Robert says. "As long as one of our kupunas says to me, 'You did really well,' then that's my Grammy."

Any visitor to Hawaii or those interested in world music has likely heard their music, which has been licensed for film, TV and commercial projects.

Roland laughs, acknowledging that for much of America, the brothers are suddenly "overnight sensations."

Their long and winding road has had its share of bumps from within and outside.

"There were a lot of years we were scolded for our different kind melody or that we weren't using the Hawaiian language correctly," Roland says. "We were the front guard out there pushing the envelope, so you gonna take hits."

Robert said: "The language thing has been a constant learning process for us. I went back to the university to learn Hawaiian the right way. In the '70s Hawaiian renaissance, it became a living language again, so I had to get a new grasp on it."

This might be the foundation of the brothers musical significance: their struggle to be honest to the culture while trying to remain commercial in a fluctuating business.

Robert confesses that "in the beginning we weren't so concerned about the culture. We were young and just having a good time.

"When you're younger you just feel, almost no matter what you do, that you're in control of the situation," he says. "As you age and become more committed to what you're doing, there was the culture and art was staring us right in the face."

The album "Some Call It Aloha ... Don't Tell" Brothers Cazimero (The Mountain Apple Co.) Mountain Apple Company CEO Jon de Mello describes this new Brothers Cazimero album as "the finest suite of recorded music they have ever made," and the fact that his assessment is buried in the thick liner notes booklet rather than splashed across the back cover shows that he's not indulging in hype. Cazimero fans can count on agreeing with him. This is a perfect showcase for Robert and Roland as a duo, as solo voices, and as songwriters. Their falsetto harmonies have gotten so much acclaim that it's easy to forget that Bobby and Boze have beautiful lower-register voices, which can be heard here as well. A majority of the songs are originals, with Robert responsible for most, but the Brothers pay homage to the past with beautiful renditions of "Pua Lilia" and "He'eia." They also revisit their Sunday Manoa days with "Hawaiian Rainbow." John Berger This review was originally printed in John Berger's Island Mele column on Sept. 3, 2004.

THE BROTHERS credit Mountain Apple Co.'s president, Jon de Mello, who they teamed with in 1979, for what Robert calls "the turning point in our career."

"Ho'ala," their first album produced by Mountain Apple, became a hit and set the Cazimeros apart. It won a Hoku Award and is considered a Hawaiian music classic.

"I had started teaching hula by then and was paying a lot more attention to the language," Robert said. "And I was learning to compromise -- largely because of Jon -- particularly where Roland's musical contributions were concerned."

As the younger brother, Roland had deferred to Robert, who admits he rarely listened to his brother's musical ideas before De Mello took him aside and told him, "You've got to listen to your brother sometimes because it's good stuff," Robert says. "So I did, and onstage I had to learn to shut up because people liked to hear Roland's banter. ... It made up who we were."

Roland smiles. "Neither of us individually is more important than the pair," he said.

"I understood that we needed to make choices that reflected both of us," Robert said. "By working together we came up with our sound, which people know right away."

THE BROTHERS' personalities explain their different approaches.

Robert is private, more contemplative and thinks carefully about questions before answering them. Roland smiles and jokes easily and speaks freely, perhaps before considering the consequences.

Did the duo ever consider disbanding?

"Several times," Robert says.

"Every day, every hour," Roland adds.

Do they like one another?

"Sometimes," they say together, laughing. Do they love each other? "Always," they say, again in unison.

"Robert, for a long time, had a strong need for Hawaiian music to be a certain way," Roland says. "So after a while you don't go there or Robert would say something harsh, and you know right away he's going to rap you."

"We came to the realization that in show business it is more business than show," Robert says. "Our music has been better with that mind-set because it's continued to make it fun ... the creativity and that feeling in your soul when magically something happens musically that lights a fire."

Being nominated for a Grammy "feels good" but not better than "making good music," Roland says.

Robert initially didn't plan Sunday's ceremony in Los Angeles, immersed as he is Merrie Monarch practice with his halau.

But Mountain Apple executives emphasized the importance of attending.

"Now I'm on board for all of it," said Robert, who hasn't thought about what to say if the duo wins, only that part of it will be in Hawaiian.

Roland has a more mischievous idea.

"Here it goes: 'My brother and I really want to thank Granny for this award. ... Granny, are you out there?' " he says.

Robert screams, "Oh my God! I will just die right there! Please don't. One of these days you are going to kill me!"