“I Le‘a”
Keauhou
Keauhou
Keauhou — Zachary Alaka‘i Lum, his brother Nicholas Keali‘i Lum and Jonah Kahanuola Solatorio — made history in 2017 when the trio’s self-titled debut album swept the Na Hoku Hanohano Awards with wins in all nine categories in which they were nominated. Little did Hawaii know that the album was the first of what would become a trilogy — the second, “I ke Ko a ke Au,” received five Hokus in 2018, and “Ua Ko, Ua ‘Aina,” an additional three in 2019. Each album is complete in and of itself, but the three together tell the story of Keauhou’s journey through several years of musical growth and cultural discovery.
Their fourth album, “I Le‘a,” released in August, meets the high expectations set by its three predecessors. Solatorio and Nicholas Lum contribute one song each; Zachary Lum writes in the liner notes that he was “stoked” when songwriter/educator Kihei de Silva asked him to compose a melody for lyrics de Silva had written. The other nine songs represent the work of some of the greatest Hawaiian songwriters of the last 150 years.
Amid all the beautiful falsetto voicings, several lower register performances stand out. “Launa ‘Ole Ko Hie” was written by Nicholas Lum to commemorate his marriage. He sings it solo with only instrumental backing; coupled with the emotion in his voice, the song is particularly striking. The John K. Almeida standard, “Pua ‘Ohai,” is arranged to create the experience of hearing a lower-register male vocalist backed by falsetto chorus, much as Almeida might have recorded it in the 1940s.
The most exquisite selection is “Ka Wai ‘Apo Lani,” written by Queen Lili‘uokalani and sung with the reverence of a hymn by the trio and guest vocalist Raiatea Helm. The liner notes explain that the Queen was not calling for restoration of the kingdom but for the restoration of righteousness to the ‘aina (land): “The musical progression continues, but the Queen’s sentiments surely endure.”
Steel guitarist Jeff Au Hoy sits in on five songs. Halehaku Seabury-Akaka adds the sizzle of electric guitar to one. Noel Okimoto’s work on vibes and percussion brings the feel of old-time Hawaiian jazz to the trio’s arrangement of “Ho‘oluana.”
Keauhou writes in the liner notes that “mele are much more than entertainment,” and the album provides opportunities to learn about the music as well as enjoy it. Twenty-one pages of annotation include the Hawaiian lyrics, basic English translations and background information on why the songs were chosen.
“I Le‘a” is every bit as Hoku Award-worthy as its predecessors. It would represent Hawaii quite nicely at the Grammys next year as well.
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John Berger, Star-Advertiser
