ZAC CARPER
LA resident by way of North Shore, Oahu, 23-year-old musician/engineer Zac Carper (son of legendary surfboard shaper John Carper) and his newly formed rock outfit FIDLAR are taking back parking lot punk shows one flaming dumpster at a time. Contrast sifted through the mountain of empty Four Loko cans, leftover pizza boxes, and broken skateboard decks, to sip some beers and talk shop with Carper at the infamous House of FID. Read more…

REAL TALK WITH MIKE POOLEY
In terms of music careers, moving to an island smack dab in the middle of the Pacific some 5,000 miles from the nearest continental body of land is probably not the smartest move. Luckily, rock and roll ain’t about smart moves. The serendipitous happenings that lead the Highways to the islands have become their bond, and instead of treating their separation from the industry as a disability, the band uses the isolation to take a more clear-headed approach to creating. Read more…

CLONES OF THE QUEEN
Combine the musical and personal maturity of singer Ara Laylo, the openness of experienced guitarist Paul Bajcar and the enthusiasm of first-time band member and synth player Matthew McVickar…put them all in a musical forefront where none of them has gone before, and you’ve got Clones of the Queen. Read more…

LOVE FOR HI-808
By now the Blue Scholars established that they got love for the 808. The 808 has been showing love back by pushing their EP called Oof! to the top of iTunes hip-hop downloads and packing each of their live shows in Hawai‘i. Read more…

EXPERIENCING JAPANESE CUSTOMS
Singer/songwriter Anuhea Jenkins weaves through a crowd at the world’s biggest crosswalk in Shibuya, Japan. The most people per square foot pass through this five-way crosswalk daily. Japanese pedestrians bump and brush against the 24-year-old, Kamehameha Schools alum, never breaking stride on their way to wherever. Read more…

NOT THE GIRLFRIENDS
Born in the UK, raised partly in Canada, and partly in Australia, Hawai‘i transplant—and lead vocalist of the four-piece no-wave punk act GRLFRNDS—Alex Kaiser has a lot of stories to tell. Read more…

AN INTERVIEW WITH BEN BRIDWELL
Band of Horses is an American indie rock band, whose music has appeared in movies, commercials, TV shows, skate videos, video games and everything in between. Currently signed to Sub Pop records, they have three full-length albums out– Everything All the Time, Cease To Begin, as well as a newly released third album Infinite Arms. Read more…

MAD DECENT
Running around the island, jumping off of Waimea rock, hanging out with the Kahala Hotel’s dolphins, and trying to eat turtles, is how Diplo, aka Wesley Pentz, spent his short stay on O‘ahu. Diplo is one of the hottest music producers in the scene. With a world-wide tour schedule, Grammy-nominated songs like “Paper Planes” with M.I.A., and a resume of remixes with artists like Britney Spears, MSTRKRFT, Chromeo, and Kanye West– he has held his own in the music industry. Read more…

LORD OF THE OTHERGROUND
It has long been a theory of mine that the same forces of nature that etched the Ko‘olau mountain range into the jagged, accordion-like monolith we’re all familiar with may have also shaped the wit and whimsy of those who grew up in its shadow. From atop the Pali Lookout, peering into the lush Petri dish culture below, it’s tough to get a feel for exactly what I speak of. To do so, one must make the descent. Read more…

MAKING ELECTRICITY
So here is some news. Paul McCartney thinks their band is good. Okay. He also wouldn’t mind jamming and perhaps doing a little knob turning behind the ol’ mixer board. What? Bloggers nearly shit themselves upon hearing the news of Sir Paul giving MGMT the unofficial nod. Read more…