Reggae band Hikoikoi talk to JOANNA HUNKIN about finding their perfect sound
When Paul Wickham was looking for new premises for his boat-building company, acoustics were the last thing on his mind - he just needed a space big enough for his burgeoning business.
But as he signed the ownership papers and began planning the shift, a surprise phone call stopped him in his tracks. It was Weta Workshop. They wanted Wickham and his whole business to join their team and head up the woodwork department.
Suddenly, Wickham had a big, empty building on his hands. A lovely old building, which he suspected might make for some sweet music-making.
It was perfect timing. Wickham's band Hikoikoi had been rehearsing and demoing tracks in an old boat shed in Petone. And while the gentle lap of waves and waddle of ducks' feet matched the relaxed reggae vibe of the six-piece, the sound of the creaky old hut wasn't quite cutting it.
So Wickham rounded up the troupe and moved them into the new space - where they soon found the exact sound they had been looking for.
"We use a lot of natural reverb and room sounds to create the ambience," explains Wickham, who set up a full recording studio in the building.
"We have a collection of vintage equipment and we emulate the sounds of the 70s a lot. We record on 2-inch analogue tape, which is a reel-to-reel system they used in the 70s."
It's a costly exercise. The tape is hard to come by these days and 20 minutes worth of tape will set you back $600.
"It's a bit like shooting film really. You're really conscious that you're using precious material."
With six members all working full-time, including Wickham's 12-hour days at Weta, recording their debut album became a three-year labour of love.
But the band stayed enthused, playing a variety of live shows - including the 2008 Parihaka Peace Festival, where they were the most talked about band of the weekend - and releasing singles.
"We released songs as we had them finished," says Wickham. "So we'd work on one song at a time.
"We released three singles building up to the album, to keep something out there and keep a little bit of buzz going.
"We got some quite good results from the early singles and a good response. It definitely encouraged us to keep striving on and complete the goal."
The band has three core members - Wickham, James Coyle and Ben Wood - who maintain creative control of the band and often play as a three-piece, along with Mara TK, Maz Hermon and sole female Jessie Wood.
Women are a bit of a rarity in reggae and Wickham says Wood adds a special dynamic to their line-up that allows them to discuss ideas and issues they might not as an all-male group. "It definitely does change it. It has a softening effect and lyrically it can help some of the angles you can talk about."
Wood can also speak fluent Maori, which is often incorporated into the band's music as they strive to show their solidarity and support for the Maori cause.
"We're quite socially conscious as a band. We went up to support Tame Iti at Waikaremoana on New Year's day. It was a very special gig for us to be playing in the middle of the Waikaremoana bush. We were nervous about going there because we had organised the gig before the police raids happened. When we got there, it was so beautiful. We met [Iti's] whole family. He's a really gentle guy and great to talk to."
Respect is a major theme in Hikoikoi's music and one of the reasons they chose their name. Originally called Hikoikoi Reserve, the band took their name from the park where their first studio, the boat shed, stood.
"It means to step out to the point, or walk out to the point, and we liked the meaning of that. We thought it was poignant for our message in the music."
