The hardest working reggae band in New Zealand

By GRAHAM REID

In a big year for local music the Hamilton-based roots-reggae band Katchafire stood out.

Last year they toured the North Island relentlessly and early on dropped their terrific album Revival which raised the red, green and gold flag for reggae in the classic Marley style. The album has just about sold double platinum (60,000) and their Giddyup single was the biggest-selling single of 2002. They also opened for Michael Franti and Spearhead, shot off to play in Australia, flicked a re-issue of the album with dub mixes and today, Waitangi Day and Bob Marley's birthday, they play three gigs in one day - Hamilton, Manukau and Nelson. Then they join an Orientation tour in the run-up to the Pasifika Festival on March 13. We caught up with singer/guitarist Thompson Hohepa for an update on their whirlwind career from covers band to cover stars.

Q. Kia ora bro'. Three gigs in one day would cripple most bands but you guys have probably been the hardest-working group in the country the past couple of years.

A. That's for sure, but thank you for that. I think we are. I don't know of any other bands doing three in one day.

Q. How many gigs did you play last year?

Geez, I couldn't even attempt to tell you, but it was week in and week out for the past two years. We gave ourselves 10 days off from New Year's Day but that was it. Maybe played a couple of hundred for sure.

Q. Any particularly memorable ones?

A. I tell you honestly, every one was memorable, the reason being everywhere we went the places just seemed to pack out. So I really can't pick one out of all of them.

Q. What was the biggest crowd you played to?

A. I think [the album launch] at the Roadhouse - that was maybe five or six hundred.

Q. And the smallest room, would that have been at the Naval and Family on K Rd?

A. Yeah that's the one, that room up top there. That was pretty small, for sure.

Q. You are on the Orientation tour this year. I guess that means another audience for you outside of your core following.

A. Yeah, it's the South Island dates which will be good, we haven't really touched there yet. We've been down a couple of times but this Orientation will boost our fan base down there, hopefully. I can't wait. Nobody has told me how we are selling down there, but the album keeps selling and there are still a lot of people who don't know about us, and the South Island would be one of those places. So we hope that as soon as we hit there, we'll see another resurgence in selling of it.

Q. Revival was among the best of the year in many critics' polls - we had it in at number 10 - but it must be time to get out there with some new material. Have you been recording for another album?

A. We've got songs for the next album but why they haven't asked us to put some out, I don't know. But the songs are already there - not just for one more but many more albums. We have songs that are waiting to get out. Hopefully a new album halfway during this year, but we're still working so hard and getting out there - but also writing songs. I can't wait for the next album - I think we've learned from the first album and we'll grow from that.

Q. What have you learned?

A. What type of songs the people like. It's not just about what Katchafire like but we have to make it so the people out there like it too. I think this album will be a lot rootsier and some thoughts about our lives, how we've grown and what era we've grown up in. So it'll be a lot more rootsy and maybe political, although I wouldn't want to use that word so much.

Q. How has life changed for you personally?

A. Life has changed immensely - just walking to the shop or going to the garage and filling up and getting recognised by not only adults but little kids. That's a big change for me. I was always having people look at me sideways because of the way I look so it's good to have the little kids come up, and old people too. It's right across the board, and I love it.

Q. I guess that's because you've had successful videos out there, but you also reissued the album with some dub mixes. How do you feel about those?

A. I'm not too sure. I did like them and it gives us another market, like a Salmonella Dub market so I think it's good for the band.

Q. So you are looking forward to another good year?

A. I'm hoping this year is going to explode for us - we're not going to stop working, just keep going. We're booked until June, then we're off to Australia again. And a lot of our CDs have gone to London, Amsterdam, Rome and other places, so hopefully this year will be the one we can breeze over the world and take our stuff to them.