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Freestyle: My favorite things

BY ELIZABETH KIESZKOWSKI / ekieszkowski@staradvertiser.com

Can I be honest? I don’t really like holidays. All those expectations make them seem like work.

Yes, I am jaded, but the thrill is gone, if it ever existed!

I guess it’s all a matter of perspective, but I’m sure glad my beat is arts and entertainment – because I never get tired of those things. It’s no coincidence that my favorite holidays are Halloween and New Year’s Eve. (And if the day ever comes that I’m jaded about creative pursuits or parties, I hope someone will put me out of my misery.)

There, see? Just thinking about the arts cheered me up. “Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens…”

In the spirit of being thankful for the good stuff — and in an effort to ward off a holiday funk — I’m gonna use this week’s post to share a few of my favorite things.

DID SOMEONE mention parties? Celebrations are the season’s saving grace. And New Year’s Eve, the night dedicated to parties, is my favorite. I blogged about three classy options for New Year’s Eve last week. Here’s another option.

Kakaako Waterfront Park will host a “Party of the Year” that might fill the bill if you crave lots of people, music and action.

This one’s going to have fireworks every HOUR, starting at 9 p.m. Love that! The wide open space at Kakaako Waterfront Park will allow for some new attractions, including an E.K. Fernandez ferris wheel and skydivers, believe it or not.

Fiji, who’s a wonderfully charismatic performer, is the headlining act, along with other Hawaii-style bands including Irie Love, Mana’o Company, Rebel Souljah and Kaipo Kapua.

There will be several stages and DJs galore, with food trucks, fire dancers, even a ferris wheel. An oceanfront stage for dubstep and a laser light show should make EDM kids happy. And a la “Electric Daisy Carnival,” Redbull Skydivers will land at the party. Woo!

Promoters say they expect more than 15,000 people at this one. That’s a lot of kissing potential at midnight. And kids are welcome, with $10 tickets for ages 11 to 17 years old, and a family entrance.

General admission tickets start at $20, with VIP tickets for $75. Tables and cabanas are also available. Get tickets via Ticketmaster, or call 800-745-3000.

MUSIC ENERGIZES my life. Songs give me ideas and school me on emotions and experiences I may never otherwise know. And it can be supremely moving to come across a song that gives you a charge or takes you on a moody trip. I cannot imagine life without music!

I also love the concept of a “band.” I like to imagine them roaming adventurously over the land, like Robin Hood’s band of merry thieves. So when a group gets it together, especially in the first exciting flush of possibility, it is a rush for me, too — and I love to help tell these stories, especially about Hawaii musicians.

My current joy is band I Digress, which has two members who called Hawaii home until last year. Jack Jackman and Ben Strobel banded together after Jackman, who’d been playing in heavy-metal bands, heard Strobel cover a Justin Timberlake song at a rock show. And they have come a long way since moving to Portland.

I Digress is opening for Everclear on Saturday, Dec. 15 (get tickets here, and read the TGIF story here).

Jackman says the band is ready. I Digress went on a self-managed tour this year, and came back with more confidence and a better sense of purpose, Jackman and Strobel told me.

“It’s the old slogan: We’ve been to every town and we’ve rocked ‘em,” Jackman said. “But it’s really true!”

Check out this new video of the band in its current incarnation, with guitarist Cody Males and new drummer Danny Johnson, and see what you think.
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Elizabeth Kieszkowski is editor of TGIF, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser’s weekly arts and entertainment section. Reach her via email at ekieszkowski@staradvertiser.com or follow her on Twitter.