Kahuna Kings
The surf is up in Akron with the wild beat of the Kahuna Kings who deliver maximum retro/surf meyhem and a action packed show in one. The Kahuna Kings are a band that are like no others in the area and bring a party of music, show, and beyond as a must see act. They stand alone as one of the only surf bands in Northeast Ohio and bring plenty of guitar frenzied energy to each performance. The band boasts the ultimate surf/retro party and dance band around. The band is lead by guitarist Dave Hineline and also includes Earl Clausson on guitar, Gary Galehouse on bass and Bill "the Dr" Lynn on percussion.
It is not every day or week you can find good surf music in the area so the idea of a surf band here is something out of the ordinary and a real treat to have part of the music scene in the Akron area. Himeline said, "Well the idea of starting a surf band in NE Ohio was a bit of a challenge. Most musicians in the area have never heard live surf performed so the concept of actually being in a surf band really is not on anyone's radar as far as being performing musician. I set out to form a band that could really entertain a crowd and make ears perk up when a guitar is played at a good volume through a reverb tank. It's a beautiful sound and although I grew to love surf music for the heavy reverb inspired melodies and pounding rhythms it wasn't until I heard Dick Dale live did I really understand the beauty of the sound. It's a unique and magical sound that is basically unheard of in NE Ohio. That is when I knew I had to get busy and start to recruit musicians for The Kahuna Kings. As a consumer of music for several decades I know what inspires me and what might inspire others when it comes to music in general but more importantly live music. Throughout the years all music lovers remember those moments when you first saw your favorite bands or heard a new band that just blew your mind when it came to their sound and or their performance. As a musician you have it deep within your subconsciousness to impart that same emotional response to an audience and so many of us search our whole lives with the desire to create that response. As a new band just starting out how do you go about doing that in a market that has seen and heard it all especially if you have a career and a normal busy adult life? I can assure you I'm not going to load my gear into a van with a bunch of guys and crisscross the country cutting my teeth trying to get peoples attention. After listening to surf for many years and finally being able to make that killer surf sound on guitar I knew this was going to be how I would set out to make my impact on music at least in this area."
As for influences to his music, Hineline points back to his youth listening to bands in the 70's. "Me personally I would have to list all of the great bands that I grew up with in the 70's especially Pink Floyd but it was when I first discovered Judas Priest in the late 70's that had such a major impact. I saw JP for the first time in 1982 with an unknown band called Iron Maiden that had probably the greatest single impact on me as a musician. I saw them just a few feet away from me at the Myrtle Beach Convention Center. I knew at that point I witnessing the most powerful, high energy, professional music available at that point in music history. The duel shred attack of of Glenn Tipton and KK Downing is an important part of what I am trying to impart into The Kahuna Kings music today. With fellow guitarist Earl Clausson sharing the leads we try to push that one/two punch attack into our performances and keep people on their toes. Many songs we will even do a duel tremolo picking attack which just rips peoples heads off. Surf conveys so much that is at the very core of what rock music is supposed to be. It has the power, adrenaline and energy that all great rock music has but it does it in a way that is so different than virtually all other rock music. It's that clean, high volume, reverb drenched melody that is quite easy to relate to along with pounding drum work. It's very pleasing to the ear but powerful!"
"The surf music scene is without a doubt the most positive genre of music that I know of. The musicians that make surf what it is are among the most friendly and giving group of musicians I have ever known. It's brethren whether in the US, Europe, South America and beyond all support each other and reach out in so many different ways. I have become good friends with the greatest surf musicians in the world and their support for The Kahuna Kings has been unbelievable as we work to bring our music into the genre. Locally there are great surf bands such as The Beyonderers, Surfer Rex, The Del Rios, Syndicate of Surf and more and more surf fans. What a great group we have of dedicated musicians and surf fans in this growing market for surf music."
"Worldwide the surf music scene is so alive. Europe is producing so much great instrumental surf music along with South America and in the States we have fantastic bands such as The Madeira, Satans Pilgrims, The Insect Surfers, The Fathoms, Slacktone, to name just a few. All of these bands are fantastic musicians and instro/surf keeps pumping out more and more incredible music. I'm blown away every time I listen to northseasurfradio.com which is my favorite online station out of the Netherlands. The Kahuna Kings have received frequent spins of our first release on there."
"I think when it comes to surf music in general we share some similarities with other surf bands in many ways but as stated earlier we focus on the duel shred attack of having two lead guitarists shredding machine gun tremolo picking simultaneously. Very few surf bands do this. As far as other rock bands in general we are so different in sound and music style which is pretty obvious being in instrumental band. You won't find complicated passages from our music. It's all fairly basic melody lines and riffs designed to create a landscape in the minds of the listener. Their are no lyrics to lead the listener down a path that they might not understand or even give a crap about. It's a "thought buffet" of your own choosing through music. Hopefully you are left feeling positive and energized!"
"Roger Waters released a fantastic album in the 90's called Amused to Death, well I think we are at a point or have been there for awhile where we have "amused ourselves to death" musically. We have been to some extent "overstimulated" to the point where it just becomes meaningless for may of us that love music. I can't listen to the classic rock of my past that I grew up with and get anything out of it. I still love metal but metal bands try to push it to point where it just drains the good out of you. Pop is just a meal of empty calories. Country...well, no comment. It's been decades since and instrumental was even on the charts. The great instrumentals inspired your mind when you heard them. You could paint any landscape you wanted when you heard them. They made you feel good inside! That is what music should do IMHO. Listen to some Herb Albert and get back to me........"
According to Hineline, the Kings have an intense show to add to the music. One that needs to be experienced live to appreciate fully. "We want to go for the jugular with a powerful delivery and give the audience a lot to hear and look at. We usually have our Tiki Queens or Lava Ladies onstage with us. The girls dance to the music in 60's style bikini's or costumes to help drive the energy and give a constant visual experience along with the band and the sound. We will be adding a video backdrop of surfing videos to help create the whole experience of seeing The Kahuna Kings live. Nobody will be left bored with our performance!!!"
The Kahuna Kings were on hand as the musical act for the opening of a new music club in the Hudson area on Saturday, March 25th with the Tiki Underground. "We are very excited and looking forward to bringing The Kahuna Kings great surf music to many many years in the near future. Music lovers in NE Ohio deserve the freshness and energy of this great genre. They have been great music fans for decades and decades and I expect surf to be a great new discovery for many of them. I love presenting surf because they respond so well to it. The hunger is there and it's a win win for all of us in NE Ohio!"
The Kahuna Kings will release their debut LP Who Wants to Party with the Kahuna Kings? in April and have a record release party for it at Jilly's Music room in Akron. The show is April 21st. "The LP will feature ten tracks from the band. We are going to release our first record within a few weeks titled, Who Wants To Party With The Kahuna Kings. There are 10 great surf tracks ranging from the high energy, Rip Head to the laid back melodic, Beach Town and everything in between. It took a long time to make this as I own a business and work very hard at that. I'm so glad I can finally get this out!"
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