FAILED ORBIT SUCCEEDS IN DIY EFFORTS

Four bands are slated to perform at Failed Orbit's Oct. 3 show  FLIER BY ALYSSA GUZMAN

Four bands are slated to perform at Failed Orbit’s Oct. 3 show
FLIER BY ALYSSA GUZMAN

Local DIY/punk record label Failed Orbit Records hosts a show at The ARTS at Marks Garage this Saturday (Oct. 3). I don’t know if it was the flier or the show’s name (The Space Jam) that initially attracted me, but it looks like Failed Orbit is on track for another successful event this weekend.

I spoke with some of the folks behind the label — Ray Farias, Rob Cunningham and Jhune Liwanag — to find out more:

Roger Bong: Tell me about Failed Orbit Records.

Failed Orbit: Failed Orbit Records was named after a song by founder Ray Farias’ old band Neural Void. He later decided to use “Failed Orbit” as a brand that he could slap onto releases for his later band, Beaman. The label is not a typical “record label” per se, however, the idea is to unite like-minded musicians and artists under an umbrella to showcase what the Honolulu — and potentially the state of Hawaii — music scene can offer.

As for bands we represent, Ray’s band Beaman, T.V. Microwave, Poncho, Earl Grey, Aura Bora and The Anime Club have close ties to the label. Our mission is to help spread the word about our island’s music through the local community, and even abroad, whether it be sharing music across borders or bringing music that challenges people’s conceptions of what it can be.

The Space Jam: awesome name, and great flier, too! What can fans expect this Saturday evening?

Thank you! The flier art was created by Alyssa Guzman, whose artist name is A Little Heartsy. She did one of our Screaming Females fundraiser fliers, and we love her style. Rich and John at Marks Garage heard about our effort to bring Screaming Females to Honolulu, and made contact with us about throwing something together to make use of their space.

Our first show may be a little rough around the edges, as our shows always are when we are working with a new venue, but we are hoping to incorporate visual imagery into the events to kind of keep everyone, including ourselves, on their toes. The bands performing that evening will be Detroit Johnny, Aura Bora, The Anime Club and Alt/Air. Each brings a unique style to the mix, and we are privileged to have them performing.

Nerve Beats guitarist Travis Wiggins said: “Failed Orbit Records is crucial to keeping the DIY scene going on Oahu.”

Travis is someone who used to live in Honolulu and helped to organize shows, played in bands, and spread the word about the local scene through the collective The Whatever Underground. He basically did what we are trying to do now, as well as countless others who are doing their part to build up a scene. We are not the only ones who do this, and will never be the only ones.

What really inspired us was the work of No Suck Fest, a DIY punk rock festival that happened for five years in Honolulu. That was a collective effort by musicians and artists in the music scene who wanted to see something happen that made them happy, and in the process it made a lot of others happy as well.

Hearing it from Travis is flattering, but it is kind of a big responsibility heaved on our shoulders. We don’t want to be the only ones who are doing this, because honestly it is a lot of work. There’s room for anyone to do this, and that’s the whole point of the “do-it-yourself” ethos, is that you don’t necessarily need to wait for someone else to do what you want done. If you’re willing to put in the effort, it can happen.

What’s coming up for Failed Orbit in 2016?

If anything, we would love to release more vinyl and plan to work with local artists to release material on wax. Another goal of FO is to help increase awareness of our local artists here by creating a central location online to keep track of bands past, present and future.

Failed Orbit hosts The Space Jam from 7 p.m. to midnight Oct. 3 at The ARTS at Marks Garage. For more information, visit facebook.com/failedorbitrecords.

Roger recently turned his blog into a record label: alohagotsoul.com