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MYSTERY ISLAND - Hey Mon, there is a new sound arriving from Mystery Island and
you don’t have to be there to appreciate it anymore. The Hikalakas are here to
introduce this ‘island sound’ to the population outside its place of origin, and
they hope to gain mainstream success. But can they do it? Will Neopians like this
new music or will they through it out like yesterday’s trash? I intend to explore.
The Hikalakas originate from Mystery Island, which has had an obvious influence
on their music, in a great way. With the use of steel drums and the maraca,
they really capture the sound of the island and its calm and relaxed mood. Already
a major hit on Mystery Island, many critics had said that The Hikalakas would
not be able to gain much success past the islands white, sandy shores. However,
with the band’s first show at the Tyrannian Concert Hall (the most prestigious
stage any band can play at in Neopia) being a sell out success, The Hikalakas
look set to prove the critics wrong and succeed in making their music become
increasingly popular. Along with many others I went to see the guy’s debut performance
in Tyrannia and I thought it was excellent, one of the best shows I had seen
in a long time and almost certainly the best first appearance of any group I
had ever seen. The Hikalakas don’t suit everybody’s tastes but everyone their
really enjoyed themselves. Afterwards I spoke to Skalpo, who is in charge of
booking the bands that appear at the Concert Hall and selling the tickets for
the show.
‘It was amazing, as soon as everyone heard that their was a new band playing
for the first time I had a stampede of Neopets and their owners at the ticket
booth trying to buy tickets. Many were disappointed as I sold out pretty quick.
I saw some of the unlucky bunch trying to sneak in, but they were no match for
Grafney and his team. You would expect this from a band like Sticks N' Stones
but not from some unknown group with a style of music most Neopians are not
used to. I’m not complaining, the guys made me a lot of Neopoints that day.’
Alongside their hit performance The Hikalakas have released their first album
‘Sounds of the Island’ and it is set to be a big seller in all of Neopia’s shops.
After the show I grabbed the album from the souvenir stand and went to go and
listen to it. What can I say, for their first album it is excellent. It combines
calming and gentle music with upbeat and fun carnival tracks of the guy’s home
island. I don’t think it is an album I would listen to often, but after a long
and strenuous day I can just imaging sitting on my nice cosy couch in my Neohome
listing to the soothing, calming songs. Or maybe even when your low, listening
to the big steel drum numbers that really make you want to get up from your
seat and dance or at the very least they put a big smile upon your face. Like
I said before it doesn’t fit everybody’s liking, so don’t expect to be thrashing
your head to their music like it’s a Sticks N' Stones record. This is my personal
favourite album to be released for some time.
However that’s not it. Someone has been busy creating merchandise for the group,
and busy they have been, with such a wide variety of goodies for you to buy.
Everything from The Hikalakas Shirt to The Hikalakas Lamp. If your lucky enough
you might even be able to get your hands on The Hikalakas Bottles Of Sand, which
clearly has to do with the fact that the guys are from Mystery Island where
the bottle of sand is given out daily as a prize by The Tiki Tack Man, another
island native. With such a wide variety of merchandise, whoever is in charge
of marketing for the group truly thinks that they are going to gain mega commercial
success. Merchandising is very important for any band and generates a lot of
Neopoints. Every “true fan” has to have their room decorated in the group’s
furniture and wear a shirt with their most desired member on it. I spoke to
Skalpo about the importance of the merchandise at The Concert Hall.
‘After the show is over everyone goes to the souvenir stand and buys the clothes,
a poster, a mug or in this case maybe a bottle of sand. I didn’t stock up much
for The Hikalakas, as I wasn’t sure that they would do so well. Now I know that
next time they play in The Hall that I am going to need a lot more of their
merchandise to please the fans.’
If you have got some of the band’s merchandise from their show in Tyrannia
then you might want to consider selling it as soon as possible. With all the
hype surrounding the band at the moment even a bottle of their sand will fetch
for a good price. Soon prices are likely to fall, after the band has been fully
integrated, so get selling quickly.
So what exactly does the future hold for The Hikalakas? One sell out show doesn’t
guarantee fame and fortune for life. It can be very difficult for a new band
as I found out when I spoke to Jazzmosis
‘The most difficult time in your career is at the beginning, especially when
you are trying to introduce a new style of music to the main population of Neopia.
One minute everyone loves you and then they get bored and want to go back to
recognised music and bands they listened to before. It is going to be hard for
The Hikalakas but we wish them the best of luck for the future.’
Does this mean that the group could just fall into obscurity, or can they maintain
a bright and successful career? If they want to achieve the latter they are
going to have to play with the big boys, like Jazzmosis and the Neopian Philharmonic
who have introduced a new form of music to Neopia and still have been able to
establish brilliant careers for themselves. The Hikalakas have a long road a
head of them and only time can tell how popular they can become. As long as
they can carry on producing great quality music and amazingly high-energy performances
I am sure that they can achieve great fame. What ever is to happen I wish the
guys the best of luck with ‘Sounds of the Island’ and for their future plans.
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