Lead singer of 1814, Darren Katene said his band has helped him find his roots again. Photo / Stephen Parker
Lead singer of 1814, Darren Katene said his band has helped him find his roots again. Photo / Stephen Parker
The lead singer of 1814 says music and his reggae band has helped him reconnect with his Maoritanga.
Darren Katene (Ngati Rangiwewehi, Ngapuhi) grew up in Rotorua as a child before moving to Northland where the group was originally formed in 2004. The band have preformed in front of thousandsin New Zealand and Australia and recently released their new single Perfectly Ugly, which will be on their upcoming fourth studio album. They recently performed at the Koiora Music Fundraiser concert and Kalah Bar in Ngongotaha on Saturday.
"Most of us in the band are from here," Katene said.
The band also comprises founder Patu Colbert (guitar), Shaun Colbert (drums), Jimmy Colbert (bass guitar), Andrew Phillips (keyboards), Chris Pierce (saxophone), Neihana Mackey-Harrison (vocals), Kalani Marsters (vocals) and Tim Cooper (guitar). They are a mixture of Maori, Cook Islands Maori and Pakeha and Katene said onstage and off, they were like a whanau who always had each other's back.
"We love playing back at home and probably half the town knows me because I've lived here for so many years - Rotorua is one of our biggest supporters so it's always good to come home."
The group, performed an acoustic set at the recent Te Arawa Awards, which recognised rangatahi, whanau and community achievement. He was asked how Te Arawa had influenced him as a singer, Katene said.
"Growing up at the marae, we would watch the kapa haka practices and seeing the calibre of [the late] Atareta Maxwell, it was a huge part of opening my eyes to singing, it really excited me. Most of my life, I was Ngapuhi based where the band was formed. My whanau up there weren't really performers, it's strange to have someone out of Ngapuhi on a stage singing in front of thousands. I used to listen to the influence of Rick Dee and the Top 40, mainstream stuff and the te reo side of thing wasn't very prominent thing in my life. Ever since 1814, I think I found my roots again and come back to my Maoridom and coming home here to Te Arawa has been a huge influence on that."
WHANAU: 1814 are like family who support each other both onstage and off. PHOTO/SUPPLIED 141014BAND
Katene was also inspired by his whanau who were achieving success through their culture. "My cousin Daniel Vaka [male leader of Ngati Rangiwewehi kapa haka group] was on the Maori Television show Te Kapa and so was his daughter and she's just flown back from Hawaii as part of it, so he's opening doors for his children and whanau."
He described their new music as "evolved" with a message behind it but still holding on to their 1814 sound. Their song Perfectly Ugly takes a strong stance against bullying while their new single Tell it to the Mountain which they recently performed on the TV One's Good Morning Show was a tribute to his grandfather.
"He was a great man that passed away and I hope people down in the motu understand what I was thinking about. When I write, it's more about life in general, more the small things, the real stuff."
The band has a close connection with Kalah Bar and its co-owners Janina Khan and Missy Hale. The venue, which will be celebrating its fifth birthday this weekend, has been the base for 1814 to practise and record new music.
"We had the facility to use and Patu [Colbert] helped us make changes to this place when we first started out so we could accommodate the bigger bands. For us it's about giving back but also learning from them as well - and who else gets to have 1814 practise in their bar three times a week?" Ms Khan said.
• The single Perfectly Ugly is available for download on iTunes and Amplifier. The band has upcoming shows throughout the country and in Sydney, Australia.
