Point Panic Music Festival Arrives Friday

Vanessa Wolf is a Maui-based writer who did not get a chance to work with  Eazy-E, 2Pac, Big Pun, or  The Notorious B.I.G. while they were still alive, but would be open to one of those posthumous duet videos if the opportunity arose.

By Vanessa Wolf

This Friday night, the Point Panic Festival 2012 kicks off here on Maui.

The show, which starts at 6 p.m. on the MACC lawn, features Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Groundation, and Paula Fuga and Mike Love.

Bone Thugs-N-Harmony is an American hip hop group from the Glenville section of Cleveland, Ohio. Their style can be described as melodic, yet rapid-fire and gangsta. They often describe their style as the “flip flop flow.”

In 1997, the group was awarded the Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance with their song “Tha Crossroads” from their album, E 1999 Eternal. Since their conception in 1993, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony has sold over 30 million records worldwide and was the only artists to work with Eazy-E, 2Pac, Big Pun, and The Notorious B.I.G. while they were still alive.

In the beginning, they employed a pseudo-Jamaican patois delivery with their trademark style, though they rarely do this now. At first, their subject matter was almost always exclusively about violence, death and smoking marijuana. Today, however, they have expanded to include other topics such as urban socio-political issues, positive messages, their old friend and mentor Eazy-E, and religion.

Bone Thugs N Harmony after a stint in the army…or maybe not. Courtesy image.

The group is reuniting for the first time in years and have announced the release of their newest album Art of War III, featuring all five original group members: Krazie Bone, Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, Flesh-N-Bone and Layzie Bone. The album, which is being released through Seven Arts Entertainment, is due in stores on November 27.

Groundation is an American roots Reggae band from Sonoma County in Northern California. Formed in the fall of 1998 by Harrison Stafford, Marcus Urani, and Ryan Newman, Groundation began on the campus of Sonoma State University’s Jazz Program. Between 1999 and 2001, Harrison Stafford taught the first course on the History of Reggae Music at Sonoma State University. In 1999, Stafford teamed up with Kris Dilbeck to found Young Tree Records and release Groundation’s debut album of the same name.

The nine-piece band features a unique reggae sound, with jazz and funk-inspired horns, stout Latin and African based rhythms, and soulful harmony vocals. Their concerts utilize live improvisation, in classic jazz fashion, and are renowned for their high energy, communion-type atmosphere. Having gained international notoriety for their progressive fusion style, Groundation regularly plays at major international festivals. In March 2012, the band released the new album Building An Ark.

Paula Fuga and her longtime musical partner, singer-guitarist Mike Love’s unique sound and vision stand out. The combination of her voice and lyrics with music rooted in Hawaiian folk tradition, reggae, world and Polynesian sounds have brought international attention since the release of her first album, Lilikoi, in 2006. More recently Fuga has opened Jack Johnson’s state-side tours, and he and Ziggy Marley sang on her most recent recordings. That album, “Misery’s End,” has received rave reviews, and the title song is one of the highlights of her current concert.

If you have lots of cash or access to a private plane, follow the show over to Oahu on Saturday, where Sublime with Rome, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Groundation and Ooklah the Moc will be continuing the festival.

Sublime with Rome is a musical collaboration between Eric Wilson and Bud Gaugh, formerly of the band Sublime, and singer and guitarist Rome Ramirez. The band played under the name “Sublime,” until Bradley Nowell’s estate issued a legal challenge to the use of the trademarked name for a venture not including Nowell; thus the slightly clunky but legal new name. The group chiefly performs songs by Sublime, which was fronted by Bradley Nowell until his death in 1996.

Still haven’t had enough? Then head on over to Kauai Sunday where Bone Thugs-N-Harmony and supporting act Ghost Ridaz wrap it all up.

Tickets to the Maui leg of the festival are $35. Doors open at 5 p.m. and the show starts at 6 p.m.