THE NIGHT STUFF
Kahala weekly kept on the down-low
By Derek Paiva
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| Shh ... Don't Tell Anybody patrons enjoy mellow vibes and a "by-invite-only" atmosphere at Fox & Hound Pub & Grub. The Friday events are deliberately unhyped but promise an eclectic mix of live and recorded sounds.
Photos by Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser |
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| DJ Lion sets part of the evening's mood. |
"Shh ... Don't Tell Anybody" is simply the moniker promoter Ed (no last names, please) and his Sick Dog Productions crew came up with a couple of months back to head e-mailed invites to an intimate Friday weekly he was putting together.
The reason for keeping it on the down-low?
Mostly to keep the rowdier folk among us from heading down to Kahala's Fox & Hound Pub & Grub in unmanageable late-night droves, possibly upsetting the quiet weekend domesticity of the high-property-tax bracketed.
In reality, "Shh ..." is really open to anyone legally able to order a Guinness.
But the name is also somewhat apropos when describing the overall vibe of the event itself.
That's because "Shh ...," at least to my partner in Night Stuff and me, seemed to most resemble a funky, invite-only Kailua beach-house party, without the beach. And yes, readers, that was a compliment.
The effect started the moment we entered the Fox & Hound through sliding glass doors to the side of the main entrance. The vibe was a lot like a clandestine party being thrown in the family rec room while Mom and Dad were off skiing in Gstaad.
To the right, a tightly-packed live band blocking the main doors played floor-level for an equally huddled throng of dancers. On the left, a couple of guys nursing Amstels shot pool under a fluorescent beer lamp while others waited their turn.
Ahead, a smallish bar strewn with Christmas lights was noisy with a crowd that mostly seemed to know one another.
Some cool kids sat on an outside patio and smoked. Others gathered around a large projection TV to watch skate and surf videos. And Ed's rottweiler Sick Dog stood guard out front, waiting for a pat on the head.
There was moment, sitting at my table nursing a terrifically bitter
Guinness draft and surveying the crowd, when I swore that if I stepped back outside those sliding doors, I'd be inhaling sand and surf at Lanikai.
Ed keeps his houseguests happy by switching up the weekly entertainment.
Stop by one Friday and you might hear a smooth DJ mix of little-heard hip-hop, reggae and funk grooves. Drop in the next week and you might find a live band like Four
Elements or Microscopic Syllables working the party.
When we stopped by, the evening's instantly inviting soundtrack was being set by reggae/hip-hop band East Side Wrecking Crew. The enthusiastic gathering easily filled the Fox & Hound's confines, most of them happily moving to East Side's comfortably laid-back music.
Moving past our table with a quartet of Heinekens, host Ed smiled and nodded when the beach house analogy was mentioned.
"I just wanted to put together an event with a mellow vibe where the cool people could just relax, enjoy themselves and listen to some good music," said Ed.
Congratulations, Ed. Your secret's safe with me.
Got a night spot or club event we should check out? Reach Derek Paiva at dpaiva@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8005.
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'Shh ... Don't Tell Anybody'
Where: Fox & Hound Pub & Grub, 4614 Kilauea Ave., 738-5655.
When: 10 p.m. — 2 a.m., Fridays
Cover: $5.
Younger than 21 OK? No.
Age of crowd: 20s-30s.
Dress code: None.
Attire we saw: Casual. On men: print and solid tees, aloha shirts, polos, jeans, shorts, baseball and skullcaps, sneaks. On women: tanks, camisoles, blouses, peasant blouses, tube tops, jeans, skirts.
Our arrival/departure: 11:30 p.m./1:30 a.m.
What we drank: Absolut cranberry, cosmopolitan ($9); Guinness Extra Stout ($4.50).
Peak crowd while there: About 75 -100.
Queue?: No.
Dancing?: Yes.
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Night notes ...
Label Publicity Group impresario Giorgio launches his aptly named SkyyBar weekly on Saturday in an equally apt location for his brand of tastefully grand and upscale partying. Thirty floors above the metropolis, SkyyBar's debut Sheraton Waikiki Hanohano Room event will feature DJs (Silviana, Leo, Jonathan), art work (Hanae Wakura, Nelani Rasmussen) and a fashion showcase by students of UH-Manoa's fashion design program. Future Skyybar outings promise masquerade themes and burlesque shows. Can't wait. Entry is $10 and doors open at 10 p.m.
Wave Waikiki's BsIDE underground hip-hop party invades the territory of The Pussycat Lounge next week with two evenings of exceptional freestyle, spoken word, rap and turntable work. Special-guesting will be Mush Record artists Busdriver and Radioinactive pairing as The Weather, AWOL One and Andre Afram Asmar. The Monday show is all ages from 4 to 9 p.m.; Tuesday, 18 and older, doors open at 10 p.m.
And check out "Black-I" Sound Reinforcement, a new warehouse-style hip-hop/reggae party at Fidel's (808) Studio. It's tucked in Old Cannery Row at 500 Ala Kawa St., across from Home Depot. 21 and over. Fridays from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
