Unity featured on the cover of the Scene

Finding Unity
Kai “Pita” Katobalavu enjoys the work of guitarist John “JZ” Zuleger during a Thanksgiving Eve performance at the Stone Toad in Menasha. Drummer Kelvin Ayres is in the background.
By embracing his Fijian roots, Unity’s frontman finds
Unity (noun): The state of being one;
oneness; absence of diversity.
weeklong tour of his native Fiji.
A good band is a perfect example of unity.
Each member has a separate identity,
circumstance and ego, yet when they come
together as a band, the individual members
become one, a unified whole working toward
the same end, whatever you want to call that
– the groove, the vibe, the sound.
Pita was surrounded by indigenous music
growing up in Fiji, and at 10 he was exposed
to Bob Marley and recognized a soulful
similarity between reggae and the music of
his home. A reggae disciple was born, but
one who had his own island roots music to
add to the mix.
Achieving that unity has been Kai “Pita”
Katobalavu’s goal, and now he believes he
at last has reached that goal with the latest
incarnation of savvy veterans who make up
his baby, Unity the Band.
He moved to Hawaii in 1988 with the
dream of pursuing music, which he did in
a band called the Polynesian Connection.
But in 2002 circumstances brought the
Pacific Island boy to a most unlikely place
– Wisconsin. And the next year formed the
first version of Unity the Band.
In fact, he feels so strongly about this band
that Pita is taking the band and a group of
fans to the other side of the planet for a
18 | SCENENEWSPAPER.COM | DECEMBER 2011
“It will be a trip of a lifetime,” he said.
Pita and his right hand man on bass, Jason “Red” Brown.
There have been diversions and missteps
along the way, but the last couple of years
everything has coalesced into a band he feels
comfortable fronting and bringing to his
village in Fiji because they get it. Pita says
two things helped put the band on this path
– his own reconnection with Fiji after being
away for a number of years, and bringing
on bass player Jason “Red” Brown, another
transplant to the area who brought his own
solid chops and musical connections to the
Fox Valley about the same time as Pita.
Brown settled here after meeting his future
wife from Appleton while on tour playing
bass with Hank III, a role he had filled for
seven years.
“When I wanted to make a big change, I got
Jason Brown,” Pita said. “He has a history of
weeding out the weak and bringing in strong
players. He said, ‘OK, let’s do it. This is how
you have to do it.’ We went step by step. We
found the right musicians, and now we’re
doing it. We have a really solid core.”
Brown had played bass with Unity in an
earlier incarnation before moving on to
other projects, such as Mudbone with Jay
Stulo, Rod Zimmerman and Greg Thiel.
He remembers it was during a Clambake
reunion at an Appleton club, “probably three
years ago this February, Pita walked in and
said ‘I’ve got some real players this time. You
want to try it again?’ I said, ‘I really want to
play. I don’t want any jokers. I want people
who really want this to rock.’ My philosophy
is always make music. If you put the music
first, it works. You can get a lot of stuff
wrong if you get the music right. I’ve seen
“Getting Kelvin (Ayres) on drums was
important. He and I bring a strong rhythm
section,” Brown said. “And Pita getting
serious about his roots. That’s something I
encouraged him to do. He never mentioned
his roots. His old band kept him oppressed.
You talk to him for two minutes, the guy
can’t be from Menasha. That was the thing
about Fiji. You’re from a place you should
be proud of. He took it to heart. Be proud
of your roots and advertise it. Let’s get this
band to Fiji, this place you call home.”
Brown is also responsible for bringing on the
band’s newest member, guitarist John “JZ”
Zuleger, who, it turns out, is responsible for
Brown’s Hank III connection.
“I’ve been playing with him (Brown) off
and on for 25 years, way before he got on
Hank III,” said Zuleger, who, like Brown, is
a California native.
Percussionist Jeremy “Chunk” Schroetter is the only member of Unity to have been in the
band since Pita started it in 2003.
it so many times. Guys do everything right,
but the music stinks. So we went for the
music and we won the WAMIs two years in
a row. (The Wisconsin Area Music Industry
recognized Unity as best reggae/world/ska
band for 2010 and 2011.)
“You gotta make a buzz happen, and then
you’ve gotta back it up. You’ve got to deliver,”
Brown said. “I think we’re finally starting to
get that spirit as a group, and we’re playing
bigger venues. You can feel it starting to
happen.”
Brown said a few things were key to putting
the band on the right track, not the least of
which is Pita’s indefatigble work ethic.
“I am always impressed with his work ethic.
That’s really what has kept Unity going all
these years,” Brown said. “He may be one
of the best booking agents around. He just
stays on the telephone and makes things
happpen.”
Another key was nailing down the allimportant rhythm section.
Zuleger had a gig in Branson, Mo., in the
mid 1990s when he got a call from Brown.
“He called me up and said ‘Hey, what’s going
on in Branson?’ I said, ‘Come to Branson.
You’ll get a decent gig.’ Hank Tricephus – as
they call him in Nashville – was doing songs
of his grandfather in Branson. He goes and
gets a show with him and starts doing Hank
III.”
“Yeah,” Brown takes up the story. “Went to
play with JZ’s band and met up with Hank
III. He was green, green as can be, 22 years
old. I started playing with him in Willie
Nelson’s old theater. That was it, man, moved
SCENENEWSPAPER.COM | DECEMBER 2011 |
19
back to Nashville with him and kept doing
it with him for a long time.”
About the same time that Brown hooked
up with Tricephus in 1995, Zuleger began
an 11-year run with Doug “The Ragin’
Cajun” Kershaw, and more recently earned a
reputation in Houston for tasty blues playing
and nasty slide work. His experience shows
in guitar work that is a joy to hear.
The final piece of this musical puzzle is
saxophonist/keyboardist Tom Jones, another
Appleton transplant with musical roots in
Houston.
This is the band that Pita wants to present
to his family and fellow Fijians during the
fan tour, which will include plenty of music
making. Pita has made trips home annually
for the past couple of years, but more to
reconnect with family and friends than to
make music.
“Usually when I go on vacation I am
reserved. I just want to spend time with my
family,” he said. “This will be the first time
for me to go home and play. I wanted to let
people there know what I’m doing.”
And he wanted to bring loyal fans along
to experience the beauty and culture of his
home.
“Despite all this modernization – Fiji and
the Pacific has changed a lot – they still hold
onto their culture. Our culture is very intact
yet. I want to take people from Wisconsin to
see that culture,” he said. “I’m going to take
people to my village to meet the natives and
see our customs. They’ll get to see how the
natives live. It’s a little bit different. One day
of the trip is taking the whole group down
to see my village. It’s going to be interesting.
We want to make it special.”
“I’m hoping we pick up a lot of flavor there,
picking up some of the traditional music and
really come back with an experience,” Brown
said.
Pita hopes the Fiji Fan Tour is so successful
that he can lead his band and an enthusiastic
group of fans to Fiji annually, or at least
every two years.
Tom Jones has played sax and keyboards with Unity since 2010.
“It’s already a good deal, $2,500 for a whole
week. That’s really cheap with airfare and
food and everything else included. It’s a
good deal,” he said.
For more on Unity the Band and its fan tour
to Fiji, visit unitytheband.com or the Fox
World Travel site for the tour, gofox.com/
promos/unity-band-fiji-vacation.php. n
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A view of the pool at the Sofitel Fiji Resort and Spa on Denarau Island where Unity the Band
is taking fans for a cultural expedition to frontman Kai “Pita” Katobalavu’s home.
Fiji Fan Tour
Two tour options are offered for the March
29, 2012, Fiji Fan Tour with Unity the Band.
There is a five-day, double occupancy package at the five-star Sofitel Fiji Resort and
Spa, running $2,459, and a seven-day package at $2,979. All rooms face the Pacific
Ocean.
Pita said. “There is nowehere else in the
world as beautiful as the Fiji Islands. This
will change their life. It’s one of the most
beautiful islands in the world. The people
are the friendliest you will ever meet on the
planet. Great beaches. Some of the best diving spots in the world, and surfing, too.”
The trip includes a daylong visit to Pita’s village, where the tour will be exposed to the
native traditions and music.
Fox World Travel is handling the tour details. For more information, visit the website,
http://www.gofox.com/promos/unity-bandfiji-vacation.php. n
“I really want people to come to my island,”