Album Liner Notes

Unlike vinyl, liner notes have yet to make a comeback. Until they do, here are some album notes. We didn’t make any for the three singles we’ve got out. Because singles didn’t have notes. Remember? Click to jump to any album/EP.

Songs From Hawaii (2010)

This is a collection of songs well-known to island locals. We recorded these songs between 2003 and 2010.

Ulupalakua (Traditional) - Perhaps a strange choice for us vegetarians, this song celebrates ranch country on the island of Maui. It’s a fun song, though :) talking about the biting wind, and the paniolo, the Hawaiian word for cowboy.

Waikiki Hula (Traditional) - This song was written as a gift, to laud the Waikiki vacation home of Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalaniana’ole.

Far Too Wide For Me (Patrick Downes) - First recorded and released by The Peter Moon Band in Hawaii, we remember this song was also used in a T.V. commercial for HawaiianTel and their long-distance phone service, years before we all started dealing with too much ‘screentime.’

Maunaloa (Traditional) - There’s a mountain on The Big Island called Mauna Loa. But this song is not about it. This is a break-up song. The last verse contains a line that can be translated as “now you just get out.” Fun!

E Pili Mai (Larry Kimura, Peter Moon) - A beautiful melody. “E pili mai” means “come close to me.”

KƍkeÊ»e (Dennis Kamakahi) - This is a song of love and praise centered on the island of Kauai.

Kuʻu Lei Awapuhi - LIVE (Traditional) - Taken from a live performance in Long Beach, CA in 2010. This is a love song. The call and response in the chorus can be roughly translated as “where are you?” and “here I am”

Wahine ʻIlikea - LIVE (Dennis Kamakahi) - This recording was drawn from a radio broadcast on Hawaii Public Radio in 2007. This song praises the island of Molokaʻi. Our arrangement of it is pretty peppy and fast, compared to most other versions of it.

Ka Manu - LIVE (Traditional) - This song was recorded live in one take. This is a haunting song that tells the tale of young love opposed by the lovers’ parents, on The Big Island of Hawaii. The lyrics are full of poetic metaphor: trembling leaves, gentle mists, and engulfing ocean waves.

Makena (2007)

It’s Too Late (Carole King, Toni Stearn) - Because we shared the same view of music’s place in our lives, we made the decision to forma partnership before we’d even heard how we sounded together. During one of Siena’s visits to her hometown of Honolulu, where Toast lived at the time, we took a test drive on this song
the first we ever did together.

Tell Me (Siena & Toast) - This is about the insecurities that sometimes follow us. We can be in an amazing relationship and deeply hope this is it, and yet our fears get in the way
until we wake up and realize everything is actually, beautifully fine.

Good Enough (Siena & Toast) - When the one you love inspires you to be a better person, not just for them, but for yourself as well, it’s a beautiful thing. Here’s to that desire in each of us.

Nobody Else (Daniel Ho, Corwin Hee) - Very sentimental for us, this was written by Daniel Ho, and was the first song the three of us performed together. It also became known a “The Thank You Song” by a group of loyal supporters who would show up every Tuesday night at the local coffee house where we first got our feet wet.

House at Pooh Corner (Kenny Loggins, Bridge: Siena & Toast) - We love this song for the gentle description of the bittersweet farewell to childhood. At the suggestion of a friend, we put our own spin on it by adding some Hawaiian lyrics. “Na mele o na ‘opio” means” The song of the children.”

Remembering Me (Siena & Toast) - This song took shape as we watched friends contemplate their relationship. So many end, sometimes prematurely, when we forget who we are.

That’s Why I Keep Keeping On (Siena & Toast) - We can feel put-upon and bogged down by the smaller incidents and struggles of life, only when we take our eyes off the greater picture for too long a time.

You (Siena & Toast) - Sometimes we’re so afraid of really telling someone how we feel. A lot of times we’re afraid of rejection, but maybe sometimes it’s more about letting go of the fantasies we have, of how we think life, or relationships, should be.

I Won’t Shed a Tear (Daniel Ho, Hope Mayo) - We were rehearing this song for a gig and about a week later, got a card from the neighbor thanking us for singing so loud. She was waiting that day to hear whether or not she had cancer; the song spoke to her and she was able to meet the doctor’s call with a stronger spirit (and the doctor’s new was cancer-free).

7 Days of Christmas (2007)

We grabbed a guitar and 'ukulele to wish you happy holidays in the good old-fashioned way, arranging and recording this collection in 7 days, out of our one-bedroom rental in Southern California.

Skyler Blue: The Living Room Sessions (2003)- Live Recordings

These songs we recorded live in one take, on one room mic, in the silence of after-midnights, in a cozy one-bedroom cottage. We lived one block up from Pacific Coast Highway, so had to wait for traffic to stop in order to record.

Unspoken (Siena & Toast) - This is what it sounds like when you love someone but can’t say it out loud.

Free (Siena & Toast) - A song about learning to let go, learning to set others, and yourself, free.

Beautiful The Night (Siena & Toast) - This melody feels like a fairy tale.

Wholly Enchanted (Siena & Toast) - A gentle beat, a groove, a loop, but all acoustic and human-powered. No looping or sampling machines.

Ain’t Wasting My Time (Siena & Toast) - A blues song (!) We use crumpled paper for the percussion sound.

Again It’s You (Siena & Toast) - Another blues/’50s style simple acoustic rock song. A fun, flirty one.