hands_on_lanzon
Well-known member
I can explain. *Faces the choir to start preaching
I've recently fallen pretty hard for Ko'olau, acquiring two tenors since December. Serious keepers and my "house-on-fire ukes" for sure. Well, interest bounced around some and @Patty was chatting with me about Ko'olau concerts and it planted a seed in my head and got me looking (this forum is a dangerous place for recovering uke'aholics, if you haven't found that out already). It turns out that Ko'olau concerts aren't too easy to find and one shop in Osaka happened to have two of em... and it just so happened that I had a trip planned to Osaka.
Well, the scheming started with emails to the owner, Kenichi, and ended up with me visiting on my very first day in Japan and walking back to the hotel with a new/used Ko'olau concert!!The shop is called Basis Records/Ukulele Gallery and the owner, Kenichi, is complete and utter uke'aholic as well. In our email correspondence, he let me know that he's basically a one man shop and doesn't really deal with US based clients due to shipping and language barriers. Most all of our communication was via Google Translate (thank the uke gods for technology)... both on emails and in-person. When you walk downstairs to his store, you're greeted with an amazing display of high end ukes... tenors on one wall including three custom Ko'olau, a Grimes, a Graziano, and some Japanese builders Toda, Kou, and Lotus Acoustics . The other side had sopranos and concerts... including the two Ko'olau and plenty of Japanese built customs... a Hiyase, Kou, Toda. There were a few more on the back wall, including a couple G-Strings and others I can't recall. Below the class table in the middle were some vintage models, including a 1940's Martin soprano.
If that collection didn't already set you off, this maniac also has dozens of sets of raw wood for future builds... mainly koa. What collectors do you know have their collection of raw koa?! It turns out he has great connections with all of the builders he collects and sells, so he often supplies them with his own sets of wood! I mean.. how many places will you find five custom Ko'olau in the same room? Well, it's a room that Corey and Kalei have both played in, where the owner has known the HMS team for maybe close to a decade and has spent plenty of time in Hawaii, working with Noa and Steve Grimes. I could already feel like I was in a special place.
When I asked to play a few ukes, Kenichi brought out each one and polished it off and tuned it up, then placed it on a large table where he had a large piece of leather laid out, to protect the ukes. It was like a nicely curated boutique feel, where he was handing me any ukes I asked for and I could just feel, hear, and compare them all. I tried the two Ko'olau concerts, a Toda concert, and two Kou concerts. For tenors, I played my first ever Grimes and HO-LEE MO-LEE did it sound good. Warm, sweet and balanced! Lucky for me and my wallet, I knew I wasn't after a tenor, having my two Ko'olau back at home.
The concerts was really no contest, except for a bit of troubled history. I'll start with the other very nice ukes, in their own rights. I played my first milo uke, in the Toda and it had a nice feel to it and a balanced sound, on the warmer side. I played two Kou and they were both very clean, crisp, and on the brighter side. The new Ko'olau is from 2023 and was quite loud, clean, clear and bright... but this older Ko'olau stole my heart. The voice was warm and sweet... and you can tell it's was a bit more open or just something different about it. It just rang. I will say all, of the concerts were in high-G, and I'm much more used to low-G. But you could still feel the sweetness and warmth for sure.
About this one... it was built by Noa Bonk and John Kiitakis... Noa (and Andrew's) dad... the man who started it all with Ko'olau. Kenichi told me that the bridge had popped off, mainly because of the top warping/bellying caused by the bracing pattern. This uke has no vertical bracing, similar to a vintage Martin, so there's a bit of a belly just above the bridge. Kenichi worked with another builder to re-shape the bridge to match the top profile and re-attach it. It has been secure and stable for the last five years and it's been played throughout. That bracing pattern makes it sounds SO different than the rest of the ukes I tried that day and it feels different than any other concert I played. I couldn't let this be one of those that got away, so I pulled the trigger.
The deal was a bit strange, as I'm traveling and he didn't feel comfortable shipping to the states... CITES this and that, plus customs etc etc. So I had to find a way to take it home with me... and I've been traveling with my tenor Outdoor uke. (See my posts about having to actually check-in a uke with VietJet Air... ugh). I'm traveling light, with just a backpack and a uke, so I didn't want to lug around two. So I ended up leaving my Outdoor Uke with Kenichi, and as a trade, he was FAR TOO KIND and installed a set of Gotoh tuners for me to replace the old friction tuners the concert had. He also gave me a smaller hard shell case that turns out to be a perfect fit INSIDE the tenor Fusion gig bag I was using for the Outdoor Uke. I'm positive I won't have to check in the uke on our last flight back to the states, but with this case in bag, I can feel pretty secure that it'll be safe if that madness does happen. I think, if they really tried to pull that at the gate, I would just remove the hard shell case and re-pack the gig bag with randomness and DEMAND that I take the concert on as a carry-on.
OK.. i feel your angst with all these words and not enough pics, (if you haven't already skipped it all and scrolled down)... here are some pics... of my new concert baby!!
What a great setup.... perhaps a future travel idea. Hard shell case inside of a gig bag!
It looks a bit too orange in this pic... it's really a blonde koa.. see next pics.
The blonde
Not sure what I see on the back, but ima post it on the Backs thread and get some feed'back'
The label with John and Noa. I love how the shell looks greenish
I love how the inlay is hand-made and not cut by a laser. The imperfections add to its beauty, for me.
Tortoise shell binding on the top, back, aaaaand fretboard! I thought that was a cool touch. I don't know how to tell if tortoise shell is real, but I'm assuming it's not.
Went with the Gotoh UPTs in the same color scheme as the original friction tuners... but Kenichi said that this button shape is no longer available, his last set, and the most expensive ones he had in stock. He's too nice!!! AND HE INSTALLED THEM FOR ME!!!
As he installed the tuners, he let me play whatever ukes I wanted, as he knew it was gonna take a while. I needed to play a tenor, to fulfill my low-G needs and it has to be a Ko'olau. I asked him which he would pick and he said, for sound... the Spruce. He. was. not. wrong. Again, for my wallet, I was glad I had already paid for the concert and he was reaming out the headstock to replace the tuners (did I mention how thin that headstock is!?). The spruce was a complete canon. Utter beast of a uke and made me miss mine back at home... but also happy knowing it was there!!
It turns out, Kenichi is also a music producer and has a bunch of CD's and records. He put on some videos of some the bands he produces and also played a CD of Ron Artis II, which he also produced. So good! We talked about the HMS crew and he showed me some videos he had of Corey and Kalei playing in the very seat I was sitting in. He told me which ukes they liked of the Japanese builders, so I had to try one of those as well. The Lotus Acoustic tenor was LOUD!!! I could see why Corey would like something like that. It has the power to sing out in a solo, but with the right touch, the insane responsiveness can be controlled to a sweet gentle tone. I do not possess that touch at all times, so it was a lot for me to handle.
The concert... once Kenichi had the Gotohs on... strung up with a low G... well... it kinda blew us both away. We had smiles and nods and "yesssss... very good sound!" I can attack this thing and strum with all my might and the balance is all there and the tone is all there. Then you back off and play the sweetest fingerstyle you've ever heard. (i just let out a big sigh as I typed that). As my wife and I have been walking around Osaka the last couple days, I sometimes think about being back at the hotel with the uke. (is that wrong?! hahahahhaha... is this an emotional affair?! don't tell her. Can you tell I'm writing this with a Suntory highball in me?). I better stop before I reach the character limit, if I haven't already (big shoutout to Tim and the UUF Admin crew!)
I was working on an entry for the Seasons today, but wasn't getting a recording that seemed to give the uke its justice. I think the hotel room walls bounce too much noise or I'm just being picky. Anyways... it'll come when the time is right. Til then, I'm keeping this sweet sound for me and my wife.
I will add, my wife was surprisingly accepting of this uke! Maybe it's the vacation or maybe the sweet tone won her over, or the fact that she's met the HMS/TUS crew and I told her it was made by Andrew's dad... either way... I'll take it! She also told me I need to sell two ukes, since I got this one... i told her "nope! Just one! I already traded the plastic Outdoor uke to Kenichi!" (what. a. schemer.
) shhhhhhhh don't wake her... it's 2am and she's sound asleep.if you've made it this far, I hope all your uke dreams come true!!!!
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and give us a sound sample. 
Oh, and thanks for locating this uke for me; been looking everywhere! 
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