EP Review: Aio

Aio - to be at Peace.

Aio is what we strive for in our own minds,

Aio is what nature is calling for and

Aio is what the world needs

Alright first, I’ll admit my Te Reo is pretty rough for someone who calls themselves a born and bred Kiwi. I personally hate this, and really wish that we were taught Te Reo as a compulsory subject in school in order to preserve our countries native language.

However, this isn’t a piece about me, and where I think our country could do better, instead this is a piece written for Huia, an Auckland artist, who’s EP Aio has just dropped. A quick glance over Huia’s artist page on Facebook makes me smile, as she lists her genre as ‘World Fusion/Soul/Reggae/Acoustic/Conscious’ – her band interests include ‘Happiness’ – and her influences are ‘You… the world and beyond.’

Aio itself is an absolute breath of fresh air in today’s music scene – a scene that (although I love) is often inundated with songs about getting lit, and having your heart broken – instead Huia leans more towards a perfect little blend of taking care of your inner self, and also of the natural world that we are surrounded by.

Described as ‘electro-haka’ – her sound is reminiscent of traditional Maori songs, but also borrows influences from several other genres. It conjures up such a beautiful peaceful feeling, that reminds me of the peace I feel wandering throughout our native land. So, I downloaded the EP to my phone, and went for a wander through the trees with my earbuds in – and whoa, that certainly taught me Aio.

Huia’s beautiful little interpretation of the world around her is deeply moving, inspirational, and a reminder to look after the earth we are given – all strong values of the Maori, and all strong values that we should remember in our day to day lives. I encourage you all to give it a little listen.