Hawaii: Part II - A Review of the Soundtrack to the End of the World
Rating: 10/10
When the earth takes its final breath, the only thing deserving the title “soundtrack of the end of the world” is Hawaii: Part II. Hauntingly beautiful, the album by Miracle Musical transcends what can be called music.
After making the Tally Hall albums Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum and Good & Evil, band member Joe Hawley, with collaborations from other members Rob Cantor, Zubin Sedghini, and Ross Federman, created Miracle Musical. Hawaii: Part II was released on December 12, 2012 at 12:12 am, which was widely regarded as the day the world would be “no more”, referencing the end of the Mayan calendars. Alas, humanity didn’t cease to exist, but it would’ve been a perfect way to end things off.
Hawaii: Part II is a story about a man named Simon. It’s a story about love, life, torture, insanity, and death.
The first chords and harmonies of Introduction to the Snow are heavenly. The vocals have a warmth that is amplified by Hawley’s use of an old telemarketer-style headset microphone. The introduction signals that Simon has arrived in Hawaii.
The gentleness of the introduction of the album flows seamlessly into the second song, “Isle Unto Thyself”, where the slow, calming chords are suddenly contrasted with drums that pick up the tempo and shift to something more upbeat. Simon met a woman and fell madly in love with her, which is encapsulated in the exciting drum beat and heart-singing back vocals.
Behind Madi Diaz’s spiritual singing, “Black Rainbows” has Hawaiian chants repeating colors, demonstrating that the love between Simon and his lover is true and more complex than one color. However, the name “Black Rainbows” and the more minor tone in “White Ball” add a sense of unsettlement.
“Murders” begins with loud, powerful chords that completely throws you off from the gentleness of “White Ball”, beginning Simon’s tragedy. Simon finds his lover dead, murdered, in a forest, his anguish represented by the forceful chords. Arpeggios up and down minor chords repeat over and over, getting louder and louder until a slow chord progression is left. Who murdered his lover?
The 6th song in the album translates to “Space Station Level 7”. The song begins with trumpet-adjacent sounds and ascending major chords with symphonic-level percussion. The sounds quiet, leaving Bora Karaca’s Japanese vocals and gentle guitar. The music then swells again to the beautiful mix of piano, trumpet, and percussion with the word “heaven” sung angelically. Simon’s lover made it to heaven.
“The Mind Electric” begins with the end of the song. The entire song is first played reversed, then again, normally. Simon is accused of murdering his lover and he pleads insanity in hopes of being let off easy. However, the court sends to an asylum where they treat him with electro-shock therapy. The broken composition and spiraling arpeggios makes you feel like you are slowly going insane alongside Simon.
Rap doesn’t seem like it fits into this album, yet “Labyrinth” is a rap featuring Simon’s feelings about being trapped in his own mind. He wants to escape, but the electric guitar notes seem mocking. The only thing he can do is revisit his memories, but it only jumbles up his mind more.
In “Time Machine”, Simon longs for the ability to go back in time. The synth-sounding voice and happy progressions show his recount of his memories with his lover and his longing for that time.
Finally freed from the asylum, Simon has spent so long in his head he’s forgotten his lover’s death. In “Stranded Lullaby”, the piano is quiet and gentle but melancholic. You can feel Simon’s loneliness. He thinks his lover is still alive and goes out to sea to search for her to fill the emptiness in his heart.
“Dream Sweet in Sea Major”. The most magnificent composition of all time. The entire song is light and gives you a sense of peace after the previous songs. There are different sections in the 7-minute-long song, ranging from flighty, to swinging, to French. Mentally unstable, Simon sails out trying to reach Hawaii, singing about how beautiful his lover is and the cherished time they will spend together. Still sailing, he mistakes the voice of a siren for the voice of his lover and crashes his boat and drowns. Finally, he and his lover are reunited in heaven and they sing goodbye to us. The ending of the song contains pulses of notes that layer together, growing until being suddenly cut off.
Hawaii: Part II isn’t just an album. It’s an experience. The most complex, beautiful, and closest thing you will experience to the end of the world.