Spectrum’s Vesumona Tour concludes in Adelaide
By Ben Wheeler
Fiji’s Spectrum Collective has completed their performances at the Adelaide Fringe Festival. Now it’s time to reflect on their Vesumona Tour, and what was for most of them, their first international performances.
The opportunity for Spectrum to spread their message through music, art and the spoken word came through The Fiji Fringe Festival, where their show, Sema Mai, secured the ‘Adelaide Fringe Ready’ Award.
They are the first artists to represent Fiji at the Adelaide Fringe, a testament to the work that Sharleen Ali and The Festivals Company are doing to support the local creative and cultural industries.
But Spectrum’s journey from one Fringe to another was not easy.
“The amount of effort that went in behind the scenes to even get us to the airport alone cannot be understated,” says Spectrum manager Antonia Bhagwan. “It was a lot of work, and a lot of moving parts, but every show was worth it, and I’m so glad we had the opportunity.”
“At one point it was just this far off idea of what’s gonna happen,” emcee Atueta Rabuka explains. “The months flew by and we were on the plane, then on stage. It was an amazing experience altogether and I’m happy I spent it with these guys.”
Naiqama “Qams” Lalabalavu explains how everyone pulled together and wore many hats to make this dream a reality.
“As the drummer of the group I have also learned to become the sound engineer, somewhat the lighting director, somewhat the other sound engineer, the driver, the drunk babysitter, the playback engineer, the monitor engineer.”
In the background guitarist Ben Masirewa is giggling and shouting more suggestions, as Qams continues, “Communication, networking, merchandise… and that’s just the drummer.”
“And you still find time to drum?” I ask with mock incredulity.
“Pretty soon I’m gonna grow four more limbs, and have three kick drums!” he replies laughing. “That’s Spectrum!”
Tukini Tavui, the CEO for the Pacific Islands Council of South Australia, attended the opening gig at The Gov, as well as facilitating community outreach during the tour.
“It excites me to see a group of young people who are proud to represent themselves and the multi-layered connections they have across the Pacific Ocean,” he says.
“I was quite impressed with the style of music they play… quite alternative. Some of our Pacific Island communities who have attended their gigs have been impressed by their style and their taste. To see how they’ve brought that plethora of musical styles and genres together is very enjoyable for us.”
“When I hear the story about their focus and their objective to highlight that Fiji is not just the indigenous Fijians but that it’s a plethora of different DNAs and ethnicities, it’s really encouraging to see. It makes me very proud.”
Despite a wildly successful opening gig, the gang had a more trying time when they played at Finn McCool’s at The Norwood Hotel.
After an extensive soundcheck in which the venue tech crew and the band perfected the sound for the night, something went wrong when 4 Quarters took the stage and Masirewa’s lead guitar could not be heard. Ever professional, Qams, Phil Tigarea on bass, and Francisco Bhagwan on keys, improvised and extended the opening number as Ben tried to locate the issue.
After exhaustively checking leads and connections, he laid down his guitar to perform a rendition of Crazy “naked” as it were. Halfway through the number, however, he again tried to fix his faltering guitar, and this time, mid-song, something clicked into place and he delivered a blistering closing.
You can watch this version here.
It became a defining memory of the tour for me – cheeky and cheerful optimism and faith in the face of adversity, something one could argue is central to the Fijian character.
Of course, this would fly in the face of the whole ethos of the Collective, which rejects such essentialist notions and argues that Fijians, and by extension Pacific Islanders, have a complexity to their identity beyond the stereotypes the western world ascribes.
Before their last gig, the Collective is invited to visit Raukken, a historic Aboriginal community located some 80 kilometres outside of Adelaide, spiritual home of the Ngarrindjeri nation and birthplace of David Unaipon, who can be found on the Australian fifty dollar note.
He is famous for saying, “As a full-blooded member of my race I think I may claim to be the first — but I hope, not the last — to produce an enduring record of our customs, beliefs and imaginings.”
This is a phrase that our guide, Ngarrindjeri Elder Uncle Clyde Rigney refers back to time and again to draw attention to the importance of finding meaning in what we do.
“We’re all Pacific Islanders,” he explains. “We’re just on a bigger island called Australia. We’re not that far away from each other, we’re people of colour, we’re people that live in villages, we’re people that have always been fishermen, hunters and gatherers. We’re all connected through not only the land that we come from, but also the specific lore that binds us together. Our kinship and lineage and ancestry are all similar but different.”
Uncle Clyde uses his time with the Collective to teach local history and inspire them with stories of community, from his own life and the lives of others, of uplifting and finding strength to overcome adversity in the face of oppression and dislocation.
We all leave a little changed.
The final gig at The Vault, Fool’s Paradise is a triumph. Mercifully freed from technical problems, the Collective are able to display the full might of their roster as 4 Quarters, Vā and The Francisco Bhagwan Project deliver hit after hit to the assembled crowd.
For the finale the whole Collective takes to the stage for a rousing version of Pasifika Rising, based on a poem by Antonia Bhagwan. It begins:
We cannot be free in our own land
So long as we are force-fed by foreign hands
No longer shall we live by the lines that divide
Nourished by the tide, not colonial design
They raise flags of West Papua and New Caledonia, raise awareness of indigenous peoples struggling for independence, and as final gesture raise fists that show strength and empowerment through the stories they tell.
Their tour is complete. Their message has been heard.
“For me, I think I’m most proud of everyone in the team for their hard work over the past ten months to make this tour happen,” Francisco muses. “I’m grateful to all our family, friends, and supporters for getting us there.”
“Not only was it an amazing experience performing overseas for the first time, but we’ve all learnt so much – this tour is definitely the first of many more to come and I can’t wait to see what the future holds in store.”
“The whole trip was a hero’s journey, a quest,” Atueta adds. “The challenges, the guidance, the redemption. We actually did it, you know?”
They certainly did.
I believe the final words belong to Uncle Clyde.
“When you have a group like Spectrum come together, they’re one band, but each member of the band brings something very different. They’re bringing their specific gifts that they want to share with everyone. It’s like a community of people, everyone brings something. And it doesn’t matter where you live or which group or community you come from. We’re all important. We all bring something. And if you can realise that on your journey… well that’s fantastic.”
