Nalani & Sarina deliver musical joy beyond their years
Musical identical mirror twins Nalani & Sarina dropped their voices to a whisper as if they were about to disclose the secret of the universe.
“We don’t say our ages generally,” they offered simultaneously.
Understandable because if forced to reveal their life journey in years, the power couple might confess their eternal lives as spiritual world travelers, in existence since the beginning of time, related to Greek mythological Gemini cohorts Castor and Pollux.
Perhaps 2nd century AD astronomer Ptolemy watched them race through the Cosmos.
Nalani and Sarina this time around had a shortterm residence as babies birthed in Trenton then returning to their hometown of Flemington, remained in place long enough last Thursday night to deliver a universal message of inclusion.
Nalani & Sarina surged as undercard performers for the sixth installment of the Levitt AMP Trenton Music Series at Mill Hill Park.
With rich vocal harmonies, accentuation of their genetically composed connection, Nalani & Sarina offered a powerful message that offered invitation into humanity.
Their socially conscious invitation which connected with a newly-released CD “The Circle” attempted connection with people disenfranchised. The song’s hook notes “You can be part of the circle, you can be part of the change.”
“We’re not trying to force our opinions on people. Our words and ideas seek to make people think and to consider other perspectives. A lot of our writing deals with social issues,” Sarina explained.
“We wrote “The Circle” together. Acutally, every song we compose has a part of both of us in it. We wanted this song to inspirational, especially considering the current mood of the country. We wanted it to be positive, to encourage people to find their power.”
Nalani and Sarina delivered a high-energy performance, well-received by a sparse Mill Hill crowd. They define themselves as soul-rock performers with a musical repertoire that includes a variety of instruments including keyboard, guitar and ukulele. Yet, they have been touched by Bob Dylan, “and raised on folk music that made us socially aware, of what’s going on out in the world,” Nalani offered.
“Our mom gave us Dylan or newspaper clippings about social protests. I remember hearing “Blowin’ in the Wind” for the first time and it just gave me such perspective. You know, Dylan said he wrote and attempted to capture what was going on in his time. And then when you circle back to his songs, the messages parallel issues we see in the country and the world today.”
Nalani and Sarina penned music that reflects their lives as young women but their insights resound with “old soul” wisdom. They laughed simultaneously.
“Just about everybody says that about us,” the twins acknowledged.
The Circle includes a diverse set of songs that exposes their experiences with trying to find success in the music business and staying true to their core values. Songs include perspectives on love, obsession and yielding to the mundane trappings of life.
From the opening “Pretty Lies” to “Young and Inexperienced” and the final offering of “Tomorrow and Yesterday”, Nalani & Sarina deliver a tour de force of passion and perception.
Their final original song “Break of Dawn” for the Levitt AMP, delivered another surprise as the music morphed into a collective of Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and Chuck Berry.
Cheers to these music travelers who trained in classical piano as children then performed opera in high school.
Now, disguised as 25-year-old music merchants, they offer timeless insights about life.
L.A. Parker is a Trentonian columnist.