Ghosts Of the Sidewalk

Maui Weekly

Thursday, June 28, 2007
Ghosts of the Sidewalk

Formerly homeless punk rockers help food banks.

The Maui punk rock band, (Order Of The) White Rose, joined forces with O‘ahu’s Hawaiian Express records and released a collectable seven-inch single entitled Ghosts of the Sidewalk in mid-June. All sales proceeds will be donated to the food banks of O‘ahu and Maui.

A former homeless person himself, guitarist Stephen Hart said, “I wanted to take a negative experience and turn it into a positive experience. I would rather be a band that gave back to the community than one who just tries to become famous and pal around with Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.”

When asked why he chose to use an older format to release the songs, he said, “Seven-inch singles are very collectable and very tactile—they’re fun to hold. Plus, with the large hole, they can be played in the old-style jukeboxes.”

White Rose also hired the cartoonist Brian Walsby (Melvins, 7 Seconds) to draw the front cover, and up-and-coming artist Keith Rosson (Razorcake Magazine) drew the poster for the inside as well as designed the back cover art for the B-side, Seeds of Destruction.

“I look forward to raising awareness that there are a lot of people who are hurting here in Hawai‘i, we are not just a playground for the rich, nor are we to be forgotten. That is what the song Ghosts of the Sidewalk is all about,” Hart said. “I’m really happy to work with Jason Miller of Hawaiian Express Records, too. With his own history of living in a van outside a friends house, a 4-by-10 loft in a garage, and a converted lanai, he was as excited to do this project as I was, and we’re really happy with the way the single looks and sounds. I hope to do more projects with Jason in the future. Maybe we can have a punk rock food drive, too, and have barrels of food to drop off at the food banks at every show we play. That would be remarkable.”

The single is sold for $5 ppd and can be purchased through Hawaiian Express Records: P.O. Box 11871, Honolulu, HI 96828 or www.hwnexp.com.

Stephen Hart can be contacted at Steve@whiterosepunk.com.