Ngāti Hikairo represents: Damian Porima plays his first gig with Katchafire

“I played my first gig with Katchafire at the weekend in Malborough to an audience of around 2,000 people.  I was a little nervous because it was my first outing with the band.  I had a month to learn all of their waiata, as well as two 5 hour practice sessions with the band and that, sealed it for me to know what I was doing.”

For 49-year-old Damian Porima, it all started on the marae at Waipapa.  But from an early age, life has been full of challenges for the Ngāti Hikairo muso.

“I stayed with Mum in Hamilton until I was 10.  I was the youngest of 4 brothers but Mum was struggling with alcohol and booked herself into Hamner Springs.  That’s when I went to live with Dad and Lynn in Kāwhia.”

Damian was in his formative years and life was cruisy as a young teenager growing up in Kāwhia, playing with the cuzzies at the pā and then down to the wharf for a swim each day until Dad laid down the challenge.

“Dad started up a music module at the marae and hauled us all in, all the cousins and local rangatahi.  Man, he was hard but that’s how it all started really hanging out with Dad at the pā attending his music module and then shooting off for a swim each day.  What a life!”

Then Dad laid down the second challenge for the budding musician.

“Dad said it was time for me to broaden my skill base and learn how to read and play to music and he took me to my first music teacher, a lady in Ōpārau.  As soon as that finished he sent me on to another male music teacher in Te Awamutu.

And that was the crucial start Damian Porima needed to kick start his career.

”Dad tried to get me to read music and play but I’d play by ear and read music.  Most of the time though, we played by ear.  Many of my Māori muso mates are like that.  We play by ear and go by feel.”

While the effort to read music, took a back seat, extended family played an important role in launching Damian’s career.

Graham Murch

“I got my first break from Graham Murch, a cousin in Cambridge who started up a band and took me under his wing.  Graham opened the door for me to the muso world where I met Ronnie Taylor.

Ronnie Taylor

Ronnie was one of the finest blues singers of this generation from Atlanta, Georgia.  Midge Marsden, also a kiwi blues guitarist brought Ronnie to New Zealand and he was an inspiration for me, teaching me a lot I know today about the blues.”

Cher:

“I played with a lot of cover bands and show bands in Australia and one of my highlights was the tribute to Cher, playing the casino circuit in OZ for 6 weeks.”

Tasty Brown:

“I cut a couple of albums with Tasty Brown, a reggae / R & B band from Hamilton.  I was with them for 8-9 years.”

Adam Whauwhau:

“I also cut a couple of albums with musical maestro Adam Whauwhau from Waikato,  Te Reo Māori Kaiako at Te Aho o Te Kura Pounamu.  He says teaching is his profession, music is his passion and sports keep him sane.  He has two children Rākai-Hākeke and Māhaki and Te Reo Māori is their first Language.”

Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Larry Carlton & Joe Santriani

I grew up listening to legends like Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix while listening to Dad’s collection of music and they were a huge inspiration in my youth.  Larry Carlton and Joe Satriani, both white musos from the U.S.A were also lead guitarists who influenced my taste in music.

George Benson:

”But it was George Benson of course who was one of my favourites.  He had the black sound technique down pat.  Breezin is in my top list of waiata.”

Ashley Puriri:

“Ashley was one of the first Opera Singer style soloists, I played for.  He was our Barry White impersonator back in the day and he started up a show band that travelled the world on cruise ships where he performed a Barry White concert for about 25 years.  He developed the niche because his voice sounded like the late American musician.  He often said he was the only one in the world that was endorsed by Barry White’s family doing Barry White.”

While Damian's career has been influenced by the best in the music industry of blues and R & B, the road to realising his dreams was fraught with challenges.     

In the middle of a gig at Turangawaewae a few years back, Damian collapsed on stage and was rushed to hospital with heart complications.  It was only a matter of time when the muso’s life-threatening heart failure reared its ugly head again.

Operation:

“It all happened in the middle of Covid in April this year.  I was at home when I suffered a bleeding Aorta so I was rushed to hospital.  I had a big operation for a torn aorta, the main artery that carries blood away from my heart to the rest of my body, brain and muscles.  I had 4 operations and they tell me I died 3 times.  They cut one of my vocal cords which has affected my ability to sing backing vocals and I also have tubing in the side of my neck. But I was on the road to recovery when this opportunity came along while I was at home resting to help my body and mind heal.”

Katchafire:

“Given my health challenges, I have been blessed to get this gig and deliver for the band.  I’m getting healthy by the day on my way back to leading a normal life.  My aim is to get the type of mahi that allows me to work around the band, that allows me to play and take it all in gig by gig.” 

“One of the resident guitarists was anti-vax so he stepped down.  Leon Davey plays percussion instruments for the band and we’ve played together over the years so he put my name forward to Logan, the leader of the band and he gave me the job.  We’re all musos and they have known me for years and know my history in the business.  Let’s wait and see how it unfolds”

“The most important thing for me in my first outing with the band this weekend was to deliver on the night and honour the musos I play with.  I’m extremely thankful and humbled by the opportunity to play with the band.”

“There were 2000 + people vaxxed on the inside and the non-vaxxed had to sit outside the gates and listen from there.  These are difficult times with legal Covid protection measures.  But at least everyone got a good dose of the Katchafire brand ringing around the venue wherever fans were sitting.” 

Dad:

I owe everything to Dad.  Yeah, he was hard.  He’s always been like that because he’s passionate about music.  If you want to achieve, then his mantra was to learn the skills, put in the time and learn from the best. I probably wouldn’t be a muso if it wasn’t for Dad because I picked up a lot from his music module at the pā.

My tamariki:

Covid has created downtime for me to heal with my kids.  I have my 3-year-old boy Elijah and my 5-year-old daughter Aliyah with me now after raising 4 kids now adults aged 22, 31 & 32 and another boy 22.  My kids are my world.  I live for them to be healthy and strong.  At 49 I’m a bit more patient now raising the two youngest. They’re who I live for.”

Next gig with Katchafire:

“ My next gig with Katchafire is in Tauranga next week on the 29th December 2021.  We’re lined up with Scribe, the Samoan rapper, Shapeshifter, one of Aotearoa's premiere live drum and bass/dance music acts and Fat Freddy’s Drop, a seven-piece band from Wellington, internationally regarded as one of the world’s finest live draws.  See you there!