A Musical Locale

story by Gunner Stuns, photos by Tyler Diltz, design by Zoey Ryan

The strum of guitar sends a shock wave of adrenaline through your body. A powerful voice rocks your ears. All around you, a crowd bounces up and down, each enthusiast exploding with the same energy that has you tapping your foot, clapping your hands and cheering with all you can muster. The flow of jams, the roar of excitement all around you, it feels completely electric. You promise yourself that you’ll never forget how it felt to see your first live performance by an up-and-comer.
It could come as a surprise to some that Ellensburg comes rife with a scene of local musical artists, many of which are just hitting their first stride. PULSE had the opportunity to sit down with some of these musicians and listen as they spun tales of how they got started, what their music means to them, their creative process and how it feels to be a musician in the internet age.

Lily Kealoha’s Expression

“I love music. Music has been one of the most constant things in my life,” says Lily Kealoha, music education major. When they were growing up, Kealoha spent a lot of time moving from place to place, making it difficult to keep friends. Because of this, they consider music one of their oldest and most consistent companions. According to Kealoha, their draw to music was very natural, citing their Hawaiian heritage as a big inspiration for engaging with the art form. “...I have a very big family and a lot of my family members play or sing,” Kealoha says. “It was a way for me to connect and keep with my family in a way that I hadn't been able to before.”
That was how it started for them. Now, Kealoha is sharing their passion for music with the world, having started recording songs to post online in 2023. Though their work is now in the public eye, open to interpretation and scrutiny, Kealoha isn’t put off by these things. “It's been a really interesting experience,” says Kealoha on the subject of receiving feedback. “Overall, very positive.” They go on to add that most online spaces have been welcoming of smaller creators in their experience and they’ve even received constructive criticism so that they can continue to improve. “I'm very open to listening to [criticism] because, hey, if you hear something that I can't and then I go, you're right, then that's something that I can improve on” Kealoha says. Occasionally though, especially online, they encounter those whose criticism is aimed towards tearing them down rather than helping build them up. Despite that, Kealoha is undeterred, paying those types no mind and moving on.

But what makes music so important in Kealoha’s life that they’re so determined to keep creating? The answer is simple; self-expression. “...Usually it's a way for me to just get my feelings out instead of bottling them up,” says Kealoha. Though they don’t consider there to be a central message to any of their songs, but listeners take anything away, they want it to be that we all struggle sometimes and that there is no shame in that. “We are all going through shit and I feel like talking about it's very important, but also being honest with your emotions is very important,” Kealoha says. “I feel like my expression through music is me admitting mostly that I'm doing these things and it's not a good thing. I shouldn't be doing this, but I am because that's being human.” True to that idea is “Back Roads”, a song that Kealoha wrote towards the end of their relationship with their last partner, particularly when they could “feel the relationship was dying.” The song expresses emotions that have resonated with several others according to Kealoha. “I get a lot of good responses whenever I perform it live and whenever I post a video about it,” says Kealoha. “And it's just a very fun song for me to sing.”
When it comes to encouraging new musicians, Kealoha’s advice is simply to get started. “If you're thinking about it, just start doing it. Even if it's not the greatest thing ever. It's not going to be,” Kealoha says. “The first songs that you write, you're going to look back on and go ‘God, how the hell did I think that sounded good at all?’ But the more that you do it, the better you're going to do.” Another piece of advice they shared was to take inspiration from other musicians, sharing that they feel it makes one’s music better and can even elevate the material you were inspired by. When it comes to improving your music, Kealoha feels that one of the best ways it can be done is to expand your taste and horizons. “I feel like the best way to improve is to get out of your comfort zone,” says Kealoha. “Listen to artists that you normally wouldn't listen to. Listen to your friend's recommendations. Try and find things that you can love in everything that you do.”

Readers can follow Kealoha’s music @lily.kimo.kealoha on TikTok, YouTube and Instagram. 

A Moment With Manta

Gus Crane and Dylan Alm, co-founders of the band Manta, have known each other and been jamming together since middle school. However, their musical journeys started in different places. “I started playing instruments in sixth grade,” says Crane. “ I came down to [my] basement and there was a bass guitar and a banjo. I thought the bass guitar made me look cooler than the banjo. So pretty much ever since then I've been playing.” Crane cites the COVID pandemic as when he began writing music and experimenting with different guitars. Alm on the other hand got his start with music a year or two later than his bandmate. “I was gifted my first guitar when I was 14, I think,” Alm says. His uncle is a luthier, someone that makes guitars,  which is where the instrument came from. “Just having that piece of equipment [boosted] me forward into trying to really make something with it instead of just learning cover songs and stuff like that.” Once the pair of them were in high school, they became more serious about starting a band and officially formed Manta once they’d graduated, deciding that they’d riffed enough to start making songs together. 

Since then, Manta has produced and performed several songs. But, what motivates them to create? For Crane and Alm, it’s a celebration of self-expression. “It's more about self expression, almost [in] like a performance art sense,” says Crane. “I have a lot of pent up stuff that needs to get out.” But beyond simply expressing themselves, Crane and Alm want to encourage others to do the same with their own projects. On the topic of what they hope listeners will take away from their songs, Crane says “that it's okay to be loud and it's okay to have these kinds of inner feelings, but it's healthier to put them out in a way that is nonviolent.” Alm echoes those same sentiments, but adds some of his thoughts on what else he wants people to take away from Manta’s songs. “I think just being yourself,” says Alm. “[Having] confidence to be yourself and to stick to your vision. And like if you have a creative idea,  put it out there. [There’s] no point in not putting it out.” Manta aims to express these ideas through their style of genre blending, combining different elements of punk, alternative rock and metal. However, the two of them also feel that each of their songs sound different from one another and have identities of their own. 

However, there are some challenges that come with being in a band and creating music. According to Crane, chief among these challenges is writer’s block. “Sometimes we get in and neither of us really have ideas or like just one of us has ideas and the other one doesn't,” Crane says. Another challenge that they face often is timing, which Crane admits is probably the biggest struggle for any band, which Alm readily agrees. “For any band, I think scheduling is the hardest thing. Just getting there, finding the time, the right time to [perform.]” 

Manta also performs live at different venues, most notably at “Old Skool’s.” However, despite playing in a band together, Crane and Alm have different levels of experience when it comes to live performance. “It has been a bit of a learning curve for sure,” says Alm on the subject of his getting into live performance more recently. “But each time we do it, I think we get tighter on the songs and more in sync.” Crane on the other hand has been in other bands before, so performing live is something he has more experience with than his bandmate. “It was very nerve wracking at first, but it became so rewarding to just get it out there and somewhat vainly, [to] have people coming up to you and  complimenting you on it and telling you that you're making cool stuff,” Crane says. Alm adds that even despite the nerves that can come with it, performing for an audience is one of the most rewarding experiences that he’s ever had and gets to continue having show after show. “When I’m playing a good show, there’s no better feeling,” says Alm.

Manta’s musical exploits can be found on their Instagram page @mantabandpnw