BY ERIN SMITH / Special to the Star-Advertiser

Throughout its course in popular culture, hip-hop music has largely been a vehicle for the voiceless, or for the unpopular stance. Sure, it may be hard to feel that way in 2015, when Kanye West is more antics and Balmain than substance, but I can’t fault a man for having impeccable tastes in blazers.

On the Honolulu scene, there are certainly a number of talented MCs and, as in any culture, state and city-center, a unique set of parameters that guide social structure, change and issues.

For Joel Spiral (née Joel Speier), formerly of Family Dinner, those issues center on finding one’s pinnacle self, overcoming personal adversity and finding balance in beauty.

Inspired by what he calls a “decade of mountain living,” it would seem that, like many, Spiral was drawn to the island chain (from Cincinnati, nearly 20 years ago), to reaffirm the positives in life from a place of profound beauty.

Love it or hate it, many people have moved to Hawaii for the same thing. When it comes to stimulation in Hawaii, nature wins by a long shot. And though the social commentary may be wrapped in aloha, there is something to be said for just being awestruck daily by the beauty around you. It’s a constant reminder of how good life actually is. That beats far edgier cities by leaps and bounds.

Spiral, a 2012 Na Hoku Hanohano Award nominee, will release his first solo album, “Magnetism,” on Saturday at the Ong King Art Center in Chinatown. Artists DJ Ezra, Sistah Ros and AmenRaw will be joining him during his set, and there will be an opening set by singer-songwriter Hannah Powers (I’ve seen her. She’s talented.) Doors open at 9 p.m.

Listening to Spiral’s album, I caught similarities to Matisyahu, and not only because of the beard (or former beard, in the case of Matisyahu, of course.) Spiral’s call-to-the-light style of socially conscious, slightly new wave lyrics and his crisp yet loose flow have a similar lilt. He’s with the beat, he’s just not letting it own him; that’s something that I’ve always admired in rappers who can manage performing with fluidity well.

It’s strong, fresh and engaging, and fans of relevant, yet pop-oriented hip-hop would do well to check it out.

I checked in with Spiral to get his thoughts on the upcoming release of “Magnetism.”

HONOLULU PULSE: Where did you record the album? Who produced it?

JOEL SPIRAL: I recorded the album at Ancient Path Sounds Studios (right by) the hill to Papakolea, with the great view and lush surroundings. The music was produced by Ezra Kawika.

I moved to Hawaii Jan. 15, 1996, as a typical American teenager, lost in a world of avoidance and coping mechanisms. Music and surfing soon became my only remedy for my inner world of invalidation, resentment, rage, disappointment shame and guilt. Surfing and playing music was a way for me to face that darkness in order to let it go and become a happy healthy adult.

HP: “Magnetism” was inspired by a decade of mountain living. Tell me about this.

JS: The mountain is a magnet for me. It draws me in and helps me to release possessions of ego and rationality. A rent-free ocean view in nature is magnetic regardless of the disruptive DLNR’s helicopter and the neglected fair-weather traveling tweakers living in their own litter of mental illness.

Regardless of all these inflicted and self-inflicted obstacles, mountains, whether physical or mental, are and always will be magnetic to many. This is a journey within, attempting to scale and reveal the unseen parts of our soul — a pull up a path decoded in symbolism from the sages to the alchemists, put to the beat of our modern-day complexities. The Quantum lyricism on this album is open to the interpretation you create within your own reality. Magnetism in essence is a glimpse of your highest potential, its sublime notions made visible quantitatively to the metronome swing.

HP: People who maintain a free-spirited lifestyle have a unique outlook. How were you able to capture that feel on your album?

JS: This is difficult question because I have always tried to create a place that allows the free-spirited lifestyle to capture me, rather than vice versa. That means having plenty of free time to do my life’s work.

HP: What are your upcoming plans after the album launch?

JS: Tour the East Coast. Joel Spiral and Family Dinner continue to facilitate drum circles and freestyle rap classes to at-risk youth and the incarcerated.

HP: What is your favorite song on the album and why? Fan favorite?

JS: My favorite song on the album is “Reality Burst” because my favorite two lines that came to me are in that:

“Diverse in essence, immersed with presence / Dispersed until we unearth the universe lessons”

If I heard that on any song it would be my favorite. As for the fans’ favorite, as of yet it seems to be “Tuned in Frequencies” (featuring Sistah Roz), due to its soulful positivity and the way Roz and I are able to transition.

THOSE WHO are looking for a worthwhile, solidly produced, hip-hop album, get yourself a copy of “Magnetism” and head to the Ong King Art Center on Saturday. Wear your best Kanye blazer. - The Honolulu Star-Advertiser