Sem-Poi

What Has Sem-Poi Been Up To??

2009-10-02T02:32:00.013+08:00

My kindest apologies for not updating the blog in such a long time. Sem-Poi will be updating our blog as often as we can from this moment on!

So.. What have you been missing out on the past couple of months?? Here's a recap of what we did while we were out..

Sem-Poi has now open up shop and is now a proud supplier of good quality poi paraphernalia. We currently supply KEVLAR® Tape Wick in various lengths (in feet). We also sell ready-made fire poi sets with your choice of single-loop or double-loop handles. Last but not least is our line of practice poi/sock poi sets. Currently we have a number of sock poi in stock (available in various colours and designs). The price of our products are as follow:

Sem-Poi performed at Gloria Jeans in Mont Kiara on July 15th 2009 in collaboration with their Open Mic Night. It was their last Open Mic Night event, so they wanted to end it with "A Bang!" For more info on the event, visit the Gloria Jeans Mont Kiara page on Facebook. Check out the "Open Mic Night (Week 08)" albums on their page for pics on the event.

Sem-Poi was featured in the September issue of KLue magazine for our performance at Urbanscapes '09. Visit this link to read the article: http://www.klue.com.my/articles/2237-Playing-With-Fire

Sem-Poi is sad to announce the departure of our percussionist/fire staff player, Tarquin, from the group. Tarquin has left the country to further his studies in Holland. His crazy antics and wild beats on the djembe will surely be missed.

There you have it! We haven't really been up to a lot since we last blogged.. Currently we have a few performances that are awaiting confirmation. Apart from that, nothing solid yet. For information on the Sem-Poi Fire Crew rates, email us at: sem.poizx@gmail.com

Gloria Jeans Mont Kiara Open Mic Night

2009-10-01T22:19:00.014+08:00

Sem-Poi performed at the Gloria Jeans in Mont Kiara on July 15th 2009. It was in collaboration with their Open Mic Night event. It was their last Open Mic Night event, and they said they wanted to end it with "A Bang!"
We did two performances; one as an intermission during the Open Mic Night event, and the second one was at the end of the Open Mic Night event.

It was a very successful event and everyone had a good time! The crowd seemed very interested in our performance. Some even got a good view and some good shots of our performance from the first floor balcony where the Open Mic event was held.

Sem-Poi would like to thank Miss Aqma and the rest of the crew at Gloria Jeans Mont Kiara for the opportunity, and we hope that everyone who came out to support our local artists that night enjoyed themselves!

Some pics from the Gloria Jeans Mont Kiara Open Mic Night:

Tarquin up to his usual antics

Alif and Adrian
Sobhi

Sobhi and Ida

Palau and Zul (Prof Poi)

Tarquin
Zul (Prof Poi) on his LED poi

Zul lost one of his LED poi (but he found it after climbing over the Sri Garden International School fence)
When climbers meet a wall...
The Sem-Poi Family
Don't ask.. Cam-whores!

For more pics on the Open Mic Night event, you can visit the Gloria Jeans Mont Kiara page on facebook. You can view the pics in the "Open Mic Night (Week08)" albums.

A Little Fun with LED and Fire!!

2009-07-14T02:29:00.006+08:00

Pics from our test-session with our new LED toys courtesy of Prof Poi a.k.a Zul.. Of Course, what is a poi session without fire?? These are just a few sample pics that I've put together. Go to my photo album on Facebook for more pics! Enjoy!

The man behind our cool new toys! Prof Poi!

Sobhi's Triquetra, Take 1

Sobhi's Triquetra, Take 2

Poi Flowers

Go Crazy for LED!!

Thread the Needle

Alif's Weave sequence

Palau

Ida Threading the Needle

Even Liyana couldn't resist!

Bring on the FaAaYyYaAaAhHhH!!!

Salman's buzzsaw under the legs

Palau.. 'Nuff sed!

Alif (The Weavemeister)

Salman Forwards Weave, to Backwards Weave, to Windmill, to Behind-the-back Weave

Even the girls joined in on the fire session!

Ida

Liyana

LED Pois are available for purchase. Not these particular ones you see in the pics tho (our LED Orbs are still going through some R&D). Pics and details on our new toys will be up soon! I'm still waiting for Zul to email me the pics (Incik Otromen.. where are the pics u promised me??)

Gloria Jeans Mont Kiara's Open Mic Night

2009-07-14T02:18:00.002+08:00

Greetings! Just a quick update.. I had a meeting with the management team from the Gloria Jeans Coffee in Mont Kiara earlier tonight. They would like for Sem-Poi to perform for their Open Mic Night this Wednesday (July 15th 2009).

This will be their last Open Mic Night until after Raya, so they said they wanted to end it with "a bang!" "A bang!" they asked for.. "A bang!" they shall receive! The event itself will start around 8pm, and we have 2 slots for that night. Indulge yourself with some good coffee, good music, and wonderful atmosphere.. Come out to support your local artists and performers!

We hope to see you there! ;)

Prof Poi's Toys

2009-07-10T01:04:00.011+08:00

Greetings and salutations!

Our good friend Zul, a.k.a Prof Poi, dropped by my house earlier today bearing gifts!! Boy, was i excited! He told me that he had some new toys that will be available for purchase very very very soon.

The Prof came over with his usual poi kit, and a bag-full of goodies. Among the items that he had were:

Mini LED Lightsaber Stick (complete with clear protective cover)
Single-looped handles (available in various colours and designs)
Swivels (in two different sizes, both able to handle a 280lbs load)

We tested out his products later that night, and boy was it fun! We even had a photoshoot session with our new LED Orbs (currently NOT available for purchase as we are still working out some bugs), and of course with fire too. Pics and details of the items will be posted soon! ;)

It's Coming!!!

2009-07-04T04:48:00.009+08:00

Do you need kevlar wick? If so, you have come to the right place. Our kevlar wick is a mix of aramid materials and fiberglass, and is one of the most popular fire wick in the firedancing community today; if you are currently using kevlarwick and are uncertain what type of fire wick you are using, it is probably this blend, regardless of where you obtained it. It is distinguished by it's yellow-orange color.

Our kevlar wick is sold in continuous lengths, priced per-foot. We have already placed an order for a fresh stock of kevlarwick, and have received confirmation that it is already on its way here. Check back with our blog for more updates.. ;)

Sem-Poi @ Urbanscapes '09

2009-07-04T02:46:00.009+08:00

Sem-Poi (along with our Poi-O friends) was on scene at Urbanscapes '09. We were invited to play at KLPAC by KLue through our good friends at Kendama.my (can't thank eDosh enough for helping us out!). The event itself was a huge success, and I'd like to think that our performance was definitely an eye-catcher which drew quite a big crowd. Big ups to everyone who showed up to give us their support!

We gathered near the KLue booth and the Kendama.my booth by about 5-6 pm. Had a warm-up intrusion session with Tugu Drum Circle (they were playing and we entered the circle with sock pois spinning). Then we had our own warm-up session on the grassy area nearby to where the drum circle was held. Even when we playing our sock pois, we started drawing quite a crowd of photographers and passers-by. Our first performance commenced at around 8pm, and we had our second and final show at 9pm.

Sem-Poi Crew involved: Alif, Adrian, Sobhi, Kammy, Fariz, Zul, Francis, Tarquin
Also present: Poi-O (Jiman, Cindy), Liyana, Ida, Charmaine

Mr. Francis Poh kicking things off for Sem-Poi

Adrian (Leng-Chye)

Alif (The Weavemeister)

Sobhi (s0b3r)

Kammy

Fariz (Oopapaebaaa!)

Alif and Adrian gets the crowd warmed up

Enter Sobhi

Everyone steps in to finish things off!

Photos courtesy of: Noel, Zaki

All in all, it was a very awesome night! The crowd was magnificent.. The atmosphere was marvellous! We hope that everyone had a good time there as well. Congrats to KLue for a job well done, and we hope to be a part of Urbanscapes in the years to come!

PoIsM @ Bukit Kiara Equestrian Club (13/06/2009)

2009-06-30T03:44:00.021+08:00

Here are pics from our first official gig.. It was in celebration of the birth of Tarquin's nephew.

Sem-Poi Crew involved: Tarquin, Francis, Sobhi, Palau, and Alif.
Also present: Ida, Liyana, and Charmaine.

Enjoy!

Mr. Francis Poh.. The great Didge-meister!

And the show begins...

Alif gets the crowd warmed up

Enter Sobhi and Palau..

The Sem-Poi trio combo

Solo freestyle!

Enter Alif

A little double collaboration with Alif..
The trio finale!

Palau solo!

Thanks again to Tarquin for arranging this gig for us.. and congrats on the addition to the family! I'm sure you'll make a great uncle.. heheh.. And to all who were present during this performance, we hope you enjoyed the show! =)

Coming soon to your friendly neighborhood poi supplier (who else but us)

2009-06-28T22:24:00.005+08:00

We are proud to announce that we will soon be supplying kevlar wick for all your burning needs! How can you get it?? When will it be available?? All will be revealed in due time.. Come back to our blog for updates.. Heheh.. ;)

Urbanscapes '09

2009-06-28T19:16:00.006+08:00

We had the opportunity to play at Urbanscapes '09 @KLPAC on 27th June 2009. A big thank you to our friends from kendama.my for hooking us up with the event, and of course to KLue for giving us the opportunity to perform at the event. We would also like to thank everyone who showed up to give us their support.

The actual Urbanscapes event started during the day, but our performance obviously had to wait until the sun went down, and it was held behind the KLue booth located near the courtyard where the drum circle performed. We arrived there at abt 6-ish pm and started to play our sock pois to get some warm up play before the actual show.

It was very exciting to see the number of people that were interested in the art of poi. Even when we were playing with our sock pois a lot of people came to watch us play and took pictures of us playing. Some were even brave enough to give it a whirl (no pun intended.. hehe =p).

We did 2 shows that night, and it was very satisfying to see the crowd who stuck around to watch us play. The first show started at around 8pm, and the second one took place at 9pm. All in all it was a very satisfying and awesome event, and the crowd was just simply fantastic! We hope to be a regular performance for Urbanscapes in the years to come. Pictures of the event will be posted soon!

Who/What is Sem-Poi?

2009-06-15T17:39:00.020+08:00

Sem-Poi is a group of poi enthusiasts/performers from Malaysia. We mainly play/perform throughout KL and the Klang Valley. To understand Sem-Poi, first you need to understand what Poi is.

Poi is a performance art that incorporates a ball or balls suspended from a length of flexible material held in the hand and swung in circular patterns. Poi is the Maori word for ball on a cord. It originated from the traditional performing arts of the Maori people of New Zealand, and has since developed many forms enjoyed worlwide as a hobby, exercise, or performance art alongside juggling and other forms of object manipulation.

Sem-Poi aims to promote an awareness in the art of Poi, and share the joys of Poi with everyone in Malaysia, especially in the Klang Valley area.

The Sem-Poi Crew's usual suspects consists of:

Sobhi (s0b3r)
Palau (Apeedehal?!)
Fariz (Oooopapaeeebaaaaa!!!)
Adrian (Leng-Chye)
Alif (The Weavemeister)
Salman (Bab)
Ruz (Pyrofreak)
Zul (Professor Poi/photographer)
Kammy
Ida (Poi artist in training)

Sem-Poi grooves to the sweet tunes and beats provided by:

Francis (Didgemeister Extraordinaire!)
Tarquin (Djembe/Percussions)

Others:

Derick (Photographer/poi artist in training; codename: Tan See Riii)
Liyana (Videographer/Palau's #1 fan)
Charmaine (Backup percussions/photographer/Francis's #1 fan)