This month Bobby Moderow Jr., Bruce Spencer and Kahi Kaonohi the boys of Maunalua are celebrating the release of their third album, Ho’okanaka and they are blowing out the candles on their 11th anniversary cake! It’s eleven years of strong Hawaiian style music for Maunalua. “Ho’okanaka means this isn’t a time to fall down, it’s a time to stand and be strong. And the translation is to stand and be steadfast for Hawaiian culture,” says Moderow. “We have to stand strong through the mele.”
Released this month, Ho’okanaka embodies Maunalua’s strong signature style of taking classical Hawaiian music and making it their own. This new album blends a prelude written by Moderow and an original track, Endless Miles, which is a song about finding that elusive Hawaii everyone is searching for.
Ho’okanaka has all the energy that was on Maunalua’s first album and combines it with the refinement of their second. Ho’okanaka also features a compilation of the most frequently requested songs that Maunalua has been playing for the past 11 years. Ho’okanaka is available from Mele Music in Hawaii.
