Customer Reviews

Cool Elevation

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Music from the islands changes all the time. In fact, as the politics of the islands change so does the music. The recovery of the traditional language and use of it in music has now come to be a trademark of the hawaiian sound. These boys do a great job of that. I was in Waikiki a couple months back and almost every hotel on the beach was playing parts of this album on their sound system. That may be good or bad to you depending on your politics but this album is truly a gold winner for a true taste of where music is Hawaii is at right now. Just relax, have a mai tai with this playing and you can almost place yourself at Kuhio Beach on a warm summer day!

I can't stop listening to this album! I have found some Hawaiian music to be somewhat jarring and something I can only take in small doses. However, the lyrics of this album are profoundly beautiful and poetic, like Hawaii itself. The melodies on these songs are somewhat repetitive, yet somehow, the music is completely soothing yet upbeat. It puts me in a good mood in the morning, keeps me calm at work, and relaxes me in the evenings. I can't seem to be in a bad mood while listening to this!!!

I was looking for the Hawaiian version of the song "The Prayer", I went to itune website and bought 4 the same songs that I thought I could use to do the hula dance with the song, I have 4 artist that sang it but it was too slow, I went to youtube and saw the dance by a group, but I didn't know where to get the record, so I did a google search" and found that the song is sang by "Ho'Okena" and it is available in amazon.com website, and that's when I ordered the CD of their album. I ordered it on 5/30/09, and I received it 4 days after, and when I played the song "the prayer" it was exactly the song I was looking for that I was able to dance with, my performance was held on 6/9/09 and it was perfect ....I was satisfied with the product....Bing Faune of CA

As someone born and raised here in Hawaii, I can tell you this recent addition to Ho'okena's arsenal of excellent music is a true representation of "good Hawaiian music."

Ho'okena has been doing this for some time and while their roots are set in the classically trained traditional sense, they are one of the few artists who bring a contemporary sound without being overbearing. The result is a beautiful album from start to finish, as the songs express various moods but always "nahenahe" or sweetly soothing.

"The Prayer" with Malia Gibson is Ho'okena's take on the song made famous by Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli. "The Prayer" was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1999 and a Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals in 2000. Dion performed it with Bocelli at both ceremonies.

Ho'okena's version brings their signature harmonies and the wonderfully poetic beauty of the Hawaiian language to produce the perfect lullaby. Great for putting fussy babies to sleep. ;)

If you're looking for some real Hawaiian music this is a great start. Ho'okena does it very well. Aloha!