Aaron Aranita's CD Review by John Berger

Island Mele
John Berger

Saturday, July 2, 2005

"Don't Stop The Feeling"
Aaron Aranita
(Sugartown)
There's a good reason that so much of the music on Aaron Aranita's new album has a retro sound reminiscent of the electronic "jazz fusion" sound popular here in the 1980s. You remember, electric bass and keyboards/synthesizers opposite drums, guitar, and some wind or reed instruments. The small print reveals that several selections date from 1987 and were released on an album he recorded for Wayne Sekiya's MGC label. Others were made in 1989 but never released. The remainder are of recent vintage, but mesh naturally with the older material.

The most interesting tracks are the contemporary recordings that feature Russian jazz legend Valery Ponomarev on trumpet. Ponomarev was hit on Honolulu's jazz scene when he came out for some gigs in 2004. Ponomarev's solos on "Jazzamba" and "Never Say Never" are fine mementos of his stay here and make the album of interest outside Hawaii.

Aranita produced the album, as well as played or "programed" several instruments in the various sessions. He proves especially astute in choosing the order in which each song is heard. The musical journey starts off on a promising note, spending a considerable amount of time revisiting the 1980s, and then soars to a cheerful conclusion.


p.s. Clicking the link will get you to the Star Bulletin's Feature section. Scroll down to Island Mele by John Berger to access John's review.

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