Do It: ARTafterDARK, Lantern Floating Hawaii, jazz music

FRIDAY

>> ARTafterDARK gets edgy with ‘Underground’ theme

Art can be refined and traditional, but it can also be cutting-edge and hipster. This month’s ARTafterDARK will focus on the latter with an “Urban Underground”-themed event.

The Honolulu Museum of Art will feature French-Serbian artist Kosta Kulundzic, pictured, in a live painting demonstration. Kulundzic, a professor at the School of Architecture and Fine Arts in Paris, creates paintings that depict clashes in modern society in large-scale cartoon style. In 2013 he exhibited paintings here that portrayed fireballs landing off Waikiki. He is seen here in front of his painting “Pacquiao vs. Mayweather, the Real End.”

Entertainment for the evening includes DJ Ramyt and students from the Pow! Wow! School of Music. And, of course, the museum’s exhibition halls will be open for viewing.

When ARTafterDARK ends at 9 p.m., head over to The Modern’s Addiction nightclub for the after-party (21+ only); admission’s free with an ARTafterDARK wristband.

SATURDAY

>> Jazz guitarist and all-star friends in town

Michael Paulo returns to Hawaii with his smooth jazz, bringing along two acclaimed musicians, guitarist Peter White and pianist Gregg Karukas.

Paulo, a saxophonist, has played with top artists such as Al Jarreau, Kenny Loggins, Patti Austin, Jeffrey Osborne, David Benoit and Johnny Mathis. Aside from a busy performing schedule, he’s also run record labels and been producing concerts around the country.

Multi-instrumentalist White, pictured, a native of the U.K., is featuring his new album, “Groovin’,” released this year. White got his break playing keyboards for the Al Stewart band, where he was a co-writer of the 1978 hit “Time Passages” and other tunes. About a decade later, guitar came to the forefront when he recorded his first solo album, “Reveillez-Vous” (“wake up”), the first of several popular albums, including two top-selling holiday season recordings.

Karukas is the producer of Omar Akram’s “Echoes of Love,” the 2012 Grammy winner for new-age album. As a pianist and composer, he’s released 12 albums and worked extensively with award-winning saxophonist Dave Koz. Karukas has received keyboardist nominations in both the Oasis and National Smooth Jazz awards.

Drummer Sergio Gonzalez and bassist Dwayne Smith from Los Angeles join the group.

MONDAY

>> Lanterns for loved ones to light up waters

Memorial Day weekend is a time of remembrance and respect for those who are gone, and few events convey that sentiment as well as Lantern Floating Hawaii at Ala Moana Beach Park.

Though it’s become a huge event — crowds have been estimated at around 50,000 — the ceremony always goes off with solemnity and grace. Shinso Ito, head of Buddhist order and organizer Shinnyo-en Hawaii, leads the crowd in prayers for victims of war, water-related accidents, famine, disease and natural and man-made disasters. Gratitude is offered for all living beings, and at dusk more than 7,000 lanterns will be set afloat near the Magic Island section of the park.

Those wishing to float a lantern must pick up one between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday from the Lantern Request Tent, on park grounds across from the beach. Lanterns will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis. Families and groups are asked to share lanterns to ensure the greatest number of people can participate. If individual lanterns are no longer available, you can place your wishes on collective lanterns at the Collective Remembrance Tent. (No privately made lanterns, please, as the official lanterns are designed to be easily retrieved from the water.)

THURSDAY-JUNE 3

>> The Squirrel Nut Zippers are here for six shows at the Blue Note

Swing into the jazz era with the Squirrel Nut Zippers, a leader in the 1990s swing revival.

The band blends swing, gypsy jazz and jump blues into an upbeat, energetic sound, but often with twisted lyrics. In the Zippers’ most famous tune, “Hell,” frontman Jimbo Mathus sings, “This is a place where eternally/fire is applied to the body/teeth are extruded and bones are ground/then baked into cakes which are passed around.”

The group started in 1993 in Chapel Hill, N.C. The group quickly gained favor among college students and listeners of public radio, which featured them prominently. The nine-member band now includes several musicians from New Orleans.

The band has been on a yearlong tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of its most successful album, “Hot.” The 1996 platinum-seller has been reissued with a new tune and released on vinyl.

And that name? “Nut zipper” refers to moonshine; Squirrel Nut Zippers are a type of candy. After seeing the term in a newspaper headline about a drunk caught up in a tree, Mathus took it for the name of his band.