“Hawaii Is My Home”

Braddah Ben and Kaniu

(Mejia Music)

Braddah Ben is Ben Mejia; he plays guitar and ukulele. Kaniu is Al Rowland (guitar, ukulele) and Herman Coiser (electric bass). All three sing, and they’re a welcome addition to the contemporary Hawaiian music scene.

The title song is one of five Mejia wrote for the project; it describes in expository terms a visitor’s experiences. “Country Boy” speaks for many residents who prefer living outside the city and the ’burbs. With “Aloha Punalu‘u,” translated by Puakea Nogelmeier, he shares his aloha for a rural Oahu community, although the lyrics might contain kaona (hidden meanings) as well.

Remakes include a gently swinging take on “Kai Hanupanupa,” written by Ken and Phil Emerson and recorded by them in 1978 on “Homegrown III,” and a gentle arrangement of “Walk Through This World With Me,” which was first a hit for country star George Jones in 1967.

Visit mejiamusic123.com.

“Alea Iacta Est”

13th Legion

(self-published)

Students of Roman history know “Alea iacta est” (“The die is cast”) as words spoken by Julius Caesar in 49 B.C., and the 13th Legion (Legio XIII in Latin) as the unit that loyally followed him to overthrow the government in Rome. Two thousand years later Hawaii knows 13th Legion as a veteran hardcore punk band, and “Alea Iacta Est” as their recently released foray into original high-intensity rock.

Alienation, rage, defiance and unbreakable determination are the thematic through-lines. The powerful rhythm section and buzz-saw guitar riffs drive the message home on every song. “Soldier On” closes the album with a deserved note of triumph. This is hardcore that Hawaii can be proud to claim.

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“Departure”

Michael Chock

(Seawind Productions)

Michael Chock is a member of Greenwood, the youngest of the great local Top 40 nightclub bands of the 1970s and ’80s, and the foundation of the consistently successful ’70s Nightclub Reunion dance parties. Less well known is his work as songwriter and solo recording artist. On “Departure” he sings all the vocals, plays several instruments and fills in the rest with the Apple Loops for the GarageBand music creation app. He describes the results as “therapy,” but they’re worth a listen.

The songs include several built from ideas he put to paper in the 1970s. For instance, “By Chance” describes an accidental meeting with a friend’s ex-girlfriend. Chock tells the story with an arrangement reminiscent of “Livin’ la Vida Loca,” and the loco (“crazy”) tempo suggests the outcome. Other songs include a requiem for a lost love, an earnest call for commitment, and the aptly titled “Reggae Lullaby.”

Visit facebook.com/michael.chock.77.