Alika Lyman's Debut CD Release Party

I don't blog often enough, it seems. Hawaii's music scene explodes with examples of excellent music that deserves coverage every weekend, but yet I can't seem to keep up! That's okay, because this Friday (that's tonight!), you need to know about just one live performance: the Alika Lyman Group will release its debut CD at The Dragon Upstairs in Honolulu, February 22, 2013 at 10pm.

The Alika Lyman Group

You might remember Alika from our lengthy interview, where we talked about John Coltrane, heavy metal, and Alika's influential uncle, Arthur Lyman, whose music left an indelible impression on exotica jazz (and outrageous Polynesian album covers, for that matter). Ever since Alika moved back to Hawaii from Seattle in 2012, he's blazed Hawaii's jazz music scene with hot gigs and hotter collaborations. The Alika Lyman Group, which will be available digitally this Saturday, features Alika on guitar with drummer Jeffrey James and bassist Ricardo Diaz. Guest appearances include Pierre Grill on the Hammond B3 organ and Los Angeles vibraphonist Mark Riddle.

Please, please "Summer Me"

I've been meaning to write this post ever since I heard Alika's "Summer Me" single in November, available to download here at any price you name. Except today it hit me—not only is the CD release party in less than 24 hours, for god's sake I can't wait for summer to arrive! On my way home from work this afternoon, I got caught in a such a serious downpour that, pants soaked through, I could feel the raindrops trickle down my thighs and into my socks. Summer me ASAP, please! This tune, one of several originals Alika wrote for his eponymous debut album, yearns for that lazy sunshine baking the brim of your hat on a summer afternoon. I fall in love with this feeling with every spin. I must've fallen in love a hundred times by now, cause "Summer Me" has been on repeat ceaselessly. It's too good not to play more than once, twice, or twenty times in a row. Take a dip in the cool waters yourself and tell me what you think:

Catch Alika Lyman and his group:

The Alika Lyman Group CD Release Party Friday, Feb. 22, 2013 at 10pm The Dragon Upstairs 1038 Nuuanu Ave, Honolulu

Learn more about Alika:

Check his recent interview on Hitting The Stage, which is essential reading evidenced by this quote:

"As my ear grows, it needs new things to stimulate it. My development into a jazz player probably has a lot to do with my love of The Beatles and Steely Dan. As a teenager the ultimate goal I had was not to play metal or Beatles’ songs, it was to be able to know the inner workings of the music and why it was so great. As jazz players, we always have to know what’s going on “under the hood,” and this was another awesome by-product of learning jazz: my long term goal of understanding The Beatles and Steely Dan." —Alika Lyman, 2013

Read Alika's interview on Aloha Got Soul.