Stories

Sunday, June 26th11am ~ 6pm AGS Honolulu2017 S. King StreetHonolulu, Hawaii 96826 free & open to the public We're celebrating the one year anniversary of our brick-and-mortar record shop, AGS Honolulu! Join us from 11am to 6pm on Sunday, June 26th for a full day of music, merch, and refreshments. Here's a look at what's happening:  Kalapana II official vinyl release  official Kalapana merchandise  DJ sets all day Asato Family sherbet + merch collab Refreshments from Ola Brew Co. New AGS merch drops friends!! Free metered parking is available along King Street and curbside parking can be found throughout the neighborhood. We do...

In an attempt to make the most fun out of vending at the Film & Vinyl Record Swap Meet yesterday in Kaka'ako, we produced a DIY zine to give away for free.  The "zine-brochure-poster-guide" thing offers two projects we thoroughly enjoyed making (and might've even gotten away from ourselves in the process): an "official" guide to places where you can and/or could buy records in Honolulu, and a collection of Top 5 lists from our staff. As with any zine, there's a few mistakes and typos to be found, but no mattah!  We still have some left and will be giving them out...

We are honored to bring Kalapana's second album, Kalapana II, back to vinyl for the first time in nearly four decades.  The vinyl release will be available on Sunday, June 26, 2022.  Whereas Kalapana's debut LP, Kalapana, was a masterfully crafted exercise in soulful rock pop, their sophomore album, Kalapana II, saw the band expanding and stretching itself toward a signature sound.     The LP kicks off with a powerful pair of tracks — "Love Em" and "Freedom" — gliding into the classic Malani ballad, "(For You) I'd Chase A Rainbow", followed by a string of bluesy, folksy, country tunes, "The Way That I Want It To Be" and "Dorothy Louise". Then comes the beloved pop hit penned by...

Kainani Kahaunaele joined us with her two daughters for a dig through the bins at AGS. The award-winning singer, songwriter, and ’Ōlelo Hawai’i language teacher shared her knowledge and mana’o about numerous songs, musicians, stories, and family memories while flipping through the records in our ‘used Hawaiian vinyl’ section.  Filmed and edited by Max High.  AGS is a record shop in Honolulu and the headquarters for Aloha Got Soul, a record label championing new music and rare reissues from the Hawaiian Islands. Pre-order Kainani's new vinyl record on Aloha Got Soul here.

When Kainani Kahaunaele releases a new album, the entire island chain of Hawai‘i pays attention.  Despite a year's worth of covid-related restictions and lockdowns, her 2020 release, Waipunalei, saw a massive outpouring of support and interest, most notably seen during the December 2020 live streaming release party event on Facebook. Comments flooded the stream with no end in sight, the entire Hawaiian music community awash with her adoring fans.  The following year, Waipunalei would earn her an unprecedented seven (7!) awards at the Nā Hōkū Hanohano ceremony. In short: she swept the place!   When we first heard her CD (Waipunalei was originally released in full...