WAITIKI Connects! (Our education & community engagement initiative)

Our education initiative, Exotica in Education, launched last September with a visit by The WAITIKI 7 to the Josiah Quincy Upper School (Boston). More than just a show-and-tell about the instruments and its illustrious bird calls, Exotica in Education is as much about the opening of dialogue about the cultural, historical, and social themes surrounding exotica as it is the music’s composition and performance. If you know of a school, museum, or community center that might be interested in this dynamic program, please contact randy@waitiki.com. We’re bringing a taste of this program with us to Hawaii in April, with visits to select Honolulu schools. Watch waitiki.com for more news on this initiative!

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“Loaded with virtuoso talent” // JAZZIZ Winter 2010 [Review]

The Waitiki 7’s Adventures in Paradise is featured in “Prelude” section of the print edition of JAZZIZ Winter 2010!

JAZZIZ LOGOThe Waitiki 7, a born-in-Honolulu ensemble loaded with virtuoso talent, updates the classic exotica mood on Adventures in Paradise (Pass Out)—a 13-track excursion that pays respect to the venerable music’s roots while charting its own distinctive course . . . The contributions of woodwind player Tim Mayer, trombonist Mike Dease and violinist Helen Liu provide Waitiki 7 with substantial improvisiational firepower. Laka, the Hawaiian goddess of song and dance, should be smiling.—Mark Holston

Download the full review as a PDF

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“Exotica is back… this album is a special liqueur” // WXDU 88.7 [Review]

Santa Salsera, host of the WXDU program Azucar y Candela speaks highly of our album Adventures in Paradise. Salsera writes:

WXDU LogoExotica is back, baby. Not your typical “salsa dura,” nonethless, the Latin backbone is authentic, the musical approach pure jazz. This album is a special liqueur. Recapture your own personal cocktail hour (drink recipes are included with the liner notes) and go with the wave.

Live in the Raleigh-Durham area? Tune into Azucar y Candela on WXDU 88.7 FM, Wednesdays 6-8 PM.

Read the full review here, or

Download as a PDF.

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Waitiki 7 hits #12 on college radio (CMJ Jazz Top 40)

Waitiki 7 has been doing really well on the CMJ (College Music Journal) Jazz charts lately. As of CMJ Issue #1127, we’re up to #12!

Waitiki 7 at #12 on the CMJ Jazz Top 40

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“Needs to be on your must-have list” // Westchester Herald [Review]

Tom Bock of the Westchester (NY) Herald writes a rave review in the Herald’s Sept. 7, 2009 issue:

Westchester Herald mastheadThis debut CD from The Waitiki 7, Adventures in Paradise, raises the bar extremely high for both the group and their representatives [Fully Altered Media] … To the romantic trying to set the mood, this needs to be on your must-have list. And to any music lover looking to relax after a hard day’s grind, you’ll need to go no farther than Adventures in Paradise.

Download the Westchester Herald’s review of Adventures in Paradise (PDF)

Place your order at The Waitiki 7 Shop!

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“This is the band to beat” // Nate Chinen, The Gig

Nate Chinen posted a thoughtful commentary on exotica the other day at his blog The Gig. Chinen, who was born and raised in Honolulu, is no stranger to exotica or its musicians—he studied drums with Harold Chang, gigged with many of the Islands’ finest jazzers, and wrote remembrances of Arthur Lyman when Lyman passed away. He’s now an esteemed jazz critic, known for his writings for the New York Times, JazzTimes, and Village Voice.

the band, which also includes pianist Zaccai Curtis and percussionist Lopaka Colon, is on the right track with Adventures in Paradise released last month. The music reflects a firm grounding in Hawaiian culture, and a real grasp of this genre’s practices. (Colon’s father was the revered percussionist Augie Colon, a former member of Denny’s group; he appears on that recording of “Quiet Village.”) … If there’s room for a postmillennial exotica revival, this is the band to beat.

Check out the whole article online here. Nate wasn’t able to catch any of the shows during our East Coast tour, so if you saw and liked us, please comment below his post to let him know!

Download Nate Chinen’s “Exotica: It Takes A Village” as a PDF

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Skyrocketing Radio Charts for The Waitiki 7

This just in… Thanks to some serious upward momentum, The Waitiki 7 has made its debut on the main JazzWeek chart. Our jazz chart debut puts us at #23. On the JazzWeek World side, we’ve moved up to #2! Many thanks to the 70+ stations across North America that have added our CD to their station and/or program playlists, as well as to NPR for using us for interlude music!

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WAITIKI INT’L mentioned on GoodBoys Nation blog

We stumbled upon a cool post about exotica by The Great White Shank, who kindly included a link to our first quartet album, Charred Mammal Flesh: Exotic Music for BBQ. The GWS graciously amended his post (which is actually a few years old) with a link to the new WAITIKI 7 album Adventures in Paradise, and so we thought it’d be fitting for us to post a link to his blog too.

Check it out: http://goodboysnation.com/2009/08/17/exotica-mission-possible-2/

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“Adventures in Paradise” named ‘This Week’s Best Album’ by ALARM Magazine

More praise for our new album… ALARM Magazine names Adventures in Paradise as one of “This Week’s Best Albums“:

picture-4Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Hawaii’s statehood, the Waitiki 7 balances a thematic tribute to Martin Denny and musical stars of yore with piano-driven Latin sounds, modern jazz, lounge, and film motifs. Adventures in Paradise, as the name suggests, could double as the soundtrack for a cheery private-dick mystery flick, calling upon exotic vocal calls, flute, horns, and vibraphone to create just the right mood.—Scott Merrow

And some kind remarks from CampusCircle.com:

campus_circle_logo I was pleasantly surprised with the ancient yet melodic sound found on the band’s new album, Adventures in Paradise. The songs were reminiscent of a tropical jungle with a hypnotizing blend of animal sounds and instrumental beats.—Grady Winn

Place your order at The Waitiki 7 Shop!

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WAITIKI 7 CD Street Date is Today // Mother Jones [Review]

Aloha WAITIKI 7 fans,

Today is the long-awaited street date for our debut CD, Adventures in Paradise. The disc and mp3s are now available for sale via our Waitiki 7 Shop (preferred), CDFreedom.com, Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, and many others. Also, for those of you following us on the radio, you can now hear us on WDNA 88.9 FM (Miami), in addition to the stations we mentioned in previous posts.

Mother Jones - Sept. 2009 IssueMother Jones magazine declares:

Fire up the tiki torches. Break out the umbrella drinks. The debut of Hawaii’s Waitiki 7 harks back a half-century to the golden age of exotica , when lounge-music giants like Martin Denny walked the Earth . . . A cover of jazz great Lee Morgan’s “Totem Pole” showcases a mesmerizing sax-trumpet [sic] dialogue, while the sleek violin of “Mood Indigo” would please Duke Ellington himself . . .

—and now, experience the magic of our music for yourself!

Place your order at The Waitiki 7 Shop.

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