Portland, Oregon-based Aina Haina – comprised of guitarist/vocalist Mike Ailes and drummer/vocalist Dylan Magierek – are the “Download of the Day” at eMusic today with the track “I Can’t Feel You Anymore” off of their latest, self-titled EP on Badman Recording Co.
Portland’s Aina Haina (pronounced “Eye-na High-na”) traces it’s roots back to Hawaii where members Mike Ailes and Dylan Magierek met while attending the University of Hawaii an undisclosed number of years ago (they are notoriously evasive when discussing the band’s timeline or anything to do with how old they are, claiming their records at the University have been sealed, so no one should bother checking). In any case, they found their paths converging once again in Portland and quickly discovered that they still connected musically. This time around Magierek switched from Bass to Drums and they quickly wrote a handful of high-energy tunes, coining the term “Power Duo” to describe their sound. “We grew tired of having to work around the schedule and attitude of a third person in the band and decided to try playing louder instead,” says Magierek.
As Badman Recording Co. label head, Dylan Magierek has recorded/produced albums by Starfucker, Mark Kozelek and The Builders and the Butchers. Badman, known for releasing albums from remarkable artists like My Morning Jacket, the innocence mission, Starfucker and Lovers, recently unveiled Aina Haina’s self-titled mini-album.
The instruments on Aina Haina were recorded live in one room to capture the energy and strength that initially got the Power Duo excited about the project. “We didn’t want to lose the spontaneity and spark that we felt while writing the songs, so we avoided standard isolation recording techniques” says Ailes. “Plus, it was cheaper” he adds.
Their first Hawaiian release back in 19?? (they won’t say), was a cassette-only album called Excommunication. They recently put a digital version of the cassette up on iTunes and re-named it The Equator, after one of the songs on the album.
Aina Haina brims with a vibe reminiscent of Classic Rock bands like Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd that both band members grew up on. “Both Mike and I have been writing songs and producing for years, so we approached the album like we thought producer Mutt Lange (AC/DC, Def Leppard…) might: with an emphasis on strong songs and catchy hooks- we tried not to get too emotionally attached to anything that was not ultimately making the song better,” says Magierek.
It’s been said (by Dylan) that the album is better than Van Halen’s latest effort A Different Kind of Truth.
Interscope Records’ publicity department has yet to comment on Aina Haina’s claim, nor have they responded to this bio. However, the members of Aina Haina believe this is for the best, for it is widely speculated that Van Halen, their management, and Interscope Records just couldn’t handle A Different Kind of Truth.