Busy week for indie music in Honolulu

HONOLULU — This week, fans of independent music have a variety of options to catch some of the acts that have helped sustain a thriving indie scene in Honolulu. The fact that a number of venues are now offering stages for bands playing original music seems to show that more and more establishments are realizing that there is an ever-growing demand for live music that skirts the mainstream, or ignores it altogether.

NextDoor’s Broadcast offering Wednesday features Kings of Spade, Black Square, Family Dinner, and Sing the Body, each of whom regularly headline at venues all over Oahu.

The Jaegermeister Live Music Showcase at Hard Rock Café in Waikiki on Friday will see Lucky 13, Half Step Down, Jam Up, and Americon take the stage. It’s not surprising that the Hard Rock is featuring hard rock. But it is surprising that a Waikiki venue is featuring bands playing songs they wrote themselves.

Chris Murray, a one-man ska music cottage industry, returns to Honolulu at Anna’s on Friday. Murray has been at it as a solo artist since way back in the nineties, after fronting the Canadian ska outfit King Apparatus. Based in Los Angeles, Murray has traded songs with ska legend Laurel Aitken, performed with The Specials (and just about every other internationally successful ska band in the world), and recorded an album backed NYC ska heavies The Slackers. Also on the bill are Black Square and Upstanding Youth.

For a complete list of live music events in Hawaii, visit www.808Shows.com.

Wednesday, April 27
Kings of Spade, Black Square, Family Dinner, Sing the Body
NextDoor
43 North Hotel Street
9:00 p.m.
$10, 18 and over

Friday, April 29
Lucky 13, Half Step Down, Jam Up, Americon
Hard Rock Cafe
280 Beachwalk
10:00 p.m.
21 and over, $8

Friday, April 29
Chris Murray, Black Square, Upstanding Youth
Anna’s
2440 South Beretania
9:00 p.m.
21 and over, $5