INOHA, a San Antonio-based band with a Trinity student member, recently released their first album titled “ALOHA INOHA.” It is iconic. The album combines elements of classic surf rock, modern indie rock and a healthy little dose of punk for good measure. The band comprises four members: Chris Young on bass, Gavin Gonzalez on lead guitar, Keanu Bicol on rhythm guitar as well as lead vocals and Ricky Juarez on the drums.

Though the album run time is pretty short at only 34 minutes, it makes sure that every minute counts. I found that many tracks on the album were quite reminiscent of work by “The Backseat Lovers” in lyrical composition, instrumentation and how energy changes throughout songs. “ALOHA INOHA” somehow captured many aspects I like about “The Backseat Lovers,” but did it better. There was not a forgettable song on the album. Most tracks on the LP have an expertly crafted flow between calm and energetic portions of the songs.

My favorite two songs on the album were “Seventh Heaven” and “Saturday Nights.” Both were released as singles preceding the release of the album. “Seventh Heaven” is INOHA’s most listened to song, which as of Sept. 9 had over nine million plays on Spotify. “Seventh Heaven” is an extremely dynamic and spirited song. The lead and rhythm guitar weave in and out of the spotlight and even have a sort of split call-and-response portion. The lyrics in the song are very well thought out and revolve around something of a quarter-life crisis. After all of this built up angst, the song concludes with a laid back outro that almost gives the listener a deep breath out.

“Saturday Nights” is more than just an ear worm, it is an ear snake. The whole song is extremely catchy. I found myself humming even the pre-chorus. I often find that key changes in songs feel either forced or gratuitous. This song implements a key change toward the end that I barely even noticed. It actually adds to the song and does not overstay its welcome.

One of my favorite portions of the album was the background vocals on the track “Papaya Man.” The second verse begins with the lyrics, “It’s 2 a.m. I’m feeling hungry/ need some papayas in my tummy” followed by a background vocal repeat of “feeling hungry” and “in my tummy.” The band clearly had fun making and composing the album. Later on in the track there is frantic conversation regarding the whereabouts of the papaya man between some of the band members. It somehow does not feel out of place. It comes across as truly fun.

The album art for “ALOHA INOHA” stands out with its many bright contrasting colors surrounded by thick lining. It is the type of cover art you could distinguish from far away. Overall, the album is just extremely solid. The songs are dynamic and all come together to form one cohesive work while still retaining enough individuality from one another to work well in a playlist. I was lucky enough to see INOHA perform live a few months ago. Their good energy can be heard through the studio as well as live. If you’re looking for a day trip, INOHA has an upcoming show on Sept. 13 at The Gremlin in McAllen, Texas.