Mars Volta’s Omar Rodriguez-Lopez Live in SF
Mars Volta figurehead, musical director and guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez turned the Great American Music Hall upside down with his blazing, cerebral brand of prog hard rock. Joined by his Mars Volta counterpart vocalist/lyricist Cedric Baxter-Zavala, Rodriguez-Lopez spearheaded a group of tight musical virtuosos. The bespectacled Rodriguez-Lopez sporting an english style cap, who looks no older than 22 years old, impressed the crowd with his stunning forward thinking guitar solos, astonishing technique and musical vision. Baxter-Zavala, now sporting a clean cut look with short straight hair and his beard shaved off, dramatically acted out the songs, sang his heart out boasting with a voice reminiscent of Led Zepellin era Robert Plant and pulled his front man rock star moves with sheer intensity. They would take the audience on a melodic prog space ride and then pull the crowd into a left turn with a foray into avant funk. The in-sync instrumental ensemble who complimented Rodriguez-Lopez consisted of a mix of musicians, some from Mars Volta who played the two keyboards/electronics, bass and drums. The group mostly played new fresh material in preparation of their upcoming date at the Coachella...
Read MoreLos Muñequitos de Matanzas
On Monday, April 4th, the San Francisco Bay Area was treated to an extraordinary spectacle of Afro-Cuban rumba by the renowned Cuban drum and dance troupe Los Muñequitos de Matanzas. The first stop of their U.S. tour, San Francisco’s Mission High School Auditorium was packed with a sold out crowd of 1500 people who were treated to two hours of authentic afro-cuban folklore. Los Muñequitos de Matanzas under the direction of dancer Diosdado Ramos dazzled the crowd with their dynamic presentation. Their 6 dancers dressed in bright red and yellow costumes took the crowd on a journey which showcased the rhythms and dance of various styles of rumba: the yambu, columbia and guaguanco. The male dancers showed off innovations of the modern day rumba such as tap dancing while the females added their fierce sensuous flavor to the show. The music provided by the five talented percussionists and five vocalists was soul stirring. Their dynamic performance transported me to the solares (courtyards) of Cuba where the rumba is played traditionally. Los Muñequitos also brought out a young boy that joined the troupe near the end of the performance. He danced at the encouragement of the dancers. He is part of the new generation of rumberos who will ensure that the rumba will be preserved for future generations. Big thanks to the SF International Arts Festival and all the Mission community folks who presented the show. KPFA co-sponsored this historic...
Read MoreFilosofia Caribena
The Bay Area’s renaissance man John Santos presents his sextet and special guests in the debut of their commissioned work “Filosofia Caribena” that promises to be a highlight of the current SF Jazz Spring Season on Saturday, April 2, 8 pm at the Herbst Theater, Van Ness & MacAllister Sts, SF. Over a year and a half in the making, this work inspired by Caribbean culture, history and reality, will combine a combination of various elements such as Afro-Cuban and Puerto-Rican folklore, Caribbean rhythms, Latin Jazz, Dance and Spoken word. Special invited guests include trumpeter-vocalist Jerry Medina of Batacumbele fame, renowned Cuban dancer Ramon Ramos Alayo and spoken word artist Rico Pabon. Santos just completed a community based fund raising campaign that was successful in raising the money required to secure a $10,000 matching grant. The first volume of the project will be released on cd in May, the second volume will be released sometime next year. Santos was a recent guest on my program “Con Sabor” and sneak previewed one of the tracks from Filosofia Caribena, the explosive “La Rumba Me Lleva”. Keep your plans open for this world premiere on April...
Read MoreBittersweet Moments with Bobby Hutcherson
I caught a show that reminded me that you do have to catch older great artists while they are still alive. Case in point is the Bobby Hutcherson show that I caught at Yoshi’s in Oakland. The occasion was his 70th Birthday celebration. Now, I haven’t seen Bobby in a long time. I decided to go since I had the opportunity to see him at the last minute. I was in for a shocker! A thin, frail Bobby Hutcherson got on stage with tubes from his nostrills connected to a breathing apparatus. My heart sank to see him in this state of health. Although he seemed in great spirits, his body language spoke volumes of his medical condition. He played beautifully. However, his trademark long fluid expressions on the vibes are now replaced by short tasty solos augmented by his great band. This was still first class jazz tastefully performed by these pros. I was later told by my friend at Yoshis that Bobby is suffering from emphysema. I was happy and sad to have been there in attendance. Great artists are human like all of us….and like all of us, they continue to pay their...
Read MoreLive Appearances
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