This nine-piece collaboration is about as diverse as it gets. Not only do they produce a fusion of Latin, hip hop, salsa, cumbia, Middle Eastern funk and dub, but Ozomatli also is comprised of members from all over the world.
Ozomatli, made up of Wil-Dog Abers, Raul ‘El Bully’ Pacheco, Justin ‘El Nino’ Poree, Asdru Sierra, Ulises Bella, Jiro Yamaguchi, Mario Calire and Sheffer Bruton contribute their talents of vocals, bass, percussion, trumpet, drums and trombone to create a sound that is unlike many others and dance-provoking.
Their track “Can’t Stop” off of their most recent album, Don’t Mess With the Dragon has a great beat from the start and has Mexican and Spanish influences and style with Reggae flare as well. The lyrics and beat of the song encourage listeners to take advantage of each day that they encounter positively.
Song “City of Angels” starts off briefly sounding like a hard rock song, then flows into funky horns and then, surprisingly, hip hop. The track kicks off with a spoken recording of a band member saying: “Let me tell you a little something about L.A....I love it!” This track truly showcases all of Ozomatli’s talents and facets of musical diversity.
“After Party” off of Don’t Mess With the Dragon features Mexican elements and funk.
Check out this YouTube video, provided by user darksun360, of Ozomatli performing “After Party.”
Also, check out Ozomatli’s performance of “Saturday Night” from their 2004 album Street Signs, in this YouTube video provided by user vintagetubelug.
Track “La Gallina” is very upbeat and sounds like a combination of mariachi horns and hip hop, and really ignites the track with enthusiastic shouts from the band members. The overall feeling of the Mexican style track is fun-loving and carefree.
To hear more upbeat songs from this culturally diverse band, check out Ozomatli’s MySpace page.
1 comment:
They'll be at the Rialto on Monday, October 10th - they love Tucson and come at least once a year. It's always a great time.
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