A co-worker expressed the opinion while listening to Malo’s first album  that perhaps the worst thing for both Malo and Santana were the Santana brothers themselves. The need for Carlos and Jorge to ruin the groove set by the rhythm section with a guitar solo plagued each band as time went on. Their audience loved it but soon it became formulaic and an instant cliché for Chicano bands for years to come. But when the style was fresh, everyone around the world wanted to sound like them, including the artists themselves who originally influenced the Chicano sound. Notice how many artists, including Miles Davis, The Rolling Stones, The Fania All-Stars and The Isley Brothers, started to sound like Santana, Malo & El Chicano at one point or another.

Malo’s self-titled album came out in 1972. By then, Carlos was world famous and jamming with the likes of John McLaughlin and Miles Davis. Malo came out of two San Francisco bands-- The Malibus and Naked Lunch (named after the infamous William Burroughs book). There were a few differences between Malo and Santana. For one, Malo had a horn section, giving them that Chicago/Blood Sweat & Tears sound. The other difference is that along with the jams, they had songs. Songs like "Café" and "Pana" are still the blueprints of Chicano Rock today, from the house band at Rick’s Burgers in Alhambra to Carlos Santana's multi-Grammy award winning Supernatural. Like most Chicano bands, Malo was a mixed race band and a hodgepodge of both Latin and Anglo influences. You can hear flashes of Miles Davis In A Silent Way on "Just Say Goodbye" and Joe Bataan’s influence on "Nena."

Teatro East Of The River, from East L.A., describe themselves as: Teatro Xicano, Theater Of The Oppressed, Hip-Hop theater, spoken word, flor y canto, using theater as a form of education, inspiring, organizing, enlightening and liberating.

...and on top of that, they have a new production:

The Complex
A Theatre of the Oppressed / Rebelde Production
Investigating the Prison Industrial System in the U.S.
Part of the USC Visions & Voices 2007-2008 Program

Companion community event of
"The Press"
March 2, 2008*
2:30 - 4:30 pm
FREE ADMISSION
(bring your resistence - traite tu resistencia)

at the
24th St. Theatre
1117 W. 24th Street (corner of 24th and Hoover)
Los Angeles, CA 90007

In this play, theatre takes on the political realities of prison life and asks us all to investigate what is trapping millions behind bars, including many of our youth, often for life sentences without the possibility of parole. What is really behind "the complex?" USC Senior Lecturer Brent Blair collaborates with activist/artist Mario Rocha, LA County Probation officer Rick Vidal and parents of incarcerated youth, along with other artists, activists and stakeholders from several groups within the general community affected by the "Prison Industrial Complex." This event loosely follows the framework of "forum theatre" informed by the techniques of Theatre of the Oppressed of Augusto Boal, where audience members are invited to trade places with the protagonists to derive solutions to this socio-political rupture.

Obama’s biggest downfall in his campaign was that he underestimated Latinos. This cost him big time in California. There was so much he could have done to get our vote and he didn't.

For instance, He never really spoke out on immigration issues, which Hilary openly did. For example, Hillary came out in support of AB 540 (The Dream Act), which would allow illegal immigrants to attend college as long as they follow certain provisions. Hillary also started early, rounding up support from Latino heavyweights such as L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Councilwomen Gloria Molina, Dolores Huerta and the United Farm Workers. In fact, Villaraigosa pledged his support  for Hilary back in 2006. It also didn’t help Obama cause that many Latinos prospered during the Clinton years and are looking for a return to that prosperity.

Then there is the unfortunate reality that African-Americans and Latinos are socialized in this country to hate each other. We are taught this in the public school system, where neither of us are taught our true history. We are made into street soldiers to fight each other in our ever-increasing incarceration in prisons. We are taught to blame each other by politicians for the lack of jobs, lower wages and increasing cost of living. Truth is that some of us are so messed up that we find it easier to fight each other rather than to come together and fight the true source of our problems.

Obama knows this and has addressed this, quite elegantly, in fact. My thoughts that I have written are not much different from what he has said in interviews and in his speeches. Problem is that he didn't tell this to Latinos. People like my mother, who became a citizen back in 1994 yet still gets her information through the Spanish speaking media. Obama did very little with the Spanish speaking media until just before the election. He chose rather to court Hollywood insiders during his time in Los Angeles. The Chicago Tribune reported that the Obama campaign office in East L.A. was opened mere days before the election. Even with a huge rally at East L.A. College with Sen. Kennedy and Maria Elena Durazo as his co-chairperson for his campaign, Latino voters knew very little about Obama and as a result lost the Latino vote to Clinton by a 2-1 margin, the worst defeat of his campaign.

I wrote about Victor Gastelum several months back when I first starting writing for Amoeba.com. Victor’s iconic art has been used by Calexico, Culture Clash, Greg Ginn, just to name a few. Victor is currently showing in a group show called ALEX STEINWEISS: CREATOR OF THE ALBUM COVER at the Robert Berman Gallery in Santa Monica. Victor is one to show his appreciation for any artist that inspires him. I got him to share his thoughts on Morrissey, his Mexican following and Morrissey's supposed anti-immigrant remakes he made last November.

What makes you a fan of  Morrissey? How did you become one?

I started liking the Smith's right when they were breaking up.  I was starting to make my own art and I found Morrissey’s lyrics inspiring. Not that I wanted to draw what he was describing but that he was telling his own stories.  You got the feeling that he was talking about what he knew.  He along with other artists that I admire made me look at myself, and draw from what I knew about, what I had to offer.  The music was the first attraction to the band though.  I like pop music, especially with clever lyrics and hooks.  The band was tight and at the time there didn’t seem to be anything like them.


Why do you feel that Mexicanos identify with him?

For me I think it might have to do with his outsider, nerdy loser
image.  He made being square and dorky really cool.  He is into all these obscure English pop artists, television shows, and movies that he would make references to. I think it made you place a little more value to the things you liked that most people didn’t know about or thought were lame.  Also the Manchester bands seem to have this thing where they are all homeboys.  Not so much pride or shame, but just an acknowledgement of where they are from.  He put a lot reference to where he was from, places and buildings.  I like seeing that, (for instance) like when an artist is from San Pedro or Long Beach and they throw that influence into their work.