When Los Angelenos - The Eastside Renaissance originally came out in 1983, I was not aware of all the Chicano bands that were popping up all over my back yard. Sure, I knew about the groups that came out in the seventies such as Tierra, El Chicano and Malo because oldies radio had been playing them for years. The only thing that I listened to at the time that was similar to The Eastside Renaissance was Los Lobos’ now classic …And A Time To Dance. Although groundbreaking in many ways, Los Lobos’ music was rooted in Traditional Mexican music and Americana. It was the kind of music that could be easily digested by the readers of Rolling Stone as being adventurous. However, to a fifteen-year getting into punk…not so much.

A few years later, thanks to the Alex Cox’ underground classic film Repo Man, a whole new world was opened to me. The soundtrack to Repo Man contained punk groups I dug at the time such as Fear, Black Flag, Suicidal Tendencies and The Circle Jerks, not to mention Iggy Pop performing the theme song. However it was The Plugz on the soundtrack that really knocked me out. It was Punk En Español and it had a sound all of its own. The songs “El Clavo En La Cruz” and their Spanish version of "Secret Agent Man (Hombre Secreto)" made it in every mix tape that I made during those years. Most of my friends that were into punk rock at the time didn’t get my fascination with The Plugz. They could never understand how excited I was that there was this band that were Mexicanos that sang in both Spanish and English.

It’s been a while since I’ve written about the city I love, even though the name of this blog is called Los Angeles Me. Originally, I wanted to write about Los Angeles and the music and cultural scene of the city that you don’t hear about in most Los Angeles publications. Los Angeles has been my home for forty years now and I love it now as much as I ever have. I have been blessed to live and be a part of many communities, geographically and culturally. I’ve met some great people in L.A.; some are still here, some have moved to other cities and some have unfortunately passed on too soon.

The sudden passing of Brendan Mullen over the weekend has much of L.A.’s music community in shock. Brendan, who started The Masque in the late 70’s, was, as Paul Tollett of Goldenvoice said, "The first promoter of punk rock in this town, everything started with him." I couldn’t even begin to imagine a Los Angeles without bands such as X, The Germs, The Go-Go’s, The Weirdos and The Plugz, just to name a few that played at The Masque. The bands that played there influenced many others to not only play music, but to create art and expand their horizons. It could be said that Brendan wasn’t just valuable as far as helping music in Los Angeles grow, but that he helped the entire city grow as well. 

I met Brendan while performing at the L.A. Weekly Music Awards back in 2001. I remember he said some very complimentary things about the band I had at the time and how honored I was that he did. This was a man who not only championed the punk scene, but also all music that had the same rebellious spirit. He had a way of making you feel good about yourself, which is probably why he was such a great promoter of music.

I met DJ Roger Más at Mas Exitos a few months back. I bought a few copies of his new single for Amoeba Hollywood based on the strength of his set that night and the fact that he is a label mate with DJ Lengua. Roger Más is a Bay area-based deejay that has a show on 90.7 KALX in Berkeley. He also spins at a few clubs, including The Make-Out Room and Skylark, both located in the Mission District, and The Missouri Lounge in Berkeley. His single is out on Club Unicornio Records.

Both sides are re-workings of somewhat obscure Cumbia and Salsa songs. “Baila Hihi” has a fat beat over a classic Descarga jam with the catchy “Baila, mulata baila” chorus. Personally, I like what he does with the Cumbia track on side B. “Cumbia Bonita” is a reworking of what I believe is the Pacho Galan Y Su Orquesta version of the song. Roger works the Cumbia percussion breakdown perfectly, which makes the track great for a segue from Hip-Hop to Cumbia or from Cumbia to something else. Deejays, I highly recommend this single.

Check out a Q & A with Roger Más right here, written a month ago for the SF Weekly. Also, check out a video made for “Baila Hihi”:

I tend to go on and on about Mas Exitos and Chico Sonido, so I won't bore you too much. Chico Sonido has turned into one of my favorite deejays. I've been to clubs where he is spinning with deejays with big names and he is blowing them out of the water. His vinyl collection runs deep.

What makes Chico Sonido unique is his mixture of obscure covers en español with the funkier side of Spanish language pop music from the 60-80's. Top that off with some Cumbia and Spanish Dancehall and damn, you got a party! So now you can take that party to your home, car or gym. Better yet, take it to your tiá's house and have her take you through memory lane! "cuando estaba joven..."

Chico Sonido will have his debut album out very soon. I'm sure it will be a funky Mexican freak-out for sure. Meanwhile, you can get his mix CD, Paisadelic, by clicking here.

Carmen Cosoli- Live @ The Santa Monica Pier (August)



Juana Molina- Sound Checking @ Santa Monica Pier (August)



Son De Madera with Martha Gonzalez & Cesar Castro- MacArthur Park (July)



Gomez Come Alive! Guest DJ Set @ KPFK's Travel Tips For Aztlan (June)



Chico Sonido & Toy Selectah @ Mas Exitos (September)