Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Some people might not have heard, but L.A.'s indie rock en español scene is bigger than ever before. Bands like Pastilla, Monte Negro, Los Abandoned, and Very Be Careful pack more clubs than most of the bands that thrive in the mostly anglo-centric Silver Lake music scene. Yet it's a scene that relies mostly on word of mouth given that bloggers like us and indie rags are too caught up looking for the next Arcade Fire.
So enter Ceci Bastida, who we last saw co-fronting the beloved punk en español band Tijuana No! some ten years ago at the Garage. She's since gone on to join fellow Tijuana No! alumna Julieta Venegas' band and more recently began getting some buzz of her own with demos that found their way into the hands of KCRW's Nic Harcourt. A recent appearance on "Morning Becomes Eclectic" and a breakthrough performance at the Getty earlier this summer further made us take notice.
This lady is just a great singer-songwriter. Ok, so sure, we may not know what exactly she's singing about but, still, songs like "Ya Me Voy" and "Empieza a Amanecer" resonate with buoyant melodies that transcend language barriers. And for the first show of her residency at the Knitting Factory last night she pulled out a cover of The Clash's "Spanish Bombs", a long-time favorite for Tijuana No! fans and English-speaking attendees (basically us), in general. And our favorite, "Canta el Rio", is bittersweet melancholy just how we like it no matter what language it's sung in.
We may not know "buenas noches" from "buenos nachos" but we do know one thing: Los Angeles ama Ceci Bastida.
Ceci Bastida performs every Tuesday in September at the Knitting Factory's AlterKnit Lounge and tours frequently with Julieta Venegas. She'll also be seen at the Pasadena Music Festival with Dengue Fever, Culver City Dub Collective, Sara Lov, Meiko, Jessica Fichot, and others on 10/14. Her new EP Front BC is available at shows and on iTunes.
Photos from last night's show are posted here.
Ceci Bastida - "Ya Me Voy" (MP3)
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sweet! glad to see you are all covering Ceci Bastida. so glad she is finally doing her own thing and i gotta say that her version of Spanish Bombs is lovely. looking forward to seeing a lot more shows by this inspiring woman.
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: 9/11/2007 06:11:00 PM
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