by Tom Benton

The Latino Rock Alliance is not here to hip you to the latest Tejano single; nor do they come bearing psychedelic guitars noodling over a battalion of hyperactive percussionists. Rather, they are here to rock. Rock en Español.

Former in July of 1999, the Latino Rock Alliance unites working musicians, live music enthusiasts, and music industry professionals for the purpose of developing and promoting Latino artists working within the forum of "alternative rock" and other peripheral genres, including metal, ska, and the vast terrain in the midst of it all.

Luis Zapata from La Plaga, a member of the Latino Rock Alliance, offered an a more open-ended but still illustrative explanation regarding the differentiation of the acts represented by the Alliance and the remainder of Spanish Rock:

There is a global current called "Rock En Español" -- Spanish Rock. What we represent is called Latino Alternative -- the alternative part of that rock. It is characterized by what I would call a very stormy creativity on the part of the artist, I think that one of the things that distinguishes it not only from the rest of Rock En Espanol but also the rest of alternative music is the fact that this freedom of creativity has allowed artists to meld a bunch of different influences that they may have and at the same time and come up with something very fresh.

His assertion is completely on the mark; Houston's Moscas, among the proudest sons of Texas' Latino Alternative scene, recently opened up for Argentinian superstars Los Fabulosos Cadillacs at La Zona Rosa, and though they largely treaded the line between funk-fueled power-pop and bone-crunching rock, their background was still betrayed in ways other than just by their language of choice: drum rhythms occasionally more Puente than Pixies, guitar patterns that clearly had their roots on nylon strings. The vast majority of the crowd seemed to be there for Los Cadillacs, but those who arrived early were quickly made to move by Moscas, won over by the infectious enthusiasm of this young band, Zapata's prophecy from earlier in the evening fulfilled: pretty much any of these bands that you see is going to deliver from themselves 120%.

The most visible representation of the Latino Rock Alliance in Austin thus far has been their recently-completed residency at the Black Cat, the semi-weekly Rock En Español Night. The music and the club worked to be a snug fit, for a variety of reasons, and proved very successful in laying the groundwork for things to come, as Zapata explains:

The first level was to showcase. That's what the shows at the Black Cat were all about: to basically do a series of shows on 6th Street at a club where it's all ages. We're dealing with music that should appeal to teenagers and we really think it's a crime that should have to be 18 or 21 before you see a rock band. That's terrible. The Black Cat seemed to be the most natural place because they have always been a great place for breaking new artists into Austin. We started doing these shows and showcasing bands from all around Texas and a couple from Mexico that are an active part of the circuit but have never had the chance to perform in Austin. I think the shows were pretty successful, they allowed us to make so much noise and attract so much media that didn't know about this music and they started to write and to do interviews on the radio, which allowed us to solidify the Latino Rock Alliance.

In addition to garnering media attention for the cause, the Black Cat series allowed many Latino Alternative bands to move out into the larger Austin scene. Several groups are finding favor with club owners who recognize the bands' abilities onstage as well as their commercial potential for drawing a crowd; Los Skanarles, for instance, are regulars on the Emo's roster and deSangre (the Texas champions of the Mars Music "Battle of the Bands" who will be moving forward to represent the state in the National Competition) are frequent openers at the Black Cat's "Heavy Music Night." Babe's, the Continental Club, and the Back Room have also shown interest in presenting bands. Zapata doesn't believe it's a stretch for groups singing in different languages to share the same stage, if for no other reason than one of pure pragmatism:

We're into the feel of what rock and roll's all about, which allows people who don't understand the Spanish lyrics to get into it. You know, a lot of people don't know what Mick Jagger is singing -- there's not very good diction in rock and roll! By the same token, the feel should be understood by everybody.

With the Black Cat series recently coming to a successful completion, one might think that Alliance would take a breather and let the fruits of their labors percolate through Austin. Not so, Zapata explains:

What we're trying to do now is to start bringing some bigger bands for some shows in November: a band from Mexico called Tijuana No which is on BMG Records, Calavera from Los Angeles and Viva Malpache from Chicago. We're working different projects -- that will be our second step, to bring these bigger bands and hopefully by next year we'll be coming out with the first records by some of these Texas bands.

Because few labels are actively courting Latino alternative groups, the Latino Rock Alliance works in conjunction with many labels to turn them on to the most worthy, a project which may shortly come to fruition.

In the meantime, Austinites should not want for their regular dose of this music. Spanish Rock Radio can be found on KOOP (91.7 FM) every Tuesday from noon to 1pm and Latin music is showcased on the Austin Music Network every day from 2 to 3pm on No Borders (with Wednesdays devoted exclusively to Latino Alternative).

Zapata concluded our conversation with a very poignant open letter of sorts, because he knows that there are certainly more musicians out there than ones that he's been hearing from:

One of the most rewarding things is the fact that now you can open the musician's referral section and find musicians contacting other musicians to play Spanish rock bands. I have a lot of friends, Hispanics, who were in rock bands and they weren't really willing to sing in their mother language or even try in this circuit and now they can get backed up. So any band would like to get into this genre, we have the resources for them to be able to develop their art. They're not going to be alone or abandoned. They're going to get help.

deSangre

One name that kept enthusiastically reappearing throughout my discussion with Luis Zapata was that of deSangre: a self-styled "Spanish alternative rock" band based in Houston who Zapata believes may be the scene's greater asset in catapulting the Latino alternative movement into mainstream acceptance. Their debut CD, Principio y Fin, ambitiously gives credence to this theory -- miles from the bland cookie-cutter pop (with distortion petals, of course) being feverishly shoveled out by MTV and commercial radio under the nebulous heading of "alternative rock," Principio pulls from a wide-reaching bin of sounds, betraying influences both overt and less than obvious. To begin with, the band simply rocks, plying a guitar-fueled crunch that undeniably validates their citing of Soundgarden and Rage Against the Machine as influences in their biography. Yet amidst all of the neck-snapping drumming and subterranean bass comes the sound of the group's keyboard player, a typically unoccupied position in this particular genre. But from waging furious battle with the band's guitarist to interjecting a small arsenal of unearthly audio embellishments, his presence is clearly vital. And while the groups cited above may offer a decent explanation of deSangre's sound, I can't help but somehow compare their song-craft with my fondest memories of the glory days of Queensryche (and I can only hope that deSangre will not be mad with me over the infamous '80s rock implications of such a statement -- I assure you I mean this in the nicest possible way).

The band recently holed up in a Houston studio to record a follow-up to Principio y Fin, which by all accounts of those involved is excellent and is expected to please those who've enjoyed their debut as well as, hopefully, a new and larger audience. DeSangre performs regularly all over Texas, and can be frequently found in Austin at the Black Cat's "Heavy Music Night." And whether or not their Texas victory in the Mars Music "Battle of Bands" will eventually lead them to rock stardom and pricey arena gigs, interested listeners should not miss the opportunity to hear them while they can.