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Formed in their entirety in 2000 five piece Latino dance funk band KINKY have emerged from relative obscurity in the desert city of Monterrey, Mexico to a phenomenal worldwide success. With two triumphant albums under their belt and many more tours, soundtracks and award nominations (including not one, not two, but three Grammys) to date, the boys begin 2005 on a very high note indeed. The original KINKY line-up comprised of Gilberto Cerezo, Ulises Lozano and Carlos Chairez who experimented with alternative genres. Three became five when Omar Gongora and Cesar Pliego joined in early 2000 and everything clicked into place. With such diverse influences as traditional Samba beats to techno and rock 'n' roll, KINKY tapped their resources of rich talent and varied musical styles, to create their distinctive new sound. By mid 2000 they were gaining a reputation for their unique blend of Latin rock and when Chris Allison, British record producer of Coldplay and the Beta Band, heard them, he decided to sign them to the his Sonic360 group of labels. The deal lead to a licensing agreement for the U.S. and Canada through Nettwerk America and BMG Mexico for Latin America. The rest, as they say, is history. Aided by the production skills of Chris Allison, by 2002 KINKY had recorded and released a fine self-titled debut album, received by critical and public acclaim. Following the band?s effervescent SXSW appearance, critics from highly respected International press described KINKY?s music as ?feverishly danceable,? ?groovy electro-pop? and even going so far as to proclaim their unique blend as the ?future of music.? As an album, ?Kinky? combined the stylishness of discerning American and European dance grooves and straight-ahead rock ?n? roll, with traditional rhythms from throughout South America. Their fresh new sound and extensive touring attracted fans and supporters all over the U.S., Latin America and U.K. With live performances so well received, KINKY played over 180 shows in the year, travelling the world while working on their next album ?Atlas?. KINKY changed location for the recording of ?Atlas?, heading to a secluded ranch in Quintana Roo, Mexico. In the serenity of the isolated jungle, they found both creativity and productivity, composing seven of the album?s eleven songs. ?It was vacation and hard work at the same time,? remembers Gil, ?and when we were in the jungle we were surrounded everywhere by insects and animals. One time as I was recording vocals, a bug came directly in to my mouth .... It was fun to have that kind of interaction!? For the remainder of the album, KINKY travelled to Los Angeles to work with venerable engineer Thom Russo (System of a Down, Audioslave). Russo helped the band bring out a more raw and rock-driven sound in comparison with their electro-pop dominated debut; ?The approach for this album was different from the first in that on this one we wanted to focus on a live, organic band sound,? says Ulises. ?In the first album we recorded ourselves and made loops. On this record we didn?t use as many loops or samples. It was more like a live session where we?d record the whole track on tape [too], rather than just digital. You can hear all the organic sounds like guitar, drum, bass and vocals all sounding live.? ?Atlas? has enjoyed huge success and confirmed KINKY?s status as the Mexican demi-Gods of the music world. With singles ?Presidente? and ?Headphonist? A and B listed on radio playlists worldwide and many high profile performances, including the MTV Latin Music Awards, and supporting the almighty Vasco Rossi on his Italian arena tour, KINKY are in an amazingly good place right now. To keep up to date with all the exciting KINKY news as and when it happens, keep your eyes and ears open and alert on the Sonic360 web site.
On their 2001 self-titled debut, the five-piece band KINKY (Gilberto Cerezo, Ulises Lozano, Carlos Chairez, Omar Gongora, Cesar Pliego) emerged from the desert city of Monterrey, Mexico with a set of world-savvy songs that belied the fact that most of the ideas were birthed in their small home studio. As musicians who not only knew their various instruments but each other for many years within the small but supportive music scene of Monterrey, a collective vision of channeling sounds across the globe was definitely within reach. To work on thier second album, Atlas, they headed deep into the jungle, uprooting their studio and taking up temporary residence in an isolated ranch in Quintana Roo, Mexico for a month. From there, KINKY traveled to a different sort of jungle - Los Angeles - in order to write a few more songs and work with venerable engineer Thom Russo (System of a Down, Audioslave). Russo helped the band bring out a more raw and rock-driven sound in comparison with their electro-pop dominated debut (though they haven't abandoned their love of the machines either). "The approach for this album was different from the first in that on this one we wanted to focus on a live, organic band sound," says Ulises. "In the first album we recorded ourselves and made loops. On this record we didn't use as many loops or samples. It was more like a live session where we'd record the whole track on tape [too], rather than just digital. You can hear all the organic sounds like guitar, drum, bass and vocals all sounding live." It's this contrast of environments - represented by the image of a fantastical grasshopper-jetliner hybrid on the album cover - and constantly being on the road that makes up the themes of Atlas. Sonically it is a clash of the organic and the digital; lyrically it roams from remembering to grab and savor the moments maybe you can ("Snapshot", which owes its rhythms to "quebradita", a northern Mexican music style) to finding something special in what most take for granted as those in-between times when you're waiting for something else to happen ("Airport Feelings"). But they start right at home in Mexico, with the propulsive single "Presidente." "We're asking, which color is our president? Green, white or red?" explains Gil. "These are the colors of our flag and they cover different ideas. Red can be very drastic or violent, or mean danger. White means peace or being clean. Green means things are growing up or developing. So each color represents state of mind or feeling and I think it's a good analogy with our flag."
After the death of his father, Charlie Price must save his family's failing shoe factory or his entire town will be left out in the cold. When Charlie looks for a way to reinvent the family business, he finds help in the most unusual of people, Lola, a feisty female impersonator with a flair for design.
Madee is a Spanish rock band.
The Constantines: "Nightime/Anytime, It's Alright"
When the Constantines headlined the Sub Pop showcase at the 2004 SXSW Festival in Austin, Texas; the band's show concluded with them standing on the speaker stacks clapping and keeping time for the audience as the room sang the band's recent set closer (Lou Reed's "Temporary Thing") back at them. This scene lasted a full five minutes, five minutes of finale without the band playing a single note and thus the increasingly impatient promoters, fearful of running over their strict Texan curfew, couldn't even unplug the band to get them off the stage. But then the purpose of the stage is constantly called into question at Constantines shows. Bryan and Steve will regularly move their mic stands into the crowd and Doug frequently hands out percussion to the faithful gathered together near the band. The greatest rock and roll is always transformative, a concept that the Constantines grasped from their inception and one which was so readily on display at this show. The boundary between band and crowd is blurred; inhibitions are lost, along with voices, and ultimately you feel more alive than you did before the band took the stage, before you stopped noticing the stage.
Anagram is a rock band from Spain.
Over the past decade Placebo have slowly but surely grown into one of the biggest and best rock bands on the globe. Meds is Placebo?s first studio album since 2003?s Sleeping With Ghosts, which went Top 10 in the UK, sold 1.4 million copies worldwide and firmly re-established the band's foothold in the USA. In that time Placebo have gone from strength to strength selling out arena dates all over the world including the 18,000 capacity Bercy in Paris (comparable in size to Madison Square Garden). Like other darkly romantic acts that speak directly to the scorched human soul - The Cure, Depeche Mode, Morrissey, REM - theirs has been a steady, cultish global explosion. But when Brian Molko, Stefan Olsdal and Steve Hewitt sold out Wembley Arena in 2004 during a triumphant homecoming jaunt to promote that year?s Singles package Once More With Feeling, with Robert Smith as special guest, the lid was blown on rock?s worst kept secret: for ten years Placebo had been creeping up on superstardom, now here they were taking their place on the podium. Placebo have taken the world, now they?re coming for you. Be blissfully afraid.
Abrasive Wheels: "Find Your Heart"
Abrasive Wheels, one of the original and most successful 80's Punk bands released two top selling albums, "When the Punks go Marching in" and the classic "Black Leather Girl." During the early eighties the British band, based in Leeds, were seldom out of the top five of the Indie Chart with blistering anthems such as "The Army Song," "Vicious Circle," "Burn em Down," "Jailhouse Rock," "Banner of Hope," and "The Prisoner." The Band reformed with the original lineup plus new guitarist Steve Popplewell and did their first gig in Bradford, England in February 2003.
A band you have to see to believe, the Black Lips are the kings of today's psychedelic garage rock underground. They started the band when they were 15 years old and spent the next seven years touring the world, booking themselves, playing for scraps. Underground parties, basement shows, outlaw festivals, the odd tour opening for Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Dirtbombs, and Be Your Own Pet in actual legitimate venues(!), plus three classic albums, countless 7"s, a couple DVDs, and their own vinyl garage rock label Die Slaughterhaus cemented their reputation. They're now 22 years old, grizzled veterans of the underground, and legends in the scene.
Foals are a five-piece dance-rock band currently living in and native to the town of Oxford, England. Check out the video for "Balloons" as heard in the album "Antidotes" released on Sub Pop Records.
