The music performed by Mexican-American band La Santa Cecilia is colorful, harmonious, sincere and pleasant-sounding. This sort of magical music outbreaks, happen only once in a decade or two decades, when you, miraculously, listen to a musical concept that is so authentic and that truly enlightens the soul in every song.
This band, which treasures its Latin American nature, tackles on a trip to the open sea through the Cumbia, Vallenato, Bossa Nova, Rumba and the Bolero, making their music have a great universal sense focused on songs with deep lyrics about love and life.
From their first record "La Santa Cecilia" to their latest album "Amar y Vivir," which will be released in May, this group has rocked the ears of millions of fans around the world, who appreciate the innovation of its conception and the wonderful voice of its vocalist, Marisol Hernandez.
We chatted with all the members of this Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album Grammy-winning band and this is what they told us.
LATIN TIMES: Your music is beautiful, well-created, well-conceived; tell us how did you guys focus on a more vallenato/soul type of genre and where does inspiration come from?
LA SANTA CECILIA: We love all kinds of music, but I think we all agree to have been greatly influenced by Traditional-Mexican and Latin American music. We love folklore. We have been working on music for many years. Long before La Santa Cecilia we worked as musicians and it has always been our goal to make the best music possible. We just want to be a good band.
LT: What artists inspire your group and philosophy?
LSC: Well, artists like Carlos Vives give us a lot of inspiration in our way of making music. On vocalism, singers like Ella Fitzgerald, Janis Joplin, Lucha Villa and Mercedes Sosa, are a great guide for us. There have also been many artists such as Gloria Estefan, José Feliciano and Carlos Santana who have taken their roots very seriously but at the same time have made a contribution to American music always showing who we are, where we came from and why we make the music we do.
LT: Tell us a bit of your new material "Amar y Vivir." What is the meaning of the album?
LSC: It's a record that we had been wanting to do for several years. It is a dream come true that we're able to record these songs that are Boleros and Rancheras from Violeta Parra to Jose Alfredo Jiménez. Bohemian music. When we're not on tour or we have some spare time, that's the music we play and listen to, even in family reunions. We like to gather around the fire and play these songs. It reminds us when we were party musicians and we played many of these pieces. It's the kind of music we hated when we were kids and now that we're adults we appreciate. For us to continue walking forward it was really important to return to our past, our basics.
LT: It's an audiovisual record, right?
LSC: Yes! We went to Mexico City to record and shoot the album in a week; we went to our roots and recorded everything completely live. We visited bars and parks; we went to several places in Mexico and played. The whole atmosphere will also be heard in this album. We are very happy with this project.
LT: Did you have any collaborations?
LSC: From the Chilean group Mon Laferte, to the great Mexican singer Eugenia León. We also shared with a group of rockabillies: a boy and his 70-year- old dad. Singer Noel Schajris collaborated in a song tittled "Odiame" which is a Peruvian waltz, and Comisario Pantera from Mexico.
LT: What’s "Amar y Vivir" main objective?
LSC: Fans will cherish that journey through the time and different generations. This album tries to inspire to continue fighting, living and throwing desire to life and not letting oneself be consumed by hate and negative thoughts. This album reflects that love needed to keep on fighting, always keeping the pride of being Latin American.
LT: You have a song about Immigration tittled "Ice El Hielo," what’s your best advice for all the immigrants going through a difficult time living in the United States?
LSC: We support all of our Latino immigrant brothers. You have to move on! They want us to be afraid, to split, but we must overcome that fear and take action. This is our country and we must fight for it.
LT: You’re going on tour! Tell us about the dates and repertoire.
LSC: We will be touring the Southwest of the US right when we release the album on May 12. We will go to Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and then Mexico. We are very happy to take the road and do this tour. It’ll be our regular show but with new songs too. It’ll be amazing!
Enjoy "Amar y Vivir" performance for "Billboard Live" below.
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