MUSIC | ALBUQUERQUE
Lisa Morales, Los Texmaniacs to take the KiMo stage on Aug. 21
Concert celebrates Mexican American and New Mexican musical roots
Lisa Morales and Los Texmaniacs are bringing a fiesta of music to the KiMo Theatre stage on Friday, Aug. 21.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a really fun thing, and it鈥檚 very cultural,鈥 Morales said, 鈥渁nd everybody, all walks of life, will enjoy what we do.鈥
Morales brings her cultural upbringing and influence to her music as a Mexican American.
鈥淚 have this really rich culture, and so I just put it in everything that I鈥檝e done,鈥 Morales said, 鈥渁nd then along with everything I鈥檝e ever listened to musically, and that鈥檚 kind of my sound.鈥
She grew up listening to musicians like Los Panchos, The Beatles, Willie Nelson and Bonnie Raitt. Her family, from her parents to her siblings, heavily influenced her musical tastes and her writing, she said.
She would think back on conversations with her late mother and how it was 鈥減oetry in Spanish,鈥 which started her writing in Spanglish.
鈥淪ome thoughts were in English, and some thoughts were in Spanish, and it just kind of became a fluent language for me,鈥 Morales said, 鈥渁nd that kind of translated into my songwriting and it just became a sound for me.鈥
Morales performs in both Spanish and English, as do her tour partners, Los Texmaniacs. Max Baca, lead singer of Los Texmaniacs, said the plus to touring together is that both bands are bilingual.
While singing in a mix of Spanish and English, he said the band is traditional and sticks to their roots.
鈥淵ou can veer off a little bit, but you can鈥檛 go too far because then you become somebody that you鈥檙e not 鈥,鈥 Baca said, 鈥淵ou got to just be who you are.鈥
Baca鈥檚 roots trace back to New Mexico. He was born and raised in Albuquerque, later joining different bands, including the Texas Tornados, before forming Los Texmaniacs about a decade ago.
鈥淚 always remain true to the sound, and it鈥檚 pretty much like the Texas Tornados kind of music; you know that it had a little bit of everything in there,鈥 Baca said, 鈥渁nd it has the roots of where I grew up, you know, New Mexico roots.鈥
His musical roots were formed from his time with the Texas Tornados but also by his family. His father played Norte帽o-style music and utilized instruments like an accordion and a saxophone.
Baca said his father had a diverse style of New Mexican music sometimes described as 鈥渃hicken scratch music.鈥
鈥淪o chicken scratch music is a form of Native American polkas and just the same music that you would hear in Tex-Mex music. But they would play the same music, but they wouldn鈥檛 sing. It was just all instrumentals.鈥
Morales said there is a Mexican thread that ties the two groups together, even though they are different musically.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just a feel-good thing that happens with the two bands,鈥 Morales said.
Elizabeth Secor is an arts fellow for the 近距离内射合集. You can reach her at esecor@abqjournal.com.