Brownout

Posted on Tuesday, August 10

Recommended New Music!
by Catalina Maria Johnson, Ph.D.

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

El Santo dances with James Brown: Brownout serves up afro-latin groove, Tejano-style

To even begin to glean the multitude of influences that converge in Brownout´s second CD, Aguilas y Cobras, it´s worth the time to check out the video created by Miguel Alvarez for the track “Slinky” (Alvarez is a filmmaker who also functions as the group´s VJ). The video features Sun Ra, El Santo (the masked Mexican lucha libre hero), and late-night Spanish-language TV clips from Mexican action films from the 70´s, not to mention a pair of flying laser-throwing eyeballs. And that´s just for starters!

A collective based in Austin, Texas Brownout´s eight members also perform along with two other musicians as the Grammy-nominated Grupo Fantasma. Their musical sensibility emerges from being thoroughly comfortable with both sides of the Rio Grande, as half of its members hail from the border town of Laredo. Their blend of Latino roots music, African American funk, psychedelic rock and Tejano border grooves explodes in funky bass lines, aggressive horns, hip-hopped congas, and fierce guitar licks.  Along the way, their primarily instrumental pieces draw inspiration in 1970s legends such as Sly and the Family Stone, Santana, Joe Bataan,  James Brown, Jimi Hendrix and the West Coast band Malo, (led by Jorge Santana, Carlos´ brother).

Their danceable grooves sometimes touch on more serious topics – one of the only three songs that has  lyrics,“Con El Cuete”, speaks in metaphor of the senseless drug violence of Laredo, Texas  (“cuete” is slang for gun). However, most of the songs are just pure unadulterated funk without words. The Big Easy inspires classic funk in “Nawlins”.  Other songs, such as “Framed By Death” highlight the Latin influences with conga, guiro and a brass-driven jazzy cha-cha-cha in a minor key. In “Olvidalo”, Brownout approaches the psychedelic salsa more often heard when the musicians play as  Grupo Fantasma, a group where the influence of singer/percussionist José Galeano is added and comes to the foreground. (Galeano is the nephew of José “Chepito” Areas, the timbalero from the original Santana band.) On other tunes, the percussion even incorporates a certain hip-hop tendency – so even though the sounds hearken back to mostly the seventies, they always come off fresh and smart.

Funk fans will find a lot to love in the tight and cohesive production of Aguilas y Cobras, where Brownout plays its Latin Funk with a cool swagger.