“Indie Rocks L.A.” compilation album

Written by Hilda Gabriela Wednesday, 29 July 2009 10:45

As easily as you can order up a white Russian or a healthy blend of fruits and veggies in a smoothie, you can also sample Indie L.A. in a 14-track compilation. The Indie Rocks L.A. compilation album hit recently with a blend of refreshing tunes that according to its producer, Oscar Coronel, hopes to drench the world at large with good Spanish indie musique. Sound engineer to numerous Los Angeles-based musicians as well as house engineer to local L.A. hot spots, Coronel produced the album in an effort to shake up the scene and take some of the West Coast sabor to the peeps over in the East Coast. Days before his trip to the recent LAMC event, Coronel was deciding on which bands he felt would vividly represent the current underground scene. “This was definitely the hardest part of it. I mainly focused on bands that are making the effort to create something beyond the classic Rock en Español tunes,” he states. “There are definitely more bands in L.A. that could have been a part of this compilation but you can only fit 80 minutes on one CD!”

With the LAMC being a Mecca for media and emerging talent, Coronel figured that it was the perfect place to promote L.A. talent. With a few emails, phone calls and occasional run-ins with local bands at popular nightlife events, Coronel had enough contributing bands to begin producing the album. “With some bands it took more convincing than others because this project was intended for promotional use only and no monetary gain, neither for the bands nor myself, would take place,” states Coronel. “But after they understood the importance of spreading out to different markets, it was plug and play from there.”

The bands that added their own spice to the Indie Rocks L.A. 14-track mix were indie rockers Autopop, Beatmo, Bionico, Castaño, Fatima, Kimey, Leo Machado, Love Star, Maneja Beto, Más o Menos, Son Locuaz, Soy Disco, Velorio and Who is Chuy Vega. Fatima’s, “Escuchame”, which is to date the band’s most popular tune as well as the single that lead their 2007 album release, adds the emo-punk touch to the album. Bionico’s experimental tunes and Love Star’s recently released “Felicidad” single added the electronica-fest to the bunch.

“The idea is to reinvent the scene and to promote the new sounds that are emerging from Los Angeles all throughout the world,” states Coronel. “It’s unfortunate that if you travel outside of L.A. you will still hear the same "Matador" or "Entre dos Tierras" which are great songs, but I think it’s time for the new talent to emerge and create a new movement.”

Although the album is not on sale, for the time being, the set-list for the album can be checked out at www.indierocksla.com. And, according to Coronel, there is talk that a benefit concert in support of the album may take place in the not too distant future showcasing each of the bands that collaborated in the project.

“The lack of support in the form of radio air play is very unfortunate considering that we are surrounded by numerous bands that work hard to create something new,” states Coronel. “But gratefully, DJ’s are willing to play the compilation and promoters are interested in the bands. The evolution is noticeable and you can definitely tell that the days of the classic rock en español are definitely part of the past.”

Indie Rocks L.A. is:
Autopop    "Demente"
Beatmo    "Orale"
Bionico    "Coma"
Castaño    "Dados"
Fatima    "Escuchame"
Kimey    "No te compliques"
Leo Machado    "Con tu Beso"
Love star    "Felicidad"
Maneja Beto    "Apertura"
Mas o Menos    "If I were the king of the Universe"
Son Locuaz    "Enfermal"
Soy Disco    "Silueta"
Velorio    "Entregate"
Who is Chuy Vega    "B.E.L.I.E.V.E."

Hilda Gabriela
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