Al Borde puts a fresh spin on Day of the Dead with Music and Art Festival

Wednesday, 19 November 2008 17:00

Live Performance by Rock en español homegrown East LA band Upground caps Festivities

Los Angeles, CA -- November 20, 2008 -- The up-and-coming Latin fusion group, Upground entertained close to700 Los Angeles area residents on a chilly Sunday night to enjoy a free live performance to celebrate Dia De Los Muertos with an edge.  Al Borde, the leading Latin alternative music and lifestyle publication, put its signature twist on the cultural Día de los Muertos tradition and presented its fourth annual Día de los Muertos Music and Art Festival on November 2nd showcasing emerging bands and artists from the Latino community.

Hosted at a mortuary-turned-coffee shop/art house in East Los Angeles, Al Borde’s Día de los Muertos Music and Art Festival included Day of the Dead-themed artwork, free traditional Mexican food and beverages, and an hour-long set that appropriately included such hits as “Día de los Muertos.” The 8-member band delivered a powerful set which intricately fused rock, reggae and ska that left the audience energized and wanting more.

“Featuring important Los Angeles based Latin alternative rock bands that are little known in the mainstream media is what sets Al Borde’s Día de los Muertos events apart from so many others,” explained Melvin Ortiz, Brand Manager for Al Borde. “Our event supports and promotes not only local Chicano artists, but also great local musicians which haven’t quite reached ‘superstardom’, but which have a large following in their respective scenes. This musical exposure also comprises a great part of the content in Al Borde and alborde.com.”

The festival included an art and altar exhibition consisting of pieces from Jefferson High School in South LA, and the high school after school program After School All Stars, among other local community groups; the pieces were also entered in Al Borde’s Día de los Muertos Art and Altar Contest. The winners were Jefferson High School, whose altars earned them $250 in cash for their art class, and Ivan Maravilla, who will be receiving his very own art display at Casita del Pueblo in Uptown Whittier, and a feature editorial in Al Borde.

The Al Borde hosted event was sponsored by Aetna, El Clasificado, Manzanita Sol, Monster Energy Drinks, Toyota Matrix and Wells Fargo.

The annual Al Borde Dia de los Muertos Music and Art Festival is presented by Al Borde (www.alborde.com), a free publication that reaches the18- to 34-year-old Hispanic demographic, and serves as a source for Latin Alternative entertainment news and information. Al Borde is owned and published by the Spanish-language weekly El Clasificado – an Hispanic Business 100 multimedia company – and is rapidly becoming a leading Latin Alternative multiplatform company that offers advertising opportunities through sponsored events, section sponsorships, street team promotions, web sites, and mobile services.

About the band
Upground has developed a huge following throughout the Southwest in the four short years they have been performing live. Their music is an indefinable blend of ska, reggae, rock, and cumbia, and is sung in Spanish and English. The amazing horn section in this 8-member band has been widely praised by many including the LA Times, Tu Ciudad magazine, and Al Borde.

Maria Elena Aguilar
		About the author:
		Manager of PR/Staff Writer. B.A., English Literature, UC Berkeley (2005). Maria Elena joined Al Borde in 2005, for what was supposed to be a one-year stint to “get her feet wet”... Her weaknesses are pretty boys with beards and everything J. Crew has to offer. When she’s not busy daydreaming, this neurotic super mom keeps busy raising her newborn daughter, Sofia.