Seattle Theatre Group (STG) presents Rodrigo y Gabriela on Monday, September 21, 2009 at 7:30pm at the Moore Theatre.
Rodrigo (Sanchez) and Gabriela (Quintero) are two fast-fingered, Dublin-based, Mexicans with a unique sound created on acoustic guitars. Their music is difficult to define, straddling both world and rock, and often imbued with timeless Hispano - classical influences. The fire in it comes from their life-long passion for metal music. This spring, "Rodrigo y Gabriela," beat both the Arctic Monkeys AND
Johnny Cash to number one in the Irish charts.
Rodrigo is a deft finger-picker who can move from raging speed to sensual soul in the space of a fret, while Gabriela employs fast, rhythmic techniques. Her percussionist's thrashing of strings and drumming of the instrument's body inevitably raises comparisons with flamenco - which they acknowledge as an influence but swerve as a pigeonhole. The duo's repertoire flies beyond familiar Latin folk guitarists' styles because of the metal connection: their reworkings of Led Zep's "Stairway to Heaven" and Metallica's "Orion" are musts, and the presence, on "Ixtapa", of the fiery Hungarian gypsy violinist, Roby Lakatos, is inspirational.
Rodrigo and Gabriela describe their style as 'Fusion music': "It's mainly got Latin harmonies and rhythms but the structure is rock. It's not jazz because it's structured, and we don't improvise; our solos are exactly what's on the record, as a metal fan and guitarist you always want to hear the same f**king solo!"
Influences range from family salsa records to Gabriela's aunt's Pink Floyd, Black Sabbath, Queen, and Led Zeppelin vinyl, with Rodrigo also embracing a similar classic rock lineage. But, crucially, they grew up during Mexico's 'metal era.' "People expected two acoustic guitarists would play classical music, but we dropped in extracts from Led Zep, Hendrix and Metallica, then we did the same with "Stairway to Heaven!" Their music is instrumental "with very lyrical themes." Mentions of flamenco influences raise sharp responses: "To many music fans, it sounds like flamenco, and we're great flamenco fans, but we don't play it" says Gabriela. "The only similarity is that our music is guitar music and it's very rhythmic."
This album's producer John Leckie (Radiohead, Muse, My Morning Jacket) arrived on the scene via a demo sent to him by their Irish record label, and he called the very next day. The three agreed to record 'live', and Rodrigo and Gabriela were placed in the same room in a studio in Bath, England, to perform as if on stage: "We played each track over and over, and only 'Orion' has overdubs." Ruby Lakatos, the fiery gypsy violinist was the only outsider, and his presence on "Ixtapa" is wonderful. "We saw him on TV", Gabriela remembers, "Playing at a concert in Amsterdam, and we sent him our music. He improvised this whole piece in two hours!" From the many, many live versions, Leckie chose 'the one.'
ATO Records is excited to announce that Rodrigo y Gabriela will release their new studio album, entitled 11:11, on Tuesday September 8th. 11:11 was recorded in Ixtapa, Mexico and produced by Rodrigo y Gabriela, with John Leckie co-producing two of the tracks. The album was mixed in Wales and London by
Colin Richardson, best known for his work with Slipknot and Trivium.
11:11 is the long awaited follow up to their 2006 self-titled debut which has so far enjoyed worldwide sales in excess of half a million albums.
Tickets: $35.00 not including applicable fees. Tickets are on sale at Tickets.com, in person at the Paramount Theatre box offices, 24-hour kiosks located outside The Paramount & Moore Theatres, charge by phone at 877-STG-4TIX, or online at
STGPresents.org.
Seattle Theatre Group is the 501 (c)(3) non-profit arts organization that operates the historic Paramount and Moore Theatres in Seattle, Washington. Our mission is to make diverse performing arts and education an integral part of our region's cultural identity while keeping these two landmark venues alive and vibrant. STG presents a range of performances from Broadway, off-Broadway, dance and jazz to comedy, concerts of all genres, speakers and family shows - at both historic theatres in Seattle and venues throughout the Puget Sound and Portland, Oregon.
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