Ricardo Velasquez, recently re-elected to a new term as president of the Hispanic Democrats of North Carolina at their June statewide convention, is dedicated to bringing more Hispanic voters into the Democratic fold this election season. While local non-profit advocacy groups like Student Action with Farmworkers and El Pueblo focus on legislative issues affecting primarily […]
Sylvia Pfeiffenberger
Bio: Sylvia Pfeiffenberger lives in Durham and hosts a weekly Latin music show on WXDU.
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How did the wolves survive?
Los Lobos rolls out the red carpet with The Ride, a casual tribute album to their 30th year in show business. Among the featured guests who deliver unforgettable performances, from the wacky to the serene: Tom Waits, Mavis Staples, Ruben Blades, Elvis Costello, Bobby Womack, Richard Thompson, Little Willie G. and Cafe Tacuba, sprawling across […]
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Rock en Espanol
Latin ska emanates from unit 318, where a few cars, pickup trucks and a small audience drinking Coronas have converged in the light of a full moon to listen to an impromptu rehearsal of LETAL. “This is garage band at its best,” says one bystander who prefers to remain anonymous. “I don’t speak any Spanish,” […]
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Venezuelan Superfly
It takes a global village to raise a dance band. Luaka Bop recording artists Los Amigos Invisibles moved to New York three years ago from Caracas, Venezuela, the Caribbean rim city where they first got introduced to the music of Prince, Parliament, Funkadelic, and the Fania All Stars. Now scattered across the boroughs of Brooklyn, […]
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Sabado Gigante at Chino Latino
The blinds are drawn on a Saturday night at Chino Latino, a Durham roadhouse with a slightly prohibited feel, like one of those smoke-filled, mob-run gay bars of the 1950s. The management of this establishment is friendly though–Alberto Canuto, who operates the combination Mexican-Chinese restaurant on Highway 98, just over the tracks past the 98/70 […]
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In musica bailable
Two local friends of world music, Efrain Ramirez and Jack Wolf, team up to promote Appalachia’s hottest Latin band in the Triangle Saturday, March 27. Solazo , whose last album is aptly titled Mindful Journeys, transplanted themselves from South America to Floyd County, Va. for its unusual combination of rural lifestyle and thriving community of […]
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Mundo Rico
Richmond’s Bio Ritmo goes nationwide The steamy corner bar looks like something out of a Hopper painting: vintage ceiling fans, a lunch counter bar, dark wood paneling, and cafe curtains on the fishbowl windows. “We debut a lot of our new songs here,” says Marlysse Simmons, pianist with Bio Ritmo, on a recent Tuesday night […]
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In walking “the walk”
Been putting off a New Year’s resolution to expand your horizons, have more fun, maybe take a dance class? This weekend is a golden opportunity to take your first steps in a new direction, as Tangophilia hosts two world-renowned visiting instructors in the Argentine tango. Carolina Zokalski and Diego di Falco became the youngest tango […]
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In loungin’
Montas International Lounge hosts two live Latin performers for their “Back 2 Back” Christmas Celebration and Benefit Weekend. Our favorite Richmond salseros, Bio Ritmo (www.bioritmo.com), kick off the fiesta on Friday, Dec. 19. This is your chance to pick up their new self-titled CD, an independent release that garnered top honors at this year’s Discmakers […]
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LatinBeat
You can buy tickets with confidence for Cat’s Cradle’s rescheduled Barbarito Torres show Wednesday, Dec. 10–the Cuban lutist and his nine-piece band are safely stateside thanks to the intervention of Senator Hillary Clinton. Torres’ new self-titled album, with strings aplenty (tres, guitar, and lute) and strong vocal harmonies, resounds like a giant autoharp or life-size […]