Singer, composer Omar Naré's new band, ALTI, is '70s inspired Chicano rock
Also, RIP Dean Rhodus and some quick concert news.
Omar Naré is trying something new with his latest project.
The singer and composer is known for his carefully crafted stage performances featuring his wife, dancer Jasmin La Caris.
But with his new group ALTI, Naré is taking a work-in-progress and putting it before an audience straight away, as a way of shaking off the pandemic.
“We feel rusty … but instead of locking ourselves away for another year ‘making it perfect’ we thought we’d do the work in public,” Naré says, in advance of the group’s first show tonight at Veni Vidi Vici.
“Vinis on Sunday is a way for us to eat goat cheese and try the material out on a crowd,” he says.
The show is billed as a Chicano performance and the band — Naré, plus Rich Juarez, Carlos Rodriguez and Quetzal Andrade — is inspired by ‘70s-area Chicano rock; Ray Camacho, El Chicano, Los Kintos.
Stylistically, it’s a departure from Naré’s most recent work crafting a brand of nuevo mariachi. Logistically, it’s a break from the times the members have played together in the past.
“We want music to serve us instead of us serving music,” Naré says.
“We’re older and maybe wiser.”
ALTI plays 7 p.m. June 27 at Veni Vidi Vici, 1116 N Fulton St.
RIP Dean Rhodus
As reported by KMPH, Dean Rhodus died this week.
Rhodus was a singer, performer and instructor; teaching at Fresno City College and Fresno State and also working as professional vocal coach at Rhodus Vocal Arts Studios (for those really wanting to understand things like tongue control and vibrato, or like, the importance of posture in singing).
During the “American Idol” craze (back when the show was water-cooler TV), Rhodus served as one of two commentators (along with Debbie Ruud) brought in by the station to review each week’s episode and pontificate on its winners and losers.
As remembered by Ruud: “He became the ‘Simon Cowell’ and I was the ‘Paula Abdul.’ If you ever watched, you know what I’m talking about.”
“We came on set once an hour for say 5-8 minutes and did our ‘thing.’ The rest of the time Dean and I sat in the green room, drank coffee and hung out … Not only has the world lost a brilliant talent but we have lost a very sweet and real, honest and hilarious, deep loving man.”
Concert announcements, June 21-27
For those with long memories, or access to the Wayback Machine, Bandgeeeeek! used to be a a weekly concerts list. It was conceived by the Fresnan, though I stole it briefly in my position with the Fresno Beehive (as a replacement of sorts for Mike Oz’ Post No Bills).
Unfortunately, that kind of master concerts list is a bit cumbersome, logistically, and not really all that fun to put together, even if there is a need (per this post from Reddit user baconvino).
I will do my best however to include some kind of live music update each week.
This week we had two big concert announcements for y’all to put on the calendar (or just go ahead and buy tickets for).
First, Numbskull announced a Fresno stop for Flogging Molly and the Violent Femmes on their co-headlining tour. It happens Oct. 13 at the Woodward Park Amphitheater. Tickets are $59.50-$149 and on sale now.
Flogging Molly is a Fresno favorite (as anyone who saw them play Tioga Sequoia or the Rainbow Ballroom can attest). Add in the Violent Femmes (and Me First and the Gimme Gimmes to a lesser extent) and this show become a huge get for Fresno and something a LOT of people will be/already are getting excited over.
Also announced is a return performance from Pitbull. His “I Feel Good” tour stop at the Save Mart Center Sept. 25. Tickets start at $26 and are on sale now.
Pitbull kicked off his very first national headlining tour in Fresno back in 2016 and he seems to keep.coming.back. The bonus this time is opener Iggy Azalea, even if she’s isn’t the star she was in say, the mid-20-teens.
That’s it for this week. If you have anything you think I need to be looking at or listening to, feel free to let me know: jtehee@gmail.com
You rock dude!