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April 16, 2008
Retrohump: Once Upon a Time Near Mexico
The first time I heard Mana, on one of my first nights in the Rio Grande Valley, I was, yes, in a bar*. And like most other RGV transplants, my first thought upon hearing them was: “When the hell did Sting learn Spanish?” In person, every single member of the band seemingly aspires to be a hybrid of Bono and that “rockstar” guy from the Forgetting Sarah Marshall commercials, yet Mana manages to be not half as bad as this paragraph probably insinuates they should be.
Mana – “Clavado en un Bar”
Back in 2006 I totally dropped the ball on my year-end best-of list, and it still bothers me: Julieta Venegas’s Limon y Sal deserved a spot in the top ten, but I didn’t really give it a full listen until months later. These are the sorts of things that keep me up at night, and it’s probably why I still have not finished my thesis. Keeping with the retro theme, however, this creepy, accordion-laced track comes from her debut album, 1998’s Aqui.
Julieta Venegas – “De Mis Pasos”
The dance clubs in Mexico (or, at least, the ones in Reynosa, Matamoros, Monterrey and Guanajuato) still play ‘80s stars Erasure, When in Rome, the Cure, the Smiths and New Order on a regular basis. (Although, oddly, not too much Duran Duran.) I say “still” because these acts seemingly never left the rotation. In fact, I just heard (and danced along to) “A Little Respect” at a wedding last weekend.
New Order – “Bizarre Love Triangle”
On my first trip into Mexico, some five years ago, I heard this song no less than a half dozen times over the course of a three day weekend. I don't think I had heard it once in the previous 15 years. And then, well, here you go...
Baltimora – “Tarzan Boy”
And finally, he’s something for the future Mr. and Mrs. Swankster:
Belle & Sebastian – “Your Cover’s Blown”
* = OK, so it was a Bennigan's.
Posted by Randall Monty at April 16, 2008 12:50 AM
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Comments
Perhaps that's how it should be announced to the crowd at the ceremony. "I am pleased to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Merry Swankster!". Then "Let's Get It On" should be the walk out song.
Posted by: Kelli Douglas at April 16, 2008 10:08 AM
"Tarzan Boy" was huge wasn't it? I've never heard the singer's name before in my life, but I knew it exactly within five seconds.
Posted by: Jeff K at April 16, 2008 01:40 PM
Yeah, it charted in the US; and then again in the early nineties thanks to a Listerine commercial.
But we're talking about continued success... it's like the 90's never happened down here.
Posted by: Randall Monty at April 17, 2008 07:43 AM
