Chicano Batman: L.A. Band Is Taking Cues from All Over the Musical Map

Photo by Itzel Alejandra Martinez

By Aly Comingore, Santa Barbara Independent

Take a walk through East L.A., and you’ll witness firsthand what gentrification looks like. For decades, these predominantly Latino neighborhoods were considered unsafe, run-down, etc. But increasingly high rents on the city’s more “posh” Westside eventually started driving people out, or rather, eastbound to more affordable housing and commercial real estate. Nowadays, the Eastside is home to much of the city’s creative capital, with chic restaurants, shopping, movie houses, and grocers popping up by the day. Meanwhile, the city’s Latino population is either struggling to hang on or moving elsewhere — to places like South County, Orange County, and the Inland Empire. It’s a story that could be told and retold about some faction of every city in America, Santa Barbara included. It’s also the world in which Chicano Batman came to life.

Comprising friends Bardo Martínez (vocals/keyboard/guitar), Eduardo Arenas (bass), Gabriel Villa (percussion), and Carlos Arévalo (guitar), Chicano Batman is a band that skirts any easy pigeonholing, though not necessarily by design. Formed around Martínez’s onetime solo project of the same name, the group plays music that’s not only deeply rooted in soul and the blues but also mixed, mingled, and shaken up by each of the member’s cultural reference points. There are notes of tropicália and cumbia, as well as bossa nova, pop, and funk. The lyrics are written sometimes in Spanish, sometimes in English, and often cross back and forth throughout the band’s live shows.

“I was really excited about playing this certain type of sound,” said Martínez as he recalled the band’s formation from the back of their tour van last week. “I wanted to get this sound that comes from late-’60s Latin American and Mexican soul music, where the bass and the drum sound are really tight. It’s almost like hip-hop in a sense, but it was coming from bands trying to imitate American soul music.”

With the rhythm and bass acting as foundation, Martínez and his mates started slowly piling on sounds, relying heavily on jamming and vibe to steer the process. On the band’s recently released sophomore album, Cycles of Existential Rhyme, Chicano Batman gravitates more toward heady guitar work, but the two-step melodies are ever present. “I’ve always listened to the same stuff,” laughs Martínez, “I have this playlist with a lot of random soul music, psychedelic stuff, but it all has that same type of vibe, from Little Saigon to Colombia.”

In many ways, Chicano Batman’s music is indicative of its locale — it’s fluid and complex, sort of like a sonic melting pot. “L.A. is kind of a microcosm of the world,” Martínez says of the band’s hometown. “From what I have noticed, it tends to be very materialistic. Everyone wears their persona on their shoulders, and a lot of times I feel like everyone is fronting. But I also think we’re maybe part of a new wave of folks who are trying not to be that way.”

In the coming months, Chicano Batman will premiere its first collaborative film score, written for a soon-to-be-released PBSproject. But Martínez also has his sights set on some bigger goals, including collaborations.

“We want to build bridges with everybody. I want to do a collaboration with Kendrick Lamar,” he laughs. “And it’s possible. It’s all about being genuine. That’s why I play music — I genuinely want to communicate what I have in my heart. We don’t see ourselves as a Latino band. We’re a band just like any other band. And soul music is kind of the perfect vehicle. It reaches out to everybody.”

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2014 NCLR ALMA Awards

The Friends of the American Latino Museum is a proud partner of this year's NCLR ALMA Awards! Catch the ALMA Awards LIVE hosted by our honorary board co-chair, Eva Longoria and Mario Lopez this Friday, October 10 at 10 PM Eastern, 7 PM Pacific on MSNBC!

Click to enlarge

This year’s awardees include:

• Guillermo del Toro, Award for Industry Excellence presented by Zoe Saldana
• “Orange is the New Black” Cast Members Selenis Leyva and Dascha Polanco, Special Achievement in Television
• “Cesar Chavez,” Special Achievement in Film
• Pitbull, Special Achievement in Music
• Special Tribute to the 2014 Hispanic Recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor presented by Michael Peña

The Awards Show will be broadcast LIVE on MSNBC with preshow coverage on Telemundo.com, hosted by Jessica Carrillo and Christian Acosta (LatinoGossip.com) beginning at 9 PM Eastern.

Follow @ALMAawards and @NCLREvents and use the official hashtag, #ALMA14 to keep up on Twitter.

Two good look'n Chicanos

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On the Macho Motorcyclist

By Jesús Manuel Mena Garza

Moto Foto Adventurer

I love motorcycles and photography. I get a visceral response to each endeavor. Both "loves" are filled with fanatics. They profess that their camera or bike is the absolute best – no question. Such is life in the First World. 

American motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson (Aka: Hog) is known for their cruiser bikes. They have a following around the world. Their riders and their bikes seem to be getting fatter and larger. All the while, Asian and European companies are still focused on middleweight or smaller bikes. If you were in Tokyo, London, Lagos or Santiago, a smaller more efficient bike would be the norm.

In the developed world, bikers can be quite obsessive about their bikes and appearance (costumes). While on a motorcycle, many otherwise sensible adults are transformed by leather and badging into road warriors or miscreants. Let me use me as an example. 

Black is bad

My retro-middleweight Triumph Bonneville SE (Bonny) is all black not pink or pale blue. Like many bikers, I have created a dark persona. I wear a black Dainese jacket (sinister demon logo included), black boots, helmet and gloves. Even my backpack is black. 

I only wear bright colors at night. That is when I put on a reflective vest. I don't want to be killed by texting teens in their parent's massive SUV. Yes, I have seen plenty of that ilk in Fort Worth, Texas.

Bigger is better?

You hear the term bad ass a lot when you ride a cool motorcycle. I often get a thumbs up, a nod of approval and plenty of positive comments. But not from Harley-Davidson riders (my brothers ride Hogs). They see my middleweight bike and invariably frown. I hear disparaging remarks like "cute" bike. On the "cool" pecking order, Harley riders feel that they reign supreme.

Click photo to enlarge (photo courtesy of Harley-Davidson)

Like Harley riders, American motorcycle magazines are quite macho too. They categorize some bikes as beginner and women's bikes. Even though I have seen diminutive adults ride big bikes. According to these snobs, everyone is supposed to ride a big or fast bike.

Again, I love my 2012 Triumph Bonneville SE. It's great for short jaunts around town but definitely not the best choice for extended rides. After three hours my hands and butt are quite numb. Riding my Bonny can be quite the ordeal. 

There has to be a better way

My next bike will be designed for the long haul, but sized right (for me). I could buy a Hog or a clone, but they typically weigh about 750 pounds. I just don't feel comfortable on a ponderous bike. 

I have been on steep inclines that have quickly turned into dead ends. While making a u-turn I have almost dropped my bike. Because I was riding my Bonny I just put one leg down and avoided incurring any damage to me (I don't heal as quickly from broken bones and torn flesh like I used to) or the bike. You really can't do that on a Hog. Yes, I know some experts can make their Harleys perform amazing tricks, but this old dude can't. 

I'm not in the market for Harley, Haybusa or Panigale, but considering the following bikes for interstate touring. The BMW F800GT (798 cc) and the Honda N700X (670 cc). Both have options that include saddlebags and the latest technology. My retro bike is just that. Retro. It doesn't have much tech. 

Yes, there are other great middleweight tourers out there

These two bikes are called entry-level by the motorcycle press. These writers claim you need at least 1,000 cc's to be road worthy. That is the prevailing American attitude. I call it the big-fat American way.

Click photos to enlarge (photos courtesy of Honda and BMW)

What do I like about the motorbikes? Well, both are agile and easy to maintain. They offer Anti-lock braking system (ABS) and weigh under 500 pounds. Svelte indeed. They are designed to be ridden for long distances and have class-leading gas mileage.

Ouch!

After getting abused by my Bonny during several long trips, I really appreciate a bit of comfort. Both bikes offer soft seats and good (not great) suspension. While touring, this is an important consideration. I am also intrigued by Honda's Automatic Dual Clutch transmission or DCT. Anything to make cruising simple.

  

Both BMW and Honda make expensive large long-haul cruisers. The Honda Gold Wing is a yacht on two wheels and the BMW K 1600 GTL is a technological marvel. Both are great bikes, but again, not for me.

It pains me to say

In a couple of weeks I will be riding from Fort Worth to Las Vegas, New Mexico. A 600 mile journey. Because I still ride a Triumph Bonneville, I will break up the trip into 200 mile chunks. Resting my weary bones in both Abilene and Lubbock.

If I had the cash I would upgrade today. I could make the trip with only one stop. Feeling less aches and pain, I may never get off the interstate. Oh, by the way, I take a lot of pictures while on the road. I have been an exhibiting photographer for more than 40 years. I describe myself as a "Moto Photo Adventurer." Fabulous.

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The Chicano Dream Ends?

You still have several weeks left to view several of Jesús Manuel Mena Garza's black and white documentary photographs on exhibit in Bordeaux, France. They are all part of the Chicano Dream show.

June 27 to October 26, 2014

Musée d'Aquitaine

20 Cours Pasteur

33000 in Bordeaux, France

If you happen to go ... tell me what you think. Thanks.

Jerry Brown Hands United Farm Workers a Setback

By Dan Walters

dwalters@sacbee.com

Photo courtesy of the OC Register

What goes around comes around.

Jerry Brown devoted much of his first governorship to seeking other offices, so his record of accomplishment was scant.

He’s often touted a 1975 deal to give farmworkers, excluded from the National Labor Relations Act, union rights in California, supposedly settling years of strife between the United Farm Workers Union and growers.

However, it merely ignited decades of new strife, which continues with Brown’s recent veto of a new farm labor bill.

Brown erred 39 years ago by having the law take effect immediately and by appointing an obviously pro-UFW Agricultural Labor Relations Board, including the auxiliary Catholic bishop of Fresno, Roger Mahony, as chairman.

Farmers bristled at the board’s makeup, it struggled to organize while being deluged with UFW election petitions, and the union was frustrated by not immediately gaining contracts.

The UFW did score some wins during the early years, thanks to having a pro-union board and staff, but then went into a decades-long skid.

UFW leader Cesar Chavez and his successors contended that Republican governors emasculated the ALRB and growers stalled on contract negotiations. The union’s critics say that as Chavez pursued other causes, the UFW failed to supply seasonal workers under contract “hiring halls.”

In 2002, Democratic legislators and then-Gov. Gray Davis tried to help the UFW with mandatory mediation of stalled negotiations.

Three years ago, after Brown had returned to the governorship, he and lawmakers empowered the ALRB to certify a union if it found employer misconduct.

The legislative activity was largely spurred by a conflict between the UFW and Gerawan Farming, a huge, Fresno-based fruit grower with thousands of workers. The union won a Gerawan representation election in 1990 but never got a contract. Both sides say the other stalled.

Using the new ALRB powers, the UFW tried to get back in the game with mediation, but Gerawan said it would be unfair since only a handful of current workers voted in the 1990 election.

The company and its anti-union employees petitioned for a new election in 2013, but the ALRB never counted the ballots and earlier this month, its chief prosecutor issued a 28-page complaint alleging that Gerawan interfered.

The farming company denies the charges, saying they were trumped up to void an election that the UFW had lost, and the whole issue is now in the courts.

Meanwhile, the Legislature passed still another bill requiring the ALRB to implement its mediation order while reviews are pending and limiting the ability of courts to intervene.

Over the weekend, Brown vetoed Senate Bill 25, saying he wanted a “balanced and fair” process.

“We should look at the entire process before making further changes,” he said, handing the UFW a big defeat and farmers a victory.