El Pasoans have two chances to catch Dos Santos: Anti-Beat Orquesta
Txt: Victoria Guadalupe Molinar
With beats and melodies that evoke hip shaking and body twisting, Dos Santos: Anti-Beat Orquesta will bring their eclectic tunes to the Sun City starting with Sunday’s Music Under the Stars on July 19 followed by a intimate Tuesday set at Bowie Feathers.
It comes to no surprise that the music of Dos Santos encompasses a mixture of several Latin genres when the group comprises of longtime musicians who descend from Mexican, Puerto Rican and Panamanian ancestry.
“It’s like any project: you walk into it with an idea, and one of the first things that you should do if you start a band is listen to music together and figure out what inspires you, what you want to do, and how you agree on this particular kind of direction,” vocalist, guitarist and organist Alex Chavez said. “And so for us, it was sort of this pan-Latin American music as the base.”
While the Chicago-based band formed in 2013, the list of music collaborations behind every musician creates a harmonious vibe that might lead many to assume that the five-piece group formed a decade ago.
Dos Santos is often described as a cumbia band, but the varying sounds they produce are much more multifaceted and emerge at different points in each song. Combine the soul of a bugalú band from the 1960s with the rhythm of an Afro-Caribbean reggae group, the temperament of Mexican folk songs and the harmonization of cumbia from all corners of Latin America, and you have a taste of one of Dos Santos’ many dishes.
The creation of such sounds partially comes from the band members’ extensive knowledge of diverse instruments, such as the harp, violin and jarana skills of guitarist Irekani Ferreyra. Each member’s musical backstory also adds to the mixture. In Chavez’ case, the first-generation Mexican-American musician has worked with esteemed artists including Antibalas founder Martin Perna, Grammy Award-winning collective Grupo Fantasma and cumbia lounge project Charanga Cakewalk.
Adding to the wide range of elements in their music, Dos Santos collaborated with artists such as L.A.-based hip-hop producer Olmeca and Cuban DJ Adroqbano in their debut self-titled album, which was released earlier this year.
Many of the Latino artists the band members have collaborated with also come from Chicago. Other than Chavez, who comes from West Texas, his band mates have either grown up in Chi-Town or spent a larger portion of their lives there.
“When we think Latinos in the United States, we think New York, L.A., Texas…Chicago is not one of those things that comes to mind immediately,” Chavez said. “Most people don’t know this, but Chicago is home to the third largest Latino population in the country.”
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As Dos Santos explores the southwest for the first time through their Corre El Caballo tour, hitting cities such as San Diego, Phoenix, Austin and Albuquerque, N.M., Chavez said he hopes audiences enjoy the band’s Chicago-infused Latin flair.
“I take is as a great compliment when people say that we sound like the city,” Chavez said. “Going on this tour and building those relationships with other artists beyond that city is a very important thing because we’re representing the city of Chicago.”
SHOW DETAILS:
Sunday, July 19, 7:30 p.m.
Chamizal National Memorial, 800 S. San Marcial St. • Free, all ages
Tuesday, July 21, 8 p.m.
Bowie Feathers, 209 S. El Paso St. • $8, all ages