Cinco Santos came together in 2009 to create a Latin genre of their own. Their music is a fusion of revamped sounds from Latin rock, pop, and gypsy guitar, with urban Latin beats to provide the groove that’s really rockin’! This combination of styles created Cinco Santos’ unique genre of music. Their sound is as original as the band members themselves thanks to the vast differences in their backgrounds, as each of them came to Los Angeles from different countries, cultures, and musical influences. Together these eclectic members have an amazing chemistry that has enabled them to bring a new contemporary, exciting, and infectious sound to the world.
We had a chance to sit down with Cinco Santos and talk to him about their project and music.
é: Was it challenging to find the right group members to create the sound you were looking for with your band?
Cinco Santos: Yes, it took several years, and countless auditions to find the right musicians, the right chemistry, and the right stylistic fit for our group. Fortunately, Los Angeles is a great city for music, and there are many talented musicians in LA. I was fortunate to be able to find such amazing talent, and we all feel very passionate about the Cinco Santos project.
é: Who are some musicians you look up to?
Cinco Santos: We have many influences, but some of our favorites are:
– Mana
– Juanes
– Carlos Vives
– Los Amigos Invisibles
– Ojos De Brujo
é: How would you describe the process in creating the single off your new album “Azucar y Amor?”
Cinco Santos: We decided in 2012 to write collaboratively as a whole group as opposed to previous songwriting that was more individual band members bringing songs to the group, and Azucar was one of the first songs that came out of a series of writing sessions. The whole process was really exciting because we found out that we had great artistic chemistry and magic when we sat down as a group to write. The theme of the song, and it’s lyrics, came from our personal experiences in Los Angeles with “material” girls who are more concerned with how much money and status you have than your true character. This happens a lot in L.A., so we wrote about it… The story talks about how money comes and money goes, and how some girls follow the guys with the big money and fancy cars, but in the end, that kind of money can’t buy you a love song because it comes from the heart not the wallet.
é: Why did you title your album “Duplicad?” What meaning does it have for you?
Cinco Santos: Duplicidad means “duality” in the sense of being your alter-ego and your inner power, and it’s the title track on our album because it speaks to the passion and desire that comes out in all of us when you are inspired. This album is all about Cinco Santos’ musical passion and the creative drive to make a great album, so Duplicidad became the anthem for our mission and creative energy.
é: What plans do you have in 2014? Will you be playing only in Los Angeles?
Cinco Santos: We are launching our album in early March, and we’ll support that with live performances in California to begin with. We have a lot for focus on growing our home base here in California this spring, but as soon as we feel that we have given our fans in our home territory a good series of performances, then we’ll start booking shows in other cities.
We are also going to be releasing new music videos and lyric videos regularly over the course of 2014 to support the album, so stay tuned! We’ll also have some cool surprise remixes coming out this year…
To learn more about Cinco Santos you can follow them on Twitter: @CincoSantos
By Adrienne Oliveira
You can also follow Adrienne on Twitter: ChinaLatinaXO
