Latin pop and rock perform at Dixon fair

Latin pop and rock perform at Dixon fair

03/29/2007

Grammy-winning Ozomatli will be the special guests opening for Kumbia Allstarz on Thursday night, May 10 at the Dixon May Fair. (Courtesy) The Grammy-winning Latin pop group Kumbia Allstarz and the All-American Rejects, considered one of the hottest rising rock groups in the country, will entertain at the 132nd annual Dixon May Fair, fair officials announced.

The 132nd annual fair, themed "Barn to Be Wild," is set Thursday, May 10 through Sunday, May 13 at 655 S. First St., Dixon. The four-day fair, the oldest in the state, traditionally ends on Mother's Day.

The Kumbia Allstarz, with close ties to Selena, queen of tejano music, will perform Thursday night, May 10. Grammy-winning Ozomatli will open the concert at 8 p.m.

Ozomatli is a 10-member Los Angeles-based band that mixes funk, rock, reggae, hip-hop, traditional Latin forms and Asian instrumentation with social justice issues.

They will release their latest disc, "Don't Mess with the Dragon" this Tuesday on Concord Records. They describe it as "the most cohesive, polished, and joyous record to date."

Formed in "the City of Angels" in 1995, Ozomatli has won two Grammy awards, a Latin Grammy, two Billboard Latin awards and an Alma award. They've also appeared in films, TV shows and commercials and have toured with Santana, the Dave Matthews Band, Los Lonely Boys and Lenny Kravitz, among

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others.

Percussionist Jiro Yamaguchi says that Ozomatli plays international music that epitomizes Los Angeles ' character. "Los Angeles is a microcosm of the world. You can drive through this city and hear music and experience cultures from all over the world. That's who we are."

The band's musical mix includes instruments from around the world, such as requinto, koto and erhu. "We do a lot of mashing up," says Yamaguchi. "Everybody in the band comes from a different musical background, and we throw everything into the pot."

Their album, "Don't Mess with the Dragon," combines art with music. The band holed up in an art gallery, creating art, which they then transformed into music.

"A lot of us were feeling we were becoming adults in a new way, and dealing with past demons, changes, families, relationships breaking up," says bassist Wil-Dog Abers. "That's what the song 'Don't Mess With the Dragon' is partly about not forgetting where your heart is."

The tunes on the new album include the reggae "Here We Go" and "Creo"; the hip-hop "Magnolia Soul" (a celebration of New Orleans spirit in the wake of Katrina); and the Spanish-language ballad "Violeta" (about the mortal thoughts of a soldier in Iraq).