Cinco Santos

At La Cita Bar in downtown Los Angeles last Wednesday night, Cinco Santos showcased the music from their upcoming release from which the single “Azucar Y Amor” has already been released.
Those brave people who ventured out in the cold night to make their way to La Cita Bar were rewarded with a good mix of pop rock and Latin sounds with touches of flamenco that quickly got everyone warmed up.
With band members coming from diverse musical backgrounds and cultures, like Colombia, Spain, Argentina, Mexico, Canada and the U.S., Cinco Santos have created a sound that combines elements of Latin pop, jazz, flamenco, and rock, which makes for a very eclectic show.
Lead singer and rhythm guitarist, Daniel Jimenez, worked the stage and the crowd with great charisma and often showing glimpses of his past experience as rocker with his singing delivery and his guitar skills.
The rest of the band members showed their virtuosity on their instruments and easily maneuvered through the different musical styles which could take the band from the pop oriented single “Azucar y Amor” to the harder rocking songs like “Duplicidad”.
The official release of the album is set for the first quarter of 2014 and which will then take the band on the road to promote the album.

To keep track of the band’s activity, you can follow them on their website http://www.cincosantos.com/ and on facebook.

Written by Angel Aguilar
Photos by Angel Aguilar - Musica Roots

Cinco Santos, together since 2009, is a music group composed of members from 5 corners of the world. Their truly unique style is due to their fusion of rock, punk, pop, flamenco, and today’s urban rhythms.

They presented their new album Azucar y Amor during a performance last week at the La Cita Bar in Los Angeles.

Their unique style originates from the musical and cultural influences each member brings to the table, and this is without a doubt their signature trait. The group consists of Lorenzo Montero (composer/arranger) from Canada, Jesse Stern (bassist) from the U.S., Daniel Jimenez (vocals) from Colombia, Emiliano Almeida (drums) from Argentina and Willard Lozano (guitar) from Mexico. They live and have their base of operations in Los Angeles.

In an exclusive interview for Living Out Loud, they talk to us about their musical concepts and the message they wish to share.

“The idea behind the group is to get 5 musicians together with the same passion and dedication to music and blend all of our influences together to form a truly unique sound,” said Montero.

Being such a multi-faceted group, they claim it is difficult to place them within any particular genre, since they aim to unleash all of their individual contributions in perfect harmony.

“It’s difficult defining a genre we fit in. We aim to blend our individual sounds together, and we want the result of that to be a sound that’s associated with world music in general. We each bring sounds from our home countries and Cinco Santos is just a blend of it all,” said Jimenez.

Cinco Santos is still in its infancy, and the public is still getting to know them. Everything has come step by step, and they are beginning to see recognition on several forums and performances in the U.S., particularly here in Los Angeles. They are also promoting the first single from the album by the same name. This song is characterized by its flamenco feel which makes it great to dance it, and very catchy.

Without a doubt, it was a very lively night. Cinco Santos knows how to play for an audience and their music speaks for itself. Their experience, musical knowledge and drive to share their music make this a very promising musical group.

The official launch of the album will be in spring 2014, by which time they will announce their upcoming shows.

For more information about the band, go to www.cincosantos.com - Living Out Loud LA

I like this set a lot. The quickest explanation for the type of music within would be to call it “Latin music.” The thing is, there is a lot of range within that header and not everything here is restricted to that. Sure, the lyrics are all in Spanish. There are definitely some traditional Latin trappings here and there. The disc stretches past that. I should address the language barrier, too. Let me just say that I had four years of Spanish in school. That was longer than I care to admit, though. So, since I didn’t use it, my comprehension of Spanish is quite limited. Sure, I can understand what most of the titles mean. I can’t follow the lyrics, though. My point is, this is a great album even without understanding what’s being said. So, don’t let the language barrier hold you back.




Track by Track Review

Candela
I suppose one could consider some of the rhythm section to be Latin. The lyrics are in Spanish. Beyond that, though, this is almost like jam band music. There is definitely some serious funk and some fusion in the mix. I love this track. It’s got a lot of energy and a great groove.


Azucar Y Amor
This piece is mellower and more purely Latin. It’s still got plenty of energy. It also has some awesome Spanish guitar.

Caramelo
More of a rocking tune, I love some of the melodic guitar soloing on this thing. They drop it down to mellow, Spanish styled sounds for the verses.

Un Poco De Ti
Soft rock is merged with fusion and Latin sounds here. This is another cool tune that lends a different side to the proceedings. Some of the more powered up sections really have a classic rock feeling to them.

Te Quiero Aqui
There is a weird remix introduction here that doesn’t work. Beyond that, though, this is turned into a cool soft rock meets Latin piece that flows well. It’s got a great mellow groove and some nice vocal lines. There is some particularly expressive melodic guitar soloing on this thing.

No Me Digas
I love this song. It’s got a great horn section and some really energized jamming. It’s Latin music meets fusion meets pop. While there is some killer instrumental work, the vocal arrangement really steals the show. You don’t need to understand the lyrics to hear the emotion in the singing.

Duplicidad
While there are still some Latin elements in the mix (some of the guitar along with the Spanish lyrics), the title track is really a soaring kind of melodic hard rocker. It’s a killer tune with a lot of energy and style. In some ways the instrumental sections on this make me think of modern progressive rock. Some of the guitar soloing, though, comes in closer to Al di Meola to my ears – and that’s a major compliment as far as I’m concerned.

Nunca Mas
Although there are no real surprises here, this pop rock meets Latin number works really well. It’s melodic and energetic. It also has a great Latin groove to it.


Te Cantare Todos Los Dias
There is a real soulful groove to this one. Beyond that the usual suspects are still present. This is quite an effective number, really.

Loco
Driven by acoustic guitar, this is nonetheless a driving number. It’s another solid example of Latin pop music.

Creeme
It would be hard to decide which thing steals the show here. The vocal performance and hooks would be in the running. The energetic song itself would be another contender. The killer bass work has a shot. So does the guitar soloing. All in all, this is another awesome melodic Latin rocker.

No Me Digas – Remix
I’m not always a big fan of remixes. Of course, a lot depends on the format or mode of remix. This one really works. It’s got a great jazzy approach. The energy and vibe are wonderful. It’s an exceptionally strong way to end the disc in style. - Music Street Journal

I’m not exactly fluent in Spanish, so when I can listen to a Latin pop album and understand every word, my initial instinct is that there must be something wrong with the songwriting. That was my experience with Cinco Santos’ Duplicidad: are these lyrics just too simple, too clichéd?

In the case of this album, I’d be lying if I said that simplicity wasn’t a defining characteristic, or that a trope or two doesn’t find its way onto the lyric sheet. But that doesn’t mean that Duplicidad is a weak effort by any means; rather, it’s quite an appealing one. Actually, it’s one that I’m having a blast listening to, both for its seamless combination of musical styles and the timelessness of its wonderfully-expressed sentiments.

Every song on Duplicidad is, one way or another, a love song. Cinco Santos might cringe to read this sentence, but I’m most reminded of boy band era love songs: universal, hopelessly romantic, and undeniably influenced by the Great Genre Blend of the 90s, when alternative and pop became, for a beautiful moment almost indistinguishable. (Listen to the vocalizations on “Te Cantaré Todos Los Días” to hear what I mean.) Throw Latin and, occasionally, some electronic, into the mix, and you have the impressively consistent body of work that is Duplicidad.

Hispanophiles, (though probably second-language speakers moreso than native speakers), will find plenty of wordplay and clever rhymes to love on Duplicidad. A standout is the repeated “Caramelo, cara linda” (it loses its snap in translation: “Caramel, beautiful face”) on “Caramelo.” The vocals, reminiscent of Juanes, are the perfect choice for the uninitiated listener.

While most songs feature a narrator lost in an idealized love, this isn’t always the case: “Nunca Más” finds him spurning a former lover (“I’ll never again return to you / I told you I don’t want you”) and he displays a darker side of himself on the title track: “There’s more than what you see,” he ominously teases.

This debut album marks the first time the quintet, after half a decade of performing together, has written music together. The five men who form Cinco Santos (“five saints”) represent five different nationalities” the United States, Canada, Columbia, Argentina, and Mexico. While the personal tastes and talents they each bring to the ensemble form, by-and-large, a fairly homogenous album, change-ups like the electronic opening of “Duplicidad” (“Duplicity”) and the party-friendly sound of “No Me Digas” (“Don’t Tell Me”) keep the album interesting across multiple listens.

Duplicidad is not by any means an album that breaks new ground, but I think Cinco Santos prove that they’re able to produce music that improves the well-established ground it walks on.

Buy Duplicidad wherever music is sold online. Learn more about Cinco Santos on their website. - Indiemunity

Duplicidad begins with “Candela”, a rhythm heavy song that sets a great tone and builds to an enjoyably dramatic ending replete with passionate crooning and funky instrumentation. The full-sounding approach works here because there is enough elements present to get any party flocking to the dance floor. My favorite part of this song is the breakdown before the final chorus that features a smashingly good guitar solo that ramps the energy up tenfold and leaves no foot untapped.

“Azucar y Amor” comes in with excellent Spanish guitar playing, awesome percussion and a very nice groove that seemingly sweeps the listener into the world presented by the intricate lyricism and spot on performance. The chorus break leaves plenty of room to dance and I’d very much like to see more of this type of dance-encouraging arrangements in other similar band’s music in the future.

“Te Quiero Aqui” features an electric drum beat in the intro that could throw those not expecting it for a loop; the effect processing adds an element of modernism to the music that’s a nice touch; there aren’t many bands, especially in the Latin genre, that would incorporate elements like this in their music and Cinco Santos does a great job to do it in a way that doesn’t take away from the central feel and theme of the music.

“No Me Digas” is probably my favorite from the Duplicidad album because of the inclusion of brass instruments and the resounding bass line that cultivates a swing much, much different than the other tracks on the album. The cleanliness of the playing meshes wonderfully and when the arrangement breaks down into a tambourine infused frenzy there’s no question to the powerful nature of this song. This song, by and large, is one meant to be played at high volumes and the fervent singing begs one to follow suit.

“Nunca Mas” is a song that has a feel almost likened to a hip hop song from the early ‘90s: from the drumming to the choppy lead, rhythm and bass guitars there’s a deep indentation here and when the song strips down to the electronically distorted snare beat it’s inevitable that this is one of the most mightily constructed songs on the album and one that demands replay after replay. Overall, Duplicidad is an album that is well put together and the effort put in this project shows: the band put the right kind of songs on the album to appeal to as wide an audience as possible while still satisfying their core demographic. - Che's Music Reviews

Por Tony Franco

“Duplicidad” representa la dualidad intrínseca en cada persona; la fuerza y el deseo que se manifiestan como un alter-ego que emerge de la inspiración, no solo en los músicos que se expresan sino en el público que últimamente conecta con el mensaje de las canciones.

“Duplicidad”, también es el nombre del material discográfico de CINCO SANTOS, un grupo que se distingue no solo por el talento, sino por la diversidad y personalidad de cada uno de sus músicos que en conjunto nos entregan un exquisito manjar musical.

Cinco Santos. Cinco músicos, desde cinco rincones del mundo, unidos por una sola pasión… la música.

Las raíces de este grupo comenzaron a brotar en el año 2009, combinando ritmos de rock, pop, flamenco, y urbano contemporáneo, con los cuales CINCO SANTOS nos presenta un estilo con un sello muy particular e inigualable que ha cautivado la admiración de muchos fans conocedores de la buena música, como un servidor que al escuchar un solo tema “Ázucar y Amor”, se sintió atraído por conocer más de su material discográfico.

No cabe duda que el sonido original del grupo representa las peculiares influencias musicales y culturales que cada uno de sus integrantes aporta, conjugándose esta diversidad de talentos en un éxtasis musical que alcanza el climax perfecto, en cada una de sus presentaciones.

La idea musical de lo que hoy es CINCO SANTOS, se gestó originalmente en el 2007 cuando el guitarrista y compositor canadiense Lorenzo Montero, de herencia española, inició la búsqueda de compañeros artistas que pudieran materializar y concretar la idea que daba vueltas en su imaginación. El asunto no era solo encontrar músicos buenos, sino compañeros que realmente pudieran evolucionar el concepto musical de Lorenzo.

El primero en incorporarse a este proyecto fue el vocalista colombiano Daniel Jiménez, oriundo de Bogotá y con quien había trabajado anteriormente en el proyecto de rock Roxing Kafe, existía ya una conexión entre ambos y el tercero en llegar fue el guitarrista de tierras aztecas nacido en Mexicali, Baja California Willard Lozano.

El concepto musical del grupo iba tomando forma y algo muy primordial de una agrupación triunfadora también estaba presente, la química perfecta entre los tres para formar una base sólida.

Comenzaron entonces a brotar los talentos individuales de cada integrante aportando ese sabor particular a cada melodía. Lorenzo como compositor y líder, aportaba los ritmos de su guitarra , su creatividad y su voz para apoyar a Daniel quien fungía como vocalista principal con su estilo único y su cálida voz, acompañada de su habilidad como compositor y acompañando en la guitarra; Willard con su precisión y peculiar estilo en la guitarra, aportaba el sabor gitano del grupo.

A lo largo de dos años, el trío grabó el primer material para su álbum “Duplicidad”, proceso en cual contaron con la suerte de trabajar con músicos respetados en la industria latina como Walfredo Reyes (Santana), Richie García, y Alex Acuña. Asimismo, contaron con el ingeniero Shawn Sullivan, ganador del Certificado Grammy y con créditos de producción de bandas como The Mars Volta and Reel Big Fish. Shawn co-produjo “Duplicidad” junto a Lorenzo Montero.

El nombre de esta agrupación Cinco Santos surgió de la inspiración de Lorenzo Montero, haciendo alusión a los cinco estilos individuales y musicales, que han dado como resultado el sonido único que distingue al grupo.

Lorenzo quería formar un sonido sólido y compacto por lo que continuó con su búsqueda de un par de músicos más. para completar el concepto musical que comenzaba a gestarse. En el 2008 conoció en Los Angeles al formidable baterista argentino Emiliano Almeida, originario de La Plata, formando inmediatamente más que una amistad, una hermandad musical entre ambos. Emiliano se convirtió rápidamente en el corazón de la banda gracias a su capacidad rítmica, su experiencia y trayectoria como percusionista y baterista, y por la completa dedicación a su profesión.

Faltaba una pieza más y muy fundamental, ya que un buen bajista y un excelente baterista son la base de todo grupo musical, por eso luego de todo un año de incontables audiciones en búsqueda del bajista adecuado, finalmente en el 2009 se completó el concepto musical que naciera un día en la mente de Lorenzo, al encontrar por fin a la persona indicada, Jesse Stern, nacido en Los Ángeles, California y quien había trabajado con artistas destacados como Pee Wee, Airto Moreira, Jovino Santos Neto y Jordin Sparks, entre muchos otros. Jesse vino a completar el rompecabezas musical y a darle el toque final para que Cinco Santos, el concepto musical convertido ya en realidad, pudiera proyectarse.

Si disfrutas de la buena música te invito a conocer a este formidable grupo con un sonido único y peculiar que estoy seguro llamará tu atención y robará tus sentidos, perdiéndote en el éxtasis musical de cada una de sus melodías las cuales cautivarán tu corazón y te harán adicto al placer de su música ¡Para siempre! - Tony Fanco / www.elnoticoto.com