Los Amigos Invisibles
Encyclopedia
Los Amigos Invisibles is a multiple-Grammy nominated and Latin Grammy winning Venezuela
n band that plays a blend of disco
, acid jazz
and funk
mixed with Latin rhythms. In addition to releasing six critically acclaimed albums, the band is lauded internationally for their explosive, live shows, spanning nearly 60 countries.
In 1995, EMI released their debut album, A Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance Band, which was a huge success in their home country, enabling them to sell out clubs around Caracas for the next couple of years. In 1996, David Byrne
's Luaka Bop
record label signed the group after discovering a CD they had planted in a New York City record store. Shortly thereafter, they went into the studio to work on their sophomore record, The New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera, which was released in 1998 and received accolades from press and musicians alike. Two years later and under the direction of famed producer Philip Steir
, they released Arepa 3000: A Venezuelan Journey into Space, which received a Grammy nomination in the category of "Best Latin Alternative Album" and a Latin Grammy in the category of "Best Rock Album." Following the success of this release, the band relocated to New York City
and began work on their masterpiece, The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1
, produced by "Little" Louie Vega of Masters at Work
. Initially, the album was released in the U.K. and Japan through Long Lost Brothers Records, though a year later, Luaka Bop released the album in the U.S., resulting in another Latin Grammy nomination in the category of "Best Alternative Latin Album."
After ending their contract with Luaka Bop, Los Amigos Invisibles started their own label, Gozadera Records. The first release, Chill Out Venezuela, was a multiple-genre collection of Venezuelan artists, produced by Los Amigos Invisibles. For Gozadera's next release and the band's fifth studio album, they enlisted Dimitri from Paris
to produce a collection of Venezuelan cover songs entitled, Super Pop Venezuela
, which was initially offered in their native country only. In 2006, the album was released in the U.S., landing the band yet another Grammy nomination in the category of "Best Urban Latin Alternative Album."
After 3 years of anticipation, Los Amigos Invisibles released their groundbreaking album, Commercial
, in a joint effort between Gozadera Records and Nacional Records
. For this recording, the band took a much different approach to writing. resulting in a more globally appealing album. In an interview with America's National Public Radio, the band explains that the change in style was not by accident, nor was decision to name the latest project "Commercial". Rather, it is a tongue-in-cheek reference to band's former musical self. The release was an instant hit in Venezuela, debuting at #1 on the music charts. During the week of July 7, 2009, their song, "Vivire Para Ti" featuring Natalia Lafourcade
, was offered as Single of the Week in the iTunes
music store and in November 2009, Commercial won the Latin Grammy in the category of Best Alternative Music Album.
Following their Grammy win, 2010 has been an unprecedented year for the band as their international success has led to major festival appearances and sold out shows throughout the United States, Latin America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
In 2011, the band released Not So Commerical, an EP
of outtakes from the Commerical album.
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
n band that plays a blend of disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
, acid jazz
Acid jazz
Acid jazz is a musical genre that combines elements of jazz, funk and hip-hop, particularly looped beats. It developed in the UK over the 1980s and 1990s and could be seen as tacking the sound of jazz-funk onto electronic dance: jazz-funk musicians such as Roy Ayers, Donald Byrd and Grant Green are...
and funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
mixed with Latin rhythms. In addition to releasing six critically acclaimed albums, the band is lauded internationally for their explosive, live shows, spanning nearly 60 countries.
History
Los Amigos Invisibles formed in Caracas, Venezuela in the early 1990s as an answer to the lack of variety offered by the "rocker" and dark acts that flooded their city's theaters and radio waves. Instantly becoming Venezuela's only "dance band," they began a crusade to convince the owners of forgotten discothèques that dance is not only salsa and merengue and that electric guitar does not have to be "Punk." Offering their friends a more enjoyable outlet for partying, Los Amigos Invisibles quickly reinvented the club scene in Caracas. With its original lineup still intact, the band comprises Julio Briceño (a.k.a. "Chulius", vocals, percussion), José Luis Pardo (a.k.a. "Cheo" or "DJ Afro", guitar, songwriting), Armando Figueredo (a.k.a. "Odnam", keyboards), Mauricio Arcas (a.k.a "Maurimix", congas, percussion), José Rafael Torres (a.k.a "Catire", bass), and Juan Manuel Roura (a.k.a. "Mamel", drums, percussion).In 1995, EMI released their debut album, A Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance Band, which was a huge success in their home country, enabling them to sell out clubs around Caracas for the next couple of years. In 1996, David Byrne
David Byrne (musician)
David Byrne is a musician and artist, best known as a founding member and principal songwriter of the American new wave band Talking Heads, which was active between 1975 and 1991. Since then, Byrne has released his own solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography,...
's Luaka Bop
Luaka Bop
Luaka Bop is a world music-oriented record label established by David Byrne, former guitarist, singer-songwriter and producer of the art rock/new wave band Talking Heads. It has been a wholly independent label since leaving V2 in 2006. Previous distribution relationships included Warner and Virgin...
record label signed the group after discovering a CD they had planted in a New York City record store. Shortly thereafter, they went into the studio to work on their sophomore record, The New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera, which was released in 1998 and received accolades from press and musicians alike. Two years later and under the direction of famed producer Philip Steir
Philip Steir
Philip Steir is a musician, remixer, composer and music producer.- Life and career :As a drummer, he played in the critically acclaimed band Consolidated he co-founded, which was signed to Nettwerk Records and later London Records. Consolidated released five albums between 1990-1996...
, they released Arepa 3000: A Venezuelan Journey into Space, which received a Grammy nomination in the category of "Best Latin Alternative Album" and a Latin Grammy in the category of "Best Rock Album." Following the success of this release, the band relocated to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and began work on their masterpiece, The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1
The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1
The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1 is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles in 2004. It is produced by "Little" Louie Vega of Masters at Work.-Track listing:Venezuelan edition #"Rico Pa' Goza'"#"Comodón Johnson"...
, produced by "Little" Louie Vega of Masters at Work
Masters At Work
Masters at Work is the house/garage production and remix team of "Little" Louie Vega and Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez. They first worked together using the name, which had been given to them by mutual friend Todd Terry , in 1990...
. Initially, the album was released in the U.K. and Japan through Long Lost Brothers Records, though a year later, Luaka Bop released the album in the U.S., resulting in another Latin Grammy nomination in the category of "Best Alternative Latin Album."
After ending their contract with Luaka Bop, Los Amigos Invisibles started their own label, Gozadera Records. The first release, Chill Out Venezuela, was a multiple-genre collection of Venezuelan artists, produced by Los Amigos Invisibles. For Gozadera's next release and the band's fifth studio album, they enlisted Dimitri from Paris
Dimitri from Paris
Dimitri from Paris is a French music producer and DJ of Greek origins. His musical influences are rooted in 1970s funk and disco sounds that spawned contemporary house music, as well as original soundtracks from 50s and 60s cult movies such as Breakfast at Tiffany's, La Dolce Vita and The Party,...
to produce a collection of Venezuelan cover songs entitled, Super Pop Venezuela
Super Pop Venezuela
Super Pop Venezuela is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles in 2005. It is made up entirely of covers of Venezuelan pop songs from the '60s to the early '90s.-Track listing:#"Intro"#"Miss Venezuela"#"All Day Today"...
, which was initially offered in their native country only. In 2006, the album was released in the U.S., landing the band yet another Grammy nomination in the category of "Best Urban Latin Alternative Album."
After 3 years of anticipation, Los Amigos Invisibles released their groundbreaking album, Commercial
Commercial (album)
Commercial is the sixth studio album recorded by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles released on June 9, 2009. In 2009 the album won the Latin Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.-Track listing:This information adapted from Allmusic....
, in a joint effort between Gozadera Records and Nacional Records
Nacional Records
Max Glücksmann, born was an Argentine Jewish pioneer of the music and film industries.-Biography:Glücksmann was born in Czernowitz, then part of the Austrian Empire, and emigrated to Argentina in 1890....
. For this recording, the band took a much different approach to writing. resulting in a more globally appealing album. In an interview with America's National Public Radio, the band explains that the change in style was not by accident, nor was decision to name the latest project "Commercial". Rather, it is a tongue-in-cheek reference to band's former musical self. The release was an instant hit in Venezuela, debuting at #1 on the music charts. During the week of July 7, 2009, their song, "Vivire Para Ti" featuring Natalia Lafourcade
Natalia Lafourcade
Natalia Lafourcade is a Mexican pop-rock singer and songwriter. Her band's name is Natalia y La Forquetina.-Biography:...
, was offered as Single of the Week in the iTunes
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
music store and in November 2009, Commercial won the Latin Grammy in the category of Best Alternative Music Album.
Following their Grammy win, 2010 has been an unprecedented year for the band as their international success has led to major festival appearances and sold out shows throughout the United States, Latin America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
In 2011, the band released Not So Commerical, an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
of outtakes from the Commerical album.
Band members
- Julio Briceño (a.k.a. "Chulius", vocals, percussion, songwriting)
- José Luis Pardo (a.k.a. "Cheo" or "DJ Afro", guitar, songwriting, production and editing)
- Armando Figueredo (a.k.a. "Odnam", keyboards, songwriting)
- Mauricio Arcas (a.k.a "Maurimix", congas, percussion, songwriting)
- José Rafael Torres (a.k.a "Catire", bass, songwriting)
- Juan Manuel Roura (a.k.a. "Mamel", or "Mamulo," drums, percussion, songwriting)
Discography
- A Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance BandA Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance BandA Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance Band is the debut album by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles in 1995.-Track listing:#"Dame tu Color"#"En El Cielo o En Tu Boca"#"Díme"#"El Humo Que Respiro Cuando Estoy Contigo"#"Nada Que Decir"#"Siente"...
(1995) - The New Sound of the Venezuelan GozaderaThe New Sound of the Venezuelan GozaderaThe New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles in 1998.-Track listing:#"Güelcome"#"Ultra-Funk"#"Mi Linda"#"Sexy"#"Las Lycras del Avila"#"Groupie"#"Otra Vez"#"Cachete A Cachete"...
(1998) - Arepa 3000: A Venezuelan Journey into SpaceArepa 3000Arepa 3000: A Venezuelan Journey Into Space is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles on September 12, 2000.-Track listing:# "Intro"# "Arepa 3000"# "La Vecina"# "Qué Rico"# "Cuchi Cuchi"# "Si Estuvieras Aquí"...
(2000) - The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1 is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles in 2004. It is produced by "Little" Louie Vega of Masters at Work.-Track listing:Venezuelan edition #"Rico Pa' Goza'"#"Comodón Johnson"...
(2003) - Super Pop VenezuelaSuper Pop VenezuelaSuper Pop Venezuela is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles in 2005. It is made up entirely of covers of Venezuelan pop songs from the '60s to the early '90s.-Track listing:#"Intro"#"Miss Venezuela"#"All Day Today"...
(2005) - Super Pop Venezuela, Remixes (2008)
- En una noche tan linda como ésta (2008)
- CommercialCommercial (album)Commercial is the sixth studio album recorded by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles released on June 9, 2009. In 2009 the album won the Latin Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.-Track listing:This information adapted from Allmusic....
(2009) - Not So Commercial (2011)