FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 10, 2016
CONTACT:
Rebecca Bailey, Publicity Coordinator/Writer
Hopkins Center for the Arts, Dartmouth College
603.646.3991
A heady, rambunctious Mexican musical fusion, October 15
Photo: Troker, photo by Oh Estudio.
HANOVER, NH—Troker, a Mexican band that’s been riveting world festivals, brings its ear-opening and intoxicating mix of free jazz, rock, funk, hip hop and mariachi to the Hop’s Spaulding Auditorium on Saturday, October 15, at 8 pm.
Six musicians from different parts of Mexico, Troker combines horns, keyboards and a rhythm section with a DJ playing turntables for a sound like no one else’s. Formed in 2004, the group honed its high-powered live act in the vibrant Guadalajara bar scene before launching itself internationally about five years ago. Since then, the group has been bringing audiences to their feet at high-profile music gatherings like WOMEX, SXSW, Glastonbury and the Monterey Jazz Festival.
“Muscular and brainy, this tight little band shows how to mine the culturally rich tradition of Mexican music and work it ingeniously into fusion jazz,” writes Something Else. NPR described the band as “lots of horns, deep bass, pummeling rhythms and a fierce, huge sound.” Wrote All About Jazz, Troker “sounds like someone shot up Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass with Red Bull and adrenaline and then dropped them into the studio with Jane's Addiction."
While many Latino bands are confined to success in Spanish-speaking countries, Troker’s music is entirely instrumental, meaning there is no language barrier for foreign audiences to overcome. “We really focused on creating songs that would sound good live and complement our older material,” bassist Samo Gonzalez told Huffington Post. “They’re songs with a lot of energy. There are a lot of Mexican touches, you’ll hear mariachi trumpets, but that’s just something that came out naturally in the music because of our roots.”
"We've learned how to say what we want," trumpeter Gilberto Cervantes told All About Jazz. "We've played rock, we've played jazz. We've discovered who we are. We're happy in our own skins." With Arturo "El Tiburón" Santillanes on saxophones, Cervantes injects the mariachi sound into the massive, textured rhythms created by González on electric and acoustic bass; Christian Jiménez, piano and keyboards; Frankie Mares, drums; and Humberto "DJ Zero" López, turntables.
Their backgrounds connect them to some of the leading people in jazz and contemporary music. Cervantes studied at the Berklee College of Music and subsequently worked with Brian Lynch and Danilo Perez; pianist Jiménez is the son of a blues guitarist; González has worked with John Medeski, Todd Clouser and Steven Bernstein; and Mares has worked with Medeski, Bernstein, Clouser and Don Byron. They are active in the Guadalajaran community, where they have worked with visual artists, filmmakers and advertisers, actively support music education, participate economically in the Mexican creative industries and engage in social service. Troker’s latest album, Crimen Sonoro (“Sound Crime”), is accompanied by a graphic novel written by Bernardo Esquinca, with stories based on the characters in the album’s songs.
Download high-resolution photos: https://hop.dartmouth.edu/Online/media_resources
CALENDAR LISTING:
Troker
Born in a Guadalajara bar, Mexican band Troker has burst onto the international scene with a sound like no other. A fusion of instrumental jazz, funk, DJ electronica and tight mariachi horns, this fresh, brainy music gets audiences to their feet and broadcasts straight from the heart of the Mexico of today.
Saturday, October 15, 8 pm
Spaulding Auditorium, Hopkins Center for the Arts, Hanover NH
$20/25, Dartmouth students $10, youth $17/19
Information: hop.dartmouth.edu or 603.646.2422
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Founded in 1962, the Hopkins Center for the Arts is a multi-disciplinary academic, visual and performing arts center dedicated to uncovering insights, igniting passions, and nurturing talents to help Dartmouth and the surrounding Upper Valley community engage imaginatively and contribute creatively to our world. Each year the Hop presents more than 300 live events and films by visiting artists as well as Dartmouth students and the Dartmouth community, and reaches more than 22,000 Upper Valley residents and students with outreach and arts education programs. After a celebratory 50th-anniversary season in 2012-13, the Hop enters its second half-century with renewed passion for mentoring young artists, supporting the development of new work, and providing a laboratory for participation and experimentation in the arts.