Café Tacuba has been called the Beatles of Latin America, a declaration made repeatedly by fans and critics alike of Mexico City’s premier four-man musical machine. The group is one of Mexico’s most celebrated and internationally renowned bands, with music impossibly defined and endlessly evolving after two decades of cross-cultural success.
The band will perform tonight at Club Nokia as part of its 20th anniversary world tour, celebrating an epic 20-year career. If history repeats itself, the show promises a ritual frenzy of explosive energy from both Café Tacuba and the crowd as the legendary foursome promotes the re-released, deluxe edition of its rock en Español and alternative album “Sino,” which received vast and gushing critical acclaim and a slew of Grammy awards. The band’s continual innovation and adoring critical acclaim has made Café Tacuba legitimate game for Beatles comparison in the Latin music realm.
“It’s a huge compliment,” said Emmanuel “Meme” del Real DÃaz, keyboardist and guitarist for Café Tacuba. “They changed the art of music and society, but we also have to be aware that you can’t take it for granted. We need to be Café Tacuba and keep working and enjoying the music.”
Enjoying the craft is what has propelled Café Tacuba into a new orbit of popularity, fame and success, making them pioneers in Latin rock. According to DÃaz, the dynamic energy of band members’ native Mexico City has continually driven them to create music true to their cultural roots while exploring a vast array of musical genres.
“Because of the culture in Mexico City where we grew up, we had a lot of interests because of the neighborhood,” DÃaz said. “The most easy way to create something was to let go, and it was like an accident. It’s the best way we want to show our music.”
The amount of musical fusion has become Café Tacuba’s claim to fame. The band sings in Spanish verse, but if one were to give the band a genre, it would likely encompass alternative rock, rap, norteño, hip-hop, electronica, dance, folk and country ““ usually several within a single song.
In “Sino,” one can detect influences of R.E.M., Coldplay, The Killers, Minus the Bear, The Who, Interpol, The Beach Boys ““ even a Beatles-inspired track, all with traditional Mexican resonance peppered throughout.
“They incorporate a lot of music from other regions of Mexico and the U.S.,” said Victor Gonzalez, a fourth-year ethnomusicology student. “They also use a lot of different harmonies, and they make it sound different from what other Spanish rock bands are using.”
Café Tacuba may be one of the most eclectic bands of the time and has taken on a new stratosphere of fame for a Latin rock band, known internationally and promoting Spanish music as a whole in its wake.
“They are one of the first bands to make it mainstream in Mexico and the U.S. as well,” said Marcos Ruedas, a fourth-year ethnomusicology student. “A couple of years ago at the Grammys, Café Tacuba played with Incubus. That just shows their level of popularity. They are playing different award shows in the states with such a big band like Incubus.”
This ability to be malleable and transcend any boundaries in music has been Café Tacuba’s key to remaining relevant to younger listeners. One would hardly assume the poppy electronic beats and perfected alternative ballads so progressive and in tune with today’s popular music came from a band with a 20-year discography to its name.
But DÃaz maintains it is not Café Tacuba’s goal to follow the style of the moment. It’s just the band members’ love of the art and a need to stretch their wings further than before.
“We love the music,” DÃaz said. “We’re always trying to listen to new bands and artists that have a new way to spread the music. So in that research, some things have to influence us, and that reflects in our music. What keeps us playing and succeeding is that the new generation is listening and enjoying. Maybe we are saying in different words something that has to do with their reality right now.”
As complex and intricate the music of Café Tacuba may be, its members maintain it was less of a formulated plan and more the dynamic and inspiring energy of Mexico City that has guided their career since the beginning.
“Mexico City is the kind of city that has the elements that push you to do something,” DÃaz said. “We just feel that there is so much energy there. That energy keeps things growing all the time.”