Ozomatli Gives Seattle That Warm, Funky Feeling
<
We arrived at the Showbox just in time to catch the last few minutes of Kid Hops' second set--this all-ages show stuck to its schedule vehemently so we missed all of opening act OneBeLo. Drinks in hand, we settled in behind the seated bar in the back left of the room, a perfect vantage point where it never got too crowded and everyone danced the entire time. Despite the all-ages option, the crowd was like every other Ozomatli show we've been to: packed full of mostly 20-30 somethings and overflowing with happy happy, joy joy. Ozomatli was ushered on stage to a sample of Eye of the Tiger and proceeded to play three straight songs from their new CD (we hadn't even heard any of the singles yet, though a couple are apparently in rotation on KEXP). They've been at this for ten years now, and they still manage to make relevant, funky, exuberant music without pretension or succumbing to typical pop music themes or overly produced hip-hop trends.
One of the most notable aspects of Ozomatli is the versatility of every single person in the band. Ulises Bella, the sax player? Yeah, he sings harmony. And plays keyboard. Oh, and the rejuinto jarocho, too. Both rappers in the group play percussion, one of them manning a full drum set (one of two on stage during the show) when he wasn't on the mic. We love hearing lead guitar and singer Raul Pacheco's clear, piercingly unique voice rise above Ozomatli's thick, occasionally chaotic music, and were somewhat disappointed with the slightly muddy vocal mix that never seemed to improve over the evening (however, our back left corner choice may have been more to blame than the guy manning the boards).
Ozomatli has a passionate, dedicated fan base, so when the band stopped mid-way through their set after amping the crowd further with a few well-known hits (Believe, Ya Viene el Sol, and Saturday Night from their second release Street Signs), and asked for a show of hands from those who'd never seen the band before, we were surprised to see a healthy number of hands in the air. As they took a break, the band asked everyone in the audience to turn to someone next to them that they don't know and introduce themselves. Peace be with Seattlest, that's how we got to meet the absolutely adorable women who'd been dancing in front of us--Christina from New Mexico and Jamie from Colorado. Those two contributed heavily to our enjoyment of the show, especially since it was their first. They bounced and bobbed the entire time, and when they wandered off for a short while, our little party corner was subtly subdued. The husband eventually pointed out that we were simply outdone by their gleeful exuberance.
Ozomatli closed the show as always, by pouring out into the audience with horns and drums in tow, and making even the most hippie-drum-circle averse jump around and smile with our neighbors. We wandered down to the main floor from our corner and let the crowd sweep us up on a wave of good will. Afterwards, various members of the band (including the world's funkiest white man trombonist) mingled on the floor with whomever wanted to approach them.
