East LA Band Quetzal Brings its New 'Animal Style' to Santa Ana

The brightly colored feathers of the guacamaya in flight inspire son jarocho musicians in Veracruz, Mexico. But what animals do jarana-strumming Chicanos sing of when they live in LA's mass urban sprawl? The question sparked Quetzanimales, the first concept album for Grammy-award winning East Los band Quetzal. "Son jarocho has been a huge part of the music that we've created over many years," says singer Martha Gonzalez. The centuries-old tradition has always been lyrically informed by the natural world around it. "We started thinking about our landscape, nature, and the animals that we cohabitate with."

Read more on my latest OC Weekly Heard Mentality Blog post:

http://blogs.ocweekly.com/heardmentality/2015/02/quetzal_animal_style_el_centro.php