Café Tacuba’s upcoming gig at Planeta Mexico is either an exception that proves a rule, or a promising sign for live music in the Alamo City.
For their Batanga Music Tour, the acclaimed Mexican rockeros had scheduled gigs in Houston, Dallas, Austin, and even McAllen, but skipped San Antonio, the city with the largest Latino population in the state. As Current readers surely know, this is hardly a new development, one tied to the city’s less-than-stellar rep for booking and promoting cutting-edge Latino music.
In this case, Richard Reyes of Reyes Events stepped in. Convinced that there was a strong, untapped SA audience for the group, he contacted Café Tacuba agent John Pantle, an old friend who, like Reyes, has roots in punk and alt-rock concert booking. He also put together a Battle of the Bands contest at The Hot Tin Roof, in which seven local bands competed for four opening-band slots at the Café Tacuba show. (The four winners are Bolado, Muncy’s Nurse, Veloz, and Un Dia Mas.)
The reason local bands were so anxious to be a part of this event is that Café Tacuba is one of those rare bands that transcends barriers of language and genre. Nearly 20 years after their formation, Ruben Albarrán and his mates keep challenging themselves. Their new SiNo album ventures from the crystalline Church-like guitars of “Tengo Todo” to the Who-influenced synth-rocker “53100” to the furious bashing of “Cierto O Falso” and “De Acuerdo.” Like all great bands, they’ve never slowed down, they’ve just pushed their audience to catch up with them. 8pm Sat, Dec 8, $25, Planeta Mexico, 3830 Parkdale, (210) 593-0411.
— Gilbert Garcia
