Y La Bamba Wards Off Storm with Spellbinding Melodies
Photo by Alejandra Sol Casas
Westsiders glanced nervously up at the storm clouds on Friday night, wondering if the forecasted thunderstorms would cancel the eagerly-anticipated Y La Bamba show at Jaime’s Place. But ultimately, the rain did not stand a chance against the spell-binding melodies of the Mexican-American singer-songwriter.
Since it’s opening in 2020, Jaime’s Place has become the lungs of the west side, bringing in Chicano performers and artists, decrying gentrification and uplifting brown voices. For this show, they teamed up with women-owned and run promoting team, Vinilious.
The night began with Austin native sister trio, Las Tiarras, who sprinkled their set with a couple of Selena covers, as well as ballads about their multi-cultural upbringing, raising the voice of Latinas and finding their queer identities, with songs such as Soy Chingona.
Esteromance performed dreamy, ethereal soul and pop tunes that are known to marry their Mexican and American identities. From El Paso, the band fuses Mexican ballads with American dream pop for a fluid sound that supersedes borders.
Y La Bamba’s set consisted of Luz Mendoza Ramos accompanied by a six-piece band that tenderly transported listeners to a transformative state between nostalgic comfort and optimistic awakenings. Performing songs off their new album Lucha, Ramos cuts deep into hearts with profound lyrics that are all too specific to the generational trauma of immigrant children, yet give a joyful nod to the colorful spectrum of the chicanx experience.
