Tijuana's very own singer/songwriter Ceci Bastida will debut her sophomore album "La Edad de la Violencia" on June 24, the same day she performs here at the Casbah. Her 2011 debut full-length, "Veo La Marea," earned her a Grammy-nonimation and a hit single with “Ya Me Voy,” which has to be in every Latin alternative music head's playlist.
The title of the album derives its name from contemporary violent events happening on both sides of la frontera: U.S.-Mexico's drug war; the rampage at Sandy Hook and the Boston Marathon bombing. Despite the dark themes, the album features electric pop, tropi beats, lush strings, and blasts of a brass section.
Bastida's latest effort was written during, and post, pregnancy. Raising a newborn daughter these past two years in Los Angeles has helped mold some of the lyrical themes on "La Edad de la Violencia" (which translates to "The Age of Violence").
"Having a girl definitely made me more hyper-sensitive to the risks we face as girls and women across the world on the streets, online, in jobs, at home," she says. "It informed a lot of these songs."
The new album includes three songs inspired by Haruki Murakami's novel, "Kafka on the Shore," and "Ven (Beautiful)" -- a duet with fellow Mexican alt-pop icon Julieta Venegas and an open letter to Bastida's young daughter, which is based on a reconstructed version of Cody Chestnut's indie fave "Look Good In Leather." On June 9, KCRW -- Los Angeles' tastemaker radio -- listed “Cuervo” as Today's Top Tune.
Watch the making La Edad de la Violencia here. Get tix to see Ceci Bastida at the Casbah here.
Dita Quinones is a multimedia journalist born in Tijuana with a passion for Latin alternative and hip-hop music news. Her main goal is to uplift and inform so that the Latino, Filipino and hip-hop community get knitted into the fabric of American history. In addition to SoundDiego, she contributes to Latina, Fox News Latino, Poder, VidaVibrante, San Diego CityBeat and HipHopDx. She is also the founder of the infamous music and politrix blog GN$F! Follow Dita on Twitter or on Facebook.
