Ozomatli

Michael Venn, contributor

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On May, 11th 2008, I took my then 4 year old son to see Ozomatli for his first real concert. He stood on my lap and watched the show with wide eyed enthusiasm commenting on the multi instrumentalists on drums, percussion, horns, guitars, bass, vocals and he was enthralled with the crowd that was up on their feet dancing for the entire show. Now, 17 years later, I got to revisit Ozomatli's amazing live performance with my now 20 year old son and his girlfriend, and once again, they didn't disappoint. They came to party, dance, sing and bring their jazz-latin-reggae-hip hop-rock LA infused Bloc Party to New England.

 

If you've never heard of Ozomatli, go right now and dive into their 9 studio albums over a 30 year career and get yourself acquainted. And then do yourself the favor of seeing them live.  They put on a live show like no one else! Ozomatli aims to get the crowd on their feet, arms in the air, dancing, sweating and having a good time.  

 

They opened the night with "Believe" off of their 2004 album Street Signs, which has a slow build indoctrinating you into the multicultural cross pollination of musical styles you're about to experience for the rest of the evening. After that it was off to the races, with "Here We Go" and "La Gallina", from Don't Mess with the Dragon, "Chango", off of their self titled album, Ozomatli, and "Saturday Night", also on Street Signs. They started off with their early hits and then just kept them coming with song after song from their 30 year career. "Como Ves", "Can't Stop", "Super Bowl Sundae" and "After Party" were highlights for me. Mostly they stuck with songs off of their first 4 albums, however; they did play their new single "Red Line" which should be embraced as the new Anti-ICE working class anthem for 2025 America. 

 

17 years later Ozomatli didn't disappoint, infact, they put on an incredible show, got the audience to their feet, invited kids on stage to join them in their encore performance and then in traditional Ozomatli style, joined the audience and performed in the middle of the crowd. After that they played marching band style, leading everyone out of the venue. It was a night to remember and a band that I will definitely go see with my son many more times over the coming years.  

 

I grew up in Miami, FL and we used to have multi-cultural bloc parties when I was a kid that felt just like an Ozomatli show. If you've never experienced one, I highly recommend you purchase tickets to see them live on their 30 Revolutions Tour and go join the party. I can promise you that you won't stay in your seat for long. Bring your kids, bring your friends, and join Ozomatli at the After Party!