Italy & Colombia as one for a sunny-music filled afternoon

It doesn’t happen often that I get the opportunity to attend a music festival just as a spectator so whenever the chance occurs I jump right on it. This past Sunday I attended a music festival in San Francisco called Stern Grove. The festival is a yearly event which takes place every Sunday and it runs from July to the end of August, the performances from Sunday’s show completely blew my mind.

The opening act was a band from Bogota Colombia called Bomba Estéreo. They describe their sound as “electro-tropical con mucho sabor” and yes, lots of flavor is what they brought on stage, who would ever imagine that petite Liliana Saumet (the lead singer) could pump the crowd so much. Her way of freestylin’ is like something I’ve never heard before coming from a Spanish female singer.( Liliana’s style was also quite unique. I mean who rocks leggings and a bad-ass jacket with a Virgin of Guadalupe embroidered on the back.) Colombian music has always had a special place in my heart and Bomba Estéreo re-enforced my love for this country’s music. Let’s face it, even if you are not the greatest dancer, would your feet & hips not start moving if you heard:  “Que aquí viene Bomba Estéreo viene con too', chapeta, reggae music, cumbia y folklore ¡C'mon! que es un poder que es una bomba atómica, un poco de folklore con música electrónica.”  The band is currently promoting their 3rd CD titled “Blow Up” and it is a must! If you have the chance to see them live, do! You will not be disappointed.

Now, let’s move on to the headliner of the day. Let me start by saying that I think the Italian culture is one of the most captivating there is (it wasn’t in vain that I took 2 years of Italian in college.) I had never heard of Italian singer Jovanotti (Lorenzo Jovanotti Cherubini) and as he took center stage I really didn’t know what to expect, here comes this really tall-lean guy, wearing tailored black pants, a blue collared shirt and a blazer. 

Oh the surprise that was about to rejoice my ears. I have never heard a singer go from rapping, to singing in Spanish and then move on to a gorgeous love ballad called Baciami Ancora (Kiss Me Again.) I have been playing this song non-stop for the past two days. You did not have to speak Italian to just get into the groove of his music and if you were not in love, the song Baciami Ancora made you fall in love. Just look at some of the lyrics of the song: Voglio stare con te/ I wanna be with you inseguire con te/ chase with you tutte le onde del nostro destino./ all the waves of our destiny.

 

Towards the end of Jovanotti’s performance he was joined on stage by Liliana from Bomba Estéreo and the fusion of the cumbia in Spanish and the Italian sounds were simply fabulous, overall a very successful FREE festival.
I encourage you to take advantage of all the free music festivals going around the Bay Area, you just never know when you might find your next favorite band. Here’s Jovanotti’s official video for the song Baciami Ancora, ENJOY!










 

Credits: Bomba Estereo picture courtesy of Claudia Guzman
Video Credits:  Jovanotti's official youtube  http://www.youtube.com/user/lorenzojovanotti