Arts Alive San Antonio

By Nicolas Sabala, Contributor

 The bands Mírame and Lloronas are at the forefront of San Antonio’s diverse and fearless music scene. Members of both groups are products of the new millennium and all of the technological advances that came after. It’s no surprise to find their influences range from Mexican folklore to 90s Hip-Hop and are as eclectic as a Spotify playlist on shuffle.

 Mírame started in the spring of 2018 when founding members Angelo Salgado, Karena Sol and

Enrique Zurita met at the University of Texas at San Antonio. They were later joined by lead singer Natassia Casas, singer and keyboardist Will Anderson and bass guitarist and producer Luis “Yung.Verm” Fermin. The group has been performing their own version of psychedelic soul mixed with hip-hop, jazz and R&B ever since.

 I was able to catch up with the band before one of their last performances of 2019 at the Paper Tiger. After their sound check we ended up hanging out in the parking lot behind the venue. It was then that I really understood what they are all about.

 “We couldn’t figure out what to call this movement. It’s not hippy culture it’s neo-hippy plus the digital age.” said guitarist and singer Karena Sol while lead singer Natassia Casas explained that she sings in both English and Spanish to reach and represent a wider audience since many of their peers are children of Spanish-speaking immigrants. “I feel like that should be more normalized,” she said. “I like it that our songs switch from Spanish to English. It’s not either or.” she said.

With the number of music streaming services that exist these days, the exposure to diverse and genre bending musicians such as these has become part of the San Antonio’s live music scene. Although Mirame and Lloronas don’t sound alike at all, what they have in common is that their message comes from a place of love, inclusion and tearing down the walls that sometimes divide people and cultures.

I met the Lloronas band first at a non-singing event, the pre-holiday KSYM’s Alt2Hunger food drive where they participated as volunteers.  As we spoke over drinks at Sancho’s Cantina, I began to understand the force behind their incendiary sound. Lead singer and founding member Amanda Vega has been performing under the name Lloronas for about five years with an ever- changing line-up of musicians. One night she was out with the original bass guitarist having drinks when she decided right there and then to start her own band.

 “It branched out from us speaking out. Her and I had experienced crazy, abusive relationships so there were a lot of things we wanted to talk about and shine light on,” said Vega. “That was a perfect opportunity to put our musical talents into something we are passionate about.” They settled on the name, Lloronas, after struggling to find one that was not only catchy but also something that encapsulated Mexican folklore and women’s empowerment. She redirected all of those negative experiences in her life and let them power up her art. “It’s honestly somewhat healing for me because I’ll write about depressive relationships and things that just come with life and I like to put that into music and turn it into something beautiful,” she added.

 Lloronas are a no-holds-barred punk rock band. If it isn’t the fact that three fourths of the members are female that catches your attention than it’ll be the sheer volume this band performs at. Whether accompanied by driving drum beats, buzz-saw like guitar riffs or the bass guitarist’s banshee screams, Vega is there, in front, dancing and wailing to the music that has healed and freed her. “We don’t have to be anything but what we want to be. Sometimes our songs are slow, sometimes the dance is goth-y. I really enjoy that.” Vega said.

Both bands have plenty of moves in store for 2020. Mírame plans on dropping new music, a music video and more online content. “We want to play some festivals but that’s pending right now.” said Casas. As for Lloronas, writing and recording new music with a subsequent tour is in the works. “We definitely want to branch out more because I always felt like I was so scared to branch out but now we are all on the same page,” said Vega.