Top 20 #20: Ozomatli

Ozomatli kept dancing around the edge of my... I don't know where this metaphor is going. Let's try this again.

There were several instances when I heard of Ozomatli before I finally heard them. My first exposure to them was the 2000 Democratic National Convention protest. Later, I remember an article about them. It wasn't until I started listening to their music that I realized I'd been hearing their music since I'd moved to L.A.

In 2004, I was formally introduced to Ozomatli's music when I was involved in organizing with the anti-war movement. For Angeleno organizers in that era, Rage Against the Machine and Ozomatli were pretty much the soundtrack to everything we did.

Ozomatli gets #20 on the list for two reasons. First, they represent Los Angeles to me: Their music feels like someone recorded this city and put it on an album. I can't really explain it unless you've lived here for a while, but if you have, you'll probably get it. When I'm outside of L.A. and I put an Ozomatli album on, I feel like I'm here. They've somehow managed to capture what it's like to live in this city: the heat, the palm trees, traffic, smog, tacos, the heavy Latin music and hip-hop influences, the backyard party vibe -- it's all part of living here.

Second, Ozomatli expanded my interests beyond the punk and metal (and the little bit of reggae) I grew up listening to. They were a band that was more about good vibes and dancing than anything else, and it opened up new worlds for me. Not just in terms of new styles of music that I found I enjoyed, but in terms of subject matter as well. I had loved music that was about anger, angst, and depression as a teenager, and in Ozomatli's music, I discovered that there were experiences beyond that. I found myself spending less time brooding and writing angry songs, and spending more time in the fresh air, writing songs about life and love that weren't so pessimistic. Ozomatli could write a song about a subject matter like heartbreak or death, but there was always that note of optimism in it, like "Yeah, shitty things happen, but there's no reason to spend your whole life obsessed with it. Let's dance and get it all out."

So, here's to #20 on the list. Let's grab some tacos and some beers and crank up the Ozomatli.

(I swear there is another video for Eva that I've seen that I like better than this one. If anyone reading this knows if that's the case, kindly direct me to it. Thanks.)