Mexican duo rolls out new album

Venezuela Star (IANS) Thursday 23rd February, 2012

With the release of their second album, "Jotdog 2: Turista de amor", the Mexican duo Jotdog is continuing its campaign to spread the musical style they call "pop siniestro" (leftist pop).

The album contains lyrics loaded with dark humour and cultural references from terror films to the science fiction novels of Jules Verne, along with the music of Gran Guinol and Alice Cooper and the pop paintings of Andy Warhol.

It was the late contemporary and iconic artist who helped give a name to this unique team of musicians.

"The name Jotdog, which is the phonetic version of the English word 'hotdog', is a tribute to our beloved Andy Warhol. He took the most common daily objects and made them into art, and we, too, take a hotdog and make it into music," Jorge "La Chiquis" Amaro, the founder of the group including Maria Barracuda said.

Amaro and Barracuda met in a restaurant in Mexico City's Condesa district when a mutual friend introduced them. The chemistry was immediate and undeniable, since the pair were connected to the same musical wave and style.

Maria, who spent her childhood in Juarez listening to the blues, Gregorian chants and the heavy rock of Led Zeppelin, knew that Jorge had been a drummer with the groups Neon and Fobia and that he had also worked as an arranger, composer and sound engineer for bands like Mana and Timbiriche.

He, meanwhile, was impressed with Maria's out of this world musical compositions and the quality of her voice.

In 2009, Jotdog made its public debut with its same-named album that earned the pair two Latino Grammy nominations in the categories of best new artist and best pop vocal album by a duo or group.

At present, Jotdog is in the midst of a promotional US tour for "Turista de amor."

--IANS/EFE

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