Subterrestrial Miami: When “Hola” Meets “Hi”

Overall Rating: **** ½ stars out of 5

In a world filled with solo artists and bands with good looking front men or front women, we seem to forget about the power of two. Musical duos are almost an ancient reminder of bands from the last century. The popularity of couple bands has also greatly diminished, though in the 60's and 70's groups like The Carpenters, Sony & Cher and Captain and Tennille got mainstream attention.

Despite the passing of time, some still pop up here and there, reminding us what the power of two and the power of love can create. Using compositions inspired by their experiences and passions, a duo in love can use song to give listeners the hope of long-lasting romance. It’s a niche that few bands have today, even despite the number of people who have a soft spot for hearing two lovebirds sing about their love for one another.
Hola Hi has tapped into that niche. The band was formed once upon a time, when Louisiana native Paul Curtis and Dominican-born Angelina de los Rosarios fell in love. The two met while attending Louisiana State University and married soon after. Both were musicians prior to meeting, so they jumped at the opportunity to create music together and share their love.

Their self-titled debut album is made up of a well-executed body of songs. The lyrics speak about the struggles of not being next to the one you love, feeling the happiness of love, and the struggles that most couples go through. The music fuses a variety of genres - Spanish rock, Dominican bachata, country rock and power ballads. Their band name skillfully implies what can happen when the best of both worlds collide.

Songs like “Nunca Mas Terminaran” channel classic rock elements in the first few seconds of the opening verse. Then it infuses bachata instruments, creating an interesting and effective transition into the chorus. The vocals in the chorus made me recall Shakira’s earlier work in her album 'Pies Descalzos.'

The song 'Si Estuvieras Aqui' combines much different elements - bluegrass and country rock fusion. Organ is also incorporated, and the chorus is poppy and catchy.

Despite the mixture of genres, Hola Hi still manages to produce a well-done and consistent album.

Next Live Show:
Hola Hi, Minimal, & Dear Darling
Date: Thursday, April 4th, 2013
Time: 10pm
Venue: Pax Miami - 337 Southwest 8th Street, Miami, FL 33131
Price: $10
Website: http://www.holahi.net

The Tune of Subjective Thought

People can create a sense of belonging and understanding through the exploration of different musical genres. Music provides something people can relate to. Music takes us to places far beyond our life and our troubles. It creates trends, makes us dance and sing, it can even start revolutions.

Although our tastes may differ and vary among genres, we can all appreciate what looks, feels and sounds good to us. Music, like art, is a portrait of who we are deep inside.

I’ve been trying to get this blog started up for a long time now. It wasn’t till my longtime friend Kathy and I got together and said, “Wouldn’t it be great to create a blog where we can we can share our ideas,
thoughts, and our love for music?" that the idea began developing.

So here we both are, trying to create a ripple in a world filled with people with contrasting ideals - ideals that are set apart by constantly striving for individuality

While we do share some common musical interests, our individual tastes and approaches tend to be quite different. This is actually a good thing. I will be sharing my musical insights by offering guides to new music, trends and up-and-coming genres. I'll publish weekly blogs that will be broken down into three categories:

Subterrestrial Miami

I will post a new blog every Friday reviewing bands/artist/performers in the Miami underground
scène. I’m not talking about Pitbull, Gloria Estefan, and Flo Rida. There is more to “the 305” than meets
the eye. Miami is filled with many artists, bands, and performers with eclectic talents. This will be a
great guide for MIA locals and I hope it will be a fun way to spread the word to tourists trying to get a feel for what the Miami music scene is really all about.

The World of K-pop

And I don’t just mean Gangnam Style! K-pop is Korean pop music. Having gained
popularity through this miraculous thing called the Internet, K-pop has since received worldwide recognition for its unique talent. Taking influence from Western music, K-pop has perfected the art of fun, catchy,
electronic dance songs by showcasing music videos involving choreography, multiple group members, complex concepts and marketing.

Following the Stream

These posts will follow the most popular trends in the mainstream. These, of course, will be made up of my viewpoints on the popular music of today, the up-and-coming music of tomorrow, and the popular music of the past.

My first post, 'Subterrestrial Miami' will be published on Monday, followed by 'The World of K-pop' on Wednesday and concluded by ‘Following the Stream.’

Kathy's approach may or may not be so methodical, I'll leave that up to her and you'll just have to check in with us regularly.

Our hope is that our differences will lead to the formation of a unique musical guide that you'll all enjoy and share with friends. Hope to see you guys back here real soon!