Say what you will about the new Calibre 50 ballad — and no, I cannot prove that some nefarious Disa executive forced them to play the song while submerged in gelatin, although the first time I watched the video I thought the music had been screwed and chopped — but at least it knocked their previous ballad “Contigo” off the chart. (Don’t worry, “Contigo” is still huge in El Norte.) In fact all the new Mexican radio hits this fortnight are ballads, which makes Picking to Click a more difficult proposition than usual. But NorteñoBlog is not completely devoid of romance! NorteñoBlog knows the desires that wrack the heart! And you know who else knows how to rip out his heart for all to see? German Montero, that’s who! So give a listen to “Me Seguirás Buscando,” where Montero promises to keep searching… and searching… to provide you with complete satisfaction. Judging by his overwrought performance, the search might entail self-strangulation and vocal nodes, but if that´s what it takes…
In El Norte chart news, El Komander goes top 10 Hot Latin for the third time with “Malditas Ganas.” Billboard also reports that his ballad “El Papel Cambio,” which we encountered on the Mexican charts earlier this year, is lurking down in the U.S. 40s. The U.S. seems to lag a few months behind Mexico in our love for El Komander songs. NorteñoBlog has no ready explanation for this, since it´s certainly not true of every artist — see both countries´ immediate embrace of Recodo´s “Mi Vicio Mas Grande.” Komander does seem to do better with streaming than he does with radio play, so maybe his more ramshackle sound is a tougher sell for U.S. radio programmers? Continue reading “Who’s On the Mexican Radio? 5/29/15”→
Not one but three feisty banda tunes enter the Mexican radio chart this week. NorteñoBlog has already mentioned Recodo’s “Mi Vicio Mas Grande,” which jumps from 9 to 4 and is also charting in El Norte — it bears more than a passing resemblance to Recoditos’ “Mi Último Deseo,” though the writers are different. (“Mi Vicio” boasts the unlikely fingerprints of Luciano Luna, the Diane Warren of the Sierra, apparently feeling his oats.) Chuy Lizarraga’s “Tu Mami” sounds similar, a minor-key raver.
That leaves the third, a major-key raver by former La Voz Mexico contestant and stubbly denim vision Jovanko Ibarra. His “No Le Hagamos Al Cuento” is today’s Pick to Click because it’s a decent song, sung reedily, and if you watch the video you get to look at Jovanko Ibarra. On a motorcycle!
Also new from two weeks ago are El Komander’s uninteresting “Me Interesa” and, in the top 10, La Original’s “Sal De Mi Vida.”
These are the Top 20 “Popular” songs in Mexico, as measured by monitorLATINO. Don’t confuse “Popular” with the “General” list, which contains many of the same songs but also “Uptown Funk!”, “Sugar,” “Love Me Like You Do,” and an Aleks Syntek ballad about getting So Close. Syntek gets closer than Hall & Oates did, at least.
NorteñoBlog would like to apologize for sleeping on Grupo El Reto‘s March album A La Vieja Escuela (Gerencia 360); although in my defense, if El Reto is so Old School, their music should be timeless, right? More correctly, this quartet belongs to la Corriente Escuela of corridistas who sing about corruption while their corrosive tubists imitate machine gun fire. Corre! — to their Pick to Click single, that is, a duet with the quartet Alta Consigna. Alta Consigna, you see, also has a tuba player in the band, which means “La Parranda Va Empezar” features two tubists doing crazy things. (Consigna also has a hot bajo sexto player imitating a requinto. I think that’s what that is.)
Also Vieja Escuela y VALE LA PENA is the new album from Julio Preciado y Su Banda Perla Del Pacifico, Ni Para Bien Ni Para Mal (Luz). Preciado’s a veteran of two Sinaloan bandas, La Original Banda El Limón and Banda El Recodo; he struck out on his own, I wanna say at the turn of the millennium. This new album is fairly trad, perpetually high-NRG banda with its horn sections not entirely in tune, but I think that’s intentional. (It sounds cool and adds to the energy.) I will now quote at length from Preciado’s Wikipedia page:
On February 2, 2009 he was assigned to sing the Mexican National Anthem in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico, as a part of the Opening Ceremony of the Caribbean Baseball Series (Serie del Caribe). He made several mistakes in the anthem lyrics and musical pace, being majorly booed by the audience.
You know, these things happen to the best of us, and NorteñoBlog forgives Preciado just as we did Christina Aguilera and Roseanne Barr, because WHO CARES. Surely there were extenuating circumstances?
Some factors came into play during the failure to sing the national anthem properly since the background music did not play, so he decided to improvise by singing a capella. He decided to extend the improvisation. The audience’s reaction caused the local sound to be shut off to protect Preciado from more serious actions by an angered public, so he could stop singing. In fact some people in the stadium assure that the singer was drunk.
I want more extended improvisations on national anthems! I know what you’re wondering: is this brouhaha on Youtube, complete with angry fans yelling and poor Preciado shrugging sheepishly at the end? You bet it is!
Julio apologized to the audience and in a written statement hoping he will get a second chance to sing the national anthem in the future.
So the guy apologized — in writing — and that’s gotta be the end of the story. No?
Before the Carnival of Mazatlan Preciado was a serious candidate to be burned as a “burn of bad humor” (La quema del mal humor), an event that burns the people or event that represents the worst thing for the people, But since he was a diputade with license and using his influence and money in the town of Mazatlan he was saved of that “un-honor” despite he won the votes of the people of Mazatlan to be burned.
Your diputade knows what you need, but I know what you want. Glad you weren’t burned, Julio! End of story? Por favor?
Since he was not burned in that event the people of Mazatlan towards his anger with his daughter Yuliana Preciado, during the parade where she was elected as a “Infant Queen” in the middle of corruption and scandal, the people started to sing the Mexican National Anthem loudly to her in protest.
This will never end, will it? The sins of the padre will be visited upon generations yet unborn, until every new Preciado knows that anthem by heart. Listen to the new album, it’s really good.
From the southern state of Oaxaca comes Banda Costado and their violin-driven single “Pinotepa” (Talento). This is a way different sound than we usually enjoy here: lots of percussion, tuba bassline, wild violin, and singers. Many independent lines and very little chordal harmony, in other words. Exciting stuff. VALE LA PENA.
Traviezoz de La Zierra has teamed up with the late Ariel Camacho’s guitarist and tubist, aka Los Plebes Del Rancho, to record a tribute to Ariel, called “Mis Ultimos Momentos” (Del). Given the subject, it’s appropriately slow and deliberative, but Camacho’s own slow and deliberative songs tended to have compelling melodies. NO VALE LA PENA.
The charts, and thus NorteñoBlog’s life, are in tumult this week. This is a good thing! Though of course, just looking at the top 10, you might be fooled into thinking the chart remains a tepid pool of stagnancy and age. King Romeo’s blockbuster hit is closing in on two years of proposing indecencies to its poor neighbors, one of whom happens to be King Romeo’s NEW blockbuster hit. (“Propuesta Indecente” has always been at war with “Hilito”?) And yes, the Julión Álvarez ballad going top 10 on Billboard‘s Hot Latin chart is some weak sofrito — but, on the other hand, it’s Julión Álvarez. NorteñoBlog likes him. Just a week ago, he dropped the official video for “El Amor De Su Vida,” and already it’s got three and a half million views. I won’t begrudge him his success with necking music, and I encourage him to release “El Aferrado” as a single cuanto antes.
Further down the list, things get more interesting. Ariel Camacho’s “Te Metiste” is up to #14 overall and #12 on Regional Mexican airplay; not bad for a posthumous ballad played by a sparse, deliberative trio configuration used by nobody else on the radio. El Komander’s “Malditas Ganas” continues to climb, and two songs that are new to the overall list — Enigma Norteño’s racing quartet tune “Calla Y Me Besas” and La Séptima Banda’s swanky, Tower of Power-ish “Bonito Y Bello” — bring as much energy as the songs they replace. Down on the Regional Mexican airplay chart, Recodo’s “Mi Vicio Más Grande” is their skippiest hit in who knows how long.
The Pick to Click is another one that’s new to the airplay chart: “Debajo Del Sombrero” by Leandro Rios ft. Pancho Uresti, whose new career seems to be guesting on everyone else’s songs. It’s two guys talking big to the father of their beloved, trying to convince him their humble ranchera ways render them worthy of his daughter’s affection. It also takes as much pleasure in the act of rhyming as any random song by Sondheim. Although, going through my Spanish rudiments, I’m disappointed the song doesn’t take place in enero, and why doesn’t our heroic caballero own a perro?
These are the top 25 Hot Latin Songs and top 20 Regional Mexican Songs, courtesy Billboard, as published May 16.
1. “El Perdón” – Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias
2. “Ay Vamos” – J Balvin
3. “Propuesta Indecente” – Romeo Santos (93 WEEKS OLD)
4. “Hilito” – Romeo Santos
5. “Hablame de Ti” – Banda MS (#2 RegMex) (snoooooozzzzzz)
6. “Contigo” – Calibre 50 (#1 RegMex)
7. “Travesuras” – Nicky Jam
8. “Fanatica Sensual” – Plan B
9. “Mi Verdad” – Maná ft. Shakira
10. “El Amor De Su Vida” – Julión Álvarez y Su Norteño Banda (#3 RegMex)
This week’s two new songs present a conundrum. Do I prefer Los Recoditos’ new ballad “Me Toco Perder,” specifically the heartfelt manner in which the lead singer pronounces the word “estrellllllas,” holding himself back from the crucial high note until his vibrato bursts through like a tear-filled reservoir? Or should I direct you instead to the speedier pleasures of La Iniciativa’s “La Reina,” which has lots of stop-start precision and chewy tuba-vs.-accordion lines? Probably the latter. But there’s a third song that deserves your attention more: Ariel Camacho’s love song “Te Metiste,” debuting this week on Billboard’s Hot Latin chart but not the regional Mexican chart, which means it’s getting most of its listens from streams and/or downloads. This could still be the result of Camacho’s death bump, but I prefer to think people are seeking out this song because of its great melody played by an excellent band. Pick to click:
In other news, Julión Álvarez’s “El Amor de Su Vida” goes top 10 in both countries. Clearly I am wrong about it.
These are the Top 20 “Popular” songs in Mexico, as measured by radioNOTAS. Don’t confuse “Popular” with the “General” list, which contains many of the same songs but also “Uptown Funk!”, “Sugar,” and, sounding like they crashed from all that sugar, Juan Gabriel singing with Juanes.
Los Tigres’ celebration of triplets (the musical figure, not the polyzygotic phenomenon) continues at #1 in Mexico this week. There’s some activity in the lower rungs of the chart, where Arrolladora replaces one boring ballad, still a hit in El Norte, with one slightly less boring tune that sounds vaguely like Dean Martin’s “Sway.” (Only Arrolladora have the magic technique.) Banda Los Sebastianes re-enter the chart with the evanescent “Indeleble,” and El Chapo de Sinaloa appears with “Tranquilito,” for which only a turbulent “making of” video exists.
For once the US charts are more interesting! For one thing, Hot Latin boasts its fifth #1 in five weeks, with Nicky Jam & Enrique’s “El Perdon.” Last week was the late Ariel Camacho’s “El Karma,” which recedes to #10 this week following its death bump. Before that was J Balvin’s “Ay Vamos,” then Maná ft. Shakira, and before that…
This is the first time five different songs have topped the chart in as many weeks since January/February 2014, when Marc Anthony gave way to Prince Royce, then to King Romeo’s “Propuesta Indecente,” then to Enrique ft. Marco Antonio Solís, and finally to the “Odio” juggernaut. “Odio,” you’ll remember, was the last number one before our recent glorious era of “Bailando.” (“Bailando” has always been at war with “Propuesta Indecente.”) The era came to an end with Maná and Shakira’s “Mi Verdad.” During the previous set of five number ones in five weeks, back in 2012, the chart turned over more frequently; this was just prior to Billboard‘s controversial decision to incorporate both streaming data and airplay from across all genres into genre charts, and Hot Latin songs began ruling the roost for weeks on a regular basis.
New songs in the US Regional Mexican top 20 include La Séptima Banda’s “Bonito y Bello,” likable for its minor chords but otherwise meh; Los Huracanes’ “Como Tu No Hay Dos,” a slow country waltz; and the Pick to Click, La Maquinaria Norteña’s “Si Te Vuelvo a Ver,” a stomping country polka with some puro Chihuahua sax, by way of New Mexico. I want La Maquinaria Norteña’s logo on my windshield.
These are the Top 20 “Popular” songs in Mexico, as measured by radioNOTAS. Don’t confuse “Popular” with the “General” list, which contains many of the same songs but also “Uptown Funk!”, “Sugar,” and the Disneyfied jogging club soundtrack of Juanes.
“El Karma” was Ariel Camacho’s first charting single, peaking at #16 on Hot Latin, which is why many news sources linked to it in the wake of his fatal car accident last week. Now it’s destined to remain his signature song. It’s also the first regional Mexican song to top the overall Hot Latin chart since 3BallMTY’s “Inténtalo,” if we’re counting electro-cumbias, or Arrolladora’s “Niña de Mi Corazon” if we’re not. This is mostly due to an increase in streaming and sales — but also, it was a slow week. Hot Latin compiles its tally from a top secret mix of digital sales, streams, and radio airplay. Below I’ve listed (as well as I could find) the tallies from the last four Hot Latin #1s, in the weeks that they reached the top. (Can you use the principles of detection to triangulate Billboard‘s top secret formula?)
“El Karma” – Ariel Camacho
3,000 downloads (#7 Latin Digital Songs)
1.9 million streams
4.8 million audience impressions (#9 Regional Mexican Songs)
(Note that Ricky Martin’s “Disparo Al Corazon” is #1 Latin Airplay with 10.2 million impressions.)
“Ay Vamos” – J Balvin
5,000 downloads (#4 Latin Digital Songs)
?? streams
7.7 million audience impressions (#2 Latin Rhythm Airplay)
“Mi Verdad” – Maná ft. Shakira
14,000 downloads (#1 Latin Digital Songs)
?? streams (10 million-ish worldwide; not sure how many of these count)
10 million audience impressions (#1 Latin Airplay)
As you can see, “El Karma” lags behind the other three in sales and radio play, and fewer people seemed to stream it than they did “Mi Verdad” or “Bailando.” I’m surprised “El Karma” streamed so little, actually, but look — it was just a really slow week. “El Karma” was the only new song in the top 25, and except for it and “El Perdon,” the top 10 looks basically the same as it did two weeks ago. Some of these songs are oooooold. (“Bailando” has always been at war with “Propuesta Indecente.”) The Regional Mexican airplay chart, where “El Karma” climbed back to #9, isn’t much better: new songs by Recodo and Enigma Norteña round out the bottom of the list. Pesado’s new-ish “Que Aun Te Amo” is good ol’ bouncy country, but if you haven’t listened to “El Karma” yet, you owe it to yourself.
These are the top 25 Hot Latin Songs and top 20 Regional Mexican Songs, courtesy Billboard, as published March 14.
1. “El Karma” – Ariel Camacho y Los Plebes del Rancho (#9 RegMex)
2. “Bailando” – Enrique ft. Descemer Bueno, Gente de Zona, & the word “contigo” (I’M 50! 50 WEEKS OLD!)
3. “Ay Vamos” – J Balvin
4. “Propuesta Indecente” – Romeo Santos (84 WEEKS OLD)
5. “Mi Verdad” – Maná ft. Shakira
6. “El Perdon” – Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias
7. “Yo También” – Romeo Santos ft. Marc Anthony
8. “Hablame de Ti” – Banda MS (#12 RegMex) (snoooooozzzzzz)
9. “Travesuras” – Nicky Jam
10. “Eres Mia” – Romeo Santos (51 WEEKS OLD)
11. “Juntos (Together)” – Juanes
12. “Disparo Al Corazon” – Ricky Martin
13. “Lejos De Aqui” – Farruko
14. “Contigo” – Calibre 50 (#10 RegMex)
15. “Hilito” – Romeo Santos
16. “Eres Una Niña” – Gerardo Ortíz (#8 RegMex)
17. “Piensas (Dile La Verdad)” – Pitbull ft. Gente de Zona
18. “Dime” – Julión Álvarez y Su Norteño Banda (#5 RegMex)
19. “Soltero Disponible” – Regulo Caro (#2 RegMex)
20. “Levantando Polvadera” – Voz De Mando (#1 RegMex)
21. “Qué Tiene De Malo” – Calibre 50 ft. El Komander (#18 RegMex)
22. “Fanatica Sensual” – Plan B
23. “Mi Vuelvo Un Cobarde” – Christian Daniel
24. “Lo Hiciste Otra Vez” – La Arrolladora Banda El Limón (#3 RegMex) (Oh dear, this is not good. Not just sap — meandering sap.)
25. “Mi Princesa” – Remmy Valenzuela (#13 RegMex)
¡Adios!
“Adios” – Ricky Martin (BACK FROM TO THE DEADTHIRTIES DEAD)
Stasis sets in on the Mexican radio chart, with the top eight songs simply shuffling among themselves. Even the lower reaches contain only three new entries this week, but all three fill important niches. In the “boring banda ballad” spot, La Adictiva Banda replaces La Original Banda. Banda la Trakalosa replaces Gerardo Ortiz in the “actually good banda ballad” spot with their high-camp “Adicto a La Tristeza,” a previous Pick to Click. And the new “fast norteño quartet song” is from songwriter to the stars America Sierra, whose “Ponte Las Pilas” replaces Diego Herrera. Herrera’s song may have been a tad better, but only because he got Banda Los Gfez to play on it.
In other news, the Los Tigres song at #1 this week sounds better every time I hear it.
There’s even less action over at Billboard, although J Balvin finally gets a #1 hit with the 25-week-old “Ay Vamos,” and Enigma Norteño enters the Regional Mexican chart with the spry “Calla Y Me Besas.” That’s three hot Latin #1s in as many weeks! I’m scratching away at my dry skin with excitement.
These are the Top 20 “Popular” songs in Mexico, as measured by radioNOTAS. Don’t confuse “Popular” with the “General” list, which contains many of the same songs but also “Uptown Funk!”, “Blank Space,” and the ABBA-schlager of Natalia Jiménez.
Another chart, another week of being contigo and living contigo and dancing cont– what? What’s that? YOU SAY THAT AFTER 41 WEEKS, “BAILANDO” IS NO LONGER NUMBER 1?
[Cue Star Wars clips of the Death Star blowing up, cheesy computer-animated intergalactic societies dancing and partying in its wake. Despair sets in when we realize they’re dancing to a steel drum version of “Bailando.”]
That’s right, Enrique and the gang have been replaced by Maná and Shakira singing a bit of tissue paper called “Mi Verdad.” Say what you want about “Bailando” — and no, I cannot prove it was part of a North Korean plot to make Americans voluntarily destroy all our broadcast technology — but at least it’s memorable. A good teaching tool! If it weren’t for millions of Youtube viewers confirming “Mi Verdad” actually exists, I’d have my doubts.
Don’t shed too many tears for Enrique, though — he’s climbing at #12 on a Nicky Jam track, and anyway, “Bailando” simply moves down to #2, just ahead of the 82-week-old “Propuesta Indecente.” (“Bailando” has always been at war with “Propuesta Indecente.”) King Romeo’s doing OK, too. With his new song “Hilito” climbing to #13, Romeo Santos is getting perilously close to having four songs in the top 10 again. Speaking of which, the Singles Jukebox just covered his duet with Marc Anthony; Jonathan Bogart suggests, “The alleged woman at the center of the lyric is entirely absent: Marc and Romeo spend the entire song preening for and performing at each other, not her.”
Among this week’s new entries, the Pick to Click is Chuy Lizarraga’s banda ballad “Se Me Sigue Notando.” Calling it dramatic is like calling an Applebee’s cocktail watered down, but Lizarraga achieves his drama through the confident relaxation of his pacing. Like, the song’s really slow? And Lizarraga doesn’t seem to care, and in fact he wants you to wonder when the next phrase is going to hit. Just slow down and accept that Chuy knows what he’s doing, and your mind will open to a new realm of romantic despair. (Today’s gringo country comparison is Jamey Johnson.)
These are the top 25 Hot Latin Songs and top 20 Regional Mexican Songs, courtesy Billboard, as published Feb. 28.
1. “Mi Verdad” – Maná ft. Shakira
2. “Bailando” – Enrique ft. Descemer Bueno, Gente de Zona, & the word “contigo” (48 WEEKS OLD)
3. “Propuesta Indecente” – Romeo Santos (82 WEEKS OLD)
4. “Ay Vamos” – J Balvin
5. “Eres Mia” – Romeo Santos (49 WEEKS OLD)
6. “Travesuras” – Nicky Jam
7. “Yo También” – Romeo Santos ft. Marc Anthony
8. “Hablame de Ti” – Banda MS (#14 RegMex) (snoooooozzzzzz)
9. “Disparo Al Corazon” – Ricky Martin
10. “Eres Una Niña” – Gerardo Ortíz (#3 RegMex)
11. “Dime” – Julión Álvarez y Su Norteño Banda (#6 RegMex)
12. “El Perdon” – Nicky Jam & Enrique Iglesias
13. “Hilito” – Romeo Santos
14. “Juntos (Together)” – Juanes
15. “Piensas (Dile La Verdad)” – Pitbull ft. Gente de Zona
16. “Levantando Polvadera” – Voz De Mando (#1 RegMex)
17. “Lejos De Aqui” – Farruko
18. “Soltero Disponible” – Regulo Caro (#5 RegMex)
19. “Lo Hiciste Otra Vez” – La Arrolladora Banda El Limón (#2 RegMex) (Oh dear, this is not good. Not just sap — meandering sap.)
20. “Qué Tiene De Malo” – Calibre 50 ft. El Komander (#13 RegMex)
21. “Adios” – Ricky Martin (BACK FROM THE DEAD THIRTIES)
22. “Fanatica Sensual” – Plan B
23. “Mi Princesa” – Remmy Valenzuela (#9 RegMex)
24. “Mi Vuelvo Un Cobarde” – Christian Daniel
25. “Contigo” – Calibre 50 (#19 RegMex)
¡Adios!
“Mi Vecinita” – Plan B “Quédate Con Ella” – Natalia Jiménez (Sleek! Horns + electrobeats!)
“Soledad” – Don Omar
¡Adios! “Perdoname Mi Amor” – Los Tucanes de Tijuana “La Indicada” – Kevin Ortíz “La Bala” – Los Tigres Del Norte “Hasta Que Salga El Sol” – Banda Los Recoditos “Y Asi Fue” – Julión Álvarez “No Me Pidas Perdon” – Banda MS
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