Cabaret Diosa

By Kat Valentine Special to The Post
Friday, October 29, 2004 - It's time for the freak fests that take over every bar and club for Halloween. These events get bigger and better - or so promoters would have us believe. Here are my picks from this weekend's crop of adults-only monster mashes. Horror of horrorsFor years now, Cabaret Diosa has been hosting a series of outrageous theme-party shows around Halloween, but for 2004 the Boulder mambo kings have taken it up a notch. Cabaret Diosa will, of course, keep booties shaking to their exotic rhythms, and DeVotchKa will lend a Transylvanian note to the festivities.The highlight, however, isn't the music. This year's theme is "Rocky Mountain Horror Picture Show," and though they tried to keep the details under wraps, rumor has it that members of the band re-created the first five scenes from the Rocky Horror Picture Show here in Colorado. Cabaret Diosa's vocalist Kim Franco (aka Montana del Fuego) is said to star as Janet alongside DeVotchKa's Nick Urata as Brad.Ogden Theatre, 9 tonight, 21 and over, $16.25, Ticketweb; Boulder Theater, 9:30 p.m. Saturday, 21 and over, $23.50, 303-786-7030; encore performance Sunday, $15 or $10 with a stub from the Saturday show. - Denver Post

By Laura Bond
For more than two months, the American powers that be have given us plenty of indirect warnings that Westerners who dare set foot on certain soils in certain parts of the world will be immediately jailed, dismembered or at least diabolically scowled at. Yet all of the shadowy imagery that's surrounded the Middle East since September was not enough to prevent one of Boulder's more worldly combos from packing up its timbales, saxophones and frilly suits and boarding an Arab Emirates jet bound for the land of Muhammad. Earlier this month, the members of Cabaret Diosa somehow found themselves sipping cocktails on the beach -- and performing for ruddy throngs of dancing sheikhs -- in Dubai, a teeny little country across the Persian Gulf from Iran."The circumstances of our invitation were mysterious," says Diosa vocalist/clarinetist/ percussionist David Sherman, aka Juan del Queso. "We were hired for outrageous amounts of money by a secret cartel. Some bigwigs found out about us; they wanted us. It was an invitation from abroad -- right from the heart of turmoil and fear." In a scenario that seems eerily appropriate given the cartoon-caperish quality of its episodic stage shows, Cabaret Diosa has somehow become a hit with Dubai's royal family. According to Sherman, the band came to the family's attention through the Squirrel Nut Zippers, with whom Cabaret has performed in the past and who, it turns out, are big with wealthy families in obscure Middle Eastern countries. The band was originally invited to visit Dubai in September, an offer that was postponed while everyone waited to see if the entire region would be blown to smithereens by landmines or wayward Blackhawk helicopters. And though Sherman says he and his mates debated whether or not to accept a revised offer to perform for nearly two weeks at the Formula One Boat Race -- which the government of Dubai hosts on the Gulf each year -- they eventually landed on the side of adventure. It's not every day you have a chance to use your Latin exotica big-band spectacle to help improve international relations, after all. "We decided that even if we did get blown up, at least it would be good publicity -- because there is no greater publicity than getting blown up," Sherman says. "We knew we had to seize the chance to make a difference through mambo. We wanted to jump into the apocalypse and spread our message of love. And the pay was pretty good, and I got a free dental cleaning out of it." Indeed, if local bands lament the paltry wages they sometimes squeeze out of area club owners, they might want to consider stealing a page from Cabaret's well-traveled book: The band keeps its wheels and its hair greased by seeking out the kinds of gigs that actually pay cash money, typically playing 200 lives shows a year -- only a few of which are in Colorado. (The band's next local gig is a New Year's Eve gala at Tulagi in Boulder.) Last year the band traveled to Cuba -- another country they'd been cautioned against visiting. (Asked how they got around that pesky little travel restriction/trade embargo situation, Sherman is incredulous: "Restrictions? I had no idea. I just went down there for a cigar convention. And, well, let's just say we travel at night.") This time around, the band was put up in a four-star Dubai resort ("the likes of which Liberace has not seen," according to Sherman), fed and watered and afforded the opportunity to smash some stereotypes from the stage. Although Cabaret Diosa is more accustomed to entertaining drunken, English-speaking college kids than the international business community, Sherman says the demographic divide dissolved after the first thump of a conga drum. - The Westword

By Kevin Joseph
Cabaret Diosa is playing Boulders' Fox Theater on Friday, May 16th. I highly recommend the show as they may be the most entertaining local band we have in Colorado. That is not to take anything away from our other fine local acts. It is to say, however, that CD, well, they're different. They are that special child, your third cousin maybe - the one with the short tour bus running on the fumes of liberal doses of hedonistic idealism and romanticized latinification.
How do you describe their music? 10 piece Latino-Gypsy-Slam Lounge of the variety which makes anyone who can still fog a mirror "shake it" with flagrant disregard to their public image and experiment with all manner of Latin rhythms; No matter how white, how preppy or how old they may be.
A LIVE SHOW? Tito Puente meets Tony Bennet in a bazaar amphitheater in Marakesh following a three day bender out in the dunes somewhere. As the self-proclaimed leaders of the New Mambo revival, they have evangelized their vision for one nation under the influence of the congas and the perpetual "good hair day" across this great land for years. After seeing them live, you will agree with my estimation of them as leading purveyors of the most fun per dollar you can get in live music in Colorado today.
I sat down with the heart and soul of the band and asked them "some 'heavy' questions, man". Lead Singer Juan Del Queso & Conga Player El Matador. I take no responsibility for their answers or the affect they may have on minors.
What is the New Mambo Revival?
Juan: A way of life, a philosophy, a haircut.
El Matador: Ass shakin love.
Describe a Cabaret Diosa Show.
Juan: Like cookin' bacon.
El Matador: Full of beautiful women in various states of undress, dancing frenetically about the room.
Describe your typical or your ideal fan club member.
Juan: French, No Japanese, No Swedish. A gourmet chef, master of Kung-Fu and holder of a B class Drivers license. Loves long walks on the beach and sunsets.
El Matador: Loves us enough to want to hang out with us and, perhaps, provide sexual favors, but not so much that they follow us to the tour bus or wait there for us all night.
Who is your favorite historical revolutionary?
Juan: Jimmy Carter and Sam Adams for their contribution to micro-brewing.
El Matador: Benjamin Franklin. Nudist. Orgy lover. Flautist.
If you were not a famous musician, how would you make your living?
Juan: Evangelical Bag Lady
El Matador: Filmmaker
Spice Girl of preference?
Juan: Angry Spice. If there is an angry one. And if there isn't, there should be.
El Matador: The chubby one.
Favorite Place to play live:
Juan: Any outdoor amphitheater
El Matador: The Green Parrot, Key West, FL
What was the last album you bought?
Juan: Magnetic Fields 69 Love Songs Vol. 3
El Matador: The White Stripes-Elephant
Least favorite sound?
Juan: A maiden in distress
El Matador: Bagpipes
Favorite Femme Fatale?
Juan: Anne Margaret in Viva Las Vegas
El Matador: Betty Paige
Favorite Bar?
Juan: The one in my bathtub
El Matador: El Matador, New Orleans, LA
If you were an animal in a past life, what was it?
Juan: A manatee
El Matador: A Pug
Cabaret Diosa can be seen live at the following venues near you:
Boulder
May 16th
Fox Theater
Somewhere west of Ft. Collins
May 17th
Mishawaka Amphitheater

Bond, CO
May 18th
State Bridge Lodge - Denver Mix

By Kevin Joseph
Seeing Cabaret Diosa at The Fox Theater in their home town of Boulder is like seeing Pearl Jam in Seattle. Well, maybe not exactly like that. But it is always more fun to see a band in their own back yard. The show itself was outstanding. The Fox has some of the best sound in Colorado and the 10 piece ensemble (which includes a 3 piece horn section) used every bit of it. Onstage antics were at an all time high. And drama was as well. It seems lead singer Juan Del Queso wasn't imagining it; something DID hit him in the head about 1 hour into the show. It may not have been the pint glass he claimed it felt like, but someone definitely threw something that hit the leader of The New Mambo Revival above his left ear, and drew blood. At first, I suspected the band had concocted some new skit that they were using to add drama to the show. I thought, "What is this, the Cuban Blues Brothers? Are these guys going to play Rawhide next?" But I quickly realized that it was for real. And that it only takes one guy who grew up with animals on his shirts and a weak throwing arm (but good aim) to spoil everyones fun. And, evidently, The New Mambo Revival has its enemies as this journalist can only interpret this senseless act of violence as an attempted assassination. We may never know where the object came from. Or how many people were involved in the conspiracy, but we do know this: They failed to quell the voice of The New Mambo Revival. The music slowed down, but it did not stop. Juan only left the stage momentarily to seek medical attention He returned triumphantly. No speeches. No lectures on how it's bad to throw shit at the band. He just led them right back into what everyone was there for. Rum, shock and the company of several beautiful ladies has fogged my memory as to what the next song was, but in any case, it got us right back in the groove and the incident was forgotten by the second chorus. When reached for comment after the show, Juan calmly pulled a drag from an organic cigarette and said "Like any band seeking to lead a monumental paradigm shift in society, we have our share of hatas yo. I wouldn't say it happens often, but this is not the first attempt by the regime to quiet us. Still it takes more than a little acoustic feedback or a monkey wrench to the coconut to stop this train." When asked what they can take from the experience, Juan said "It's a sign form the Gods to press on. We must continue to work towards a world where it is no shirt, no shoes, no problem. Where every day is a good hair day and breakfast is served all day, every day. To continue to build the New Electric Eden where SUV's and cell phones and plasma screen TV's are not status symbols but tools to help us attain universal consciousness from the mambo, the rumba and the cha cha cha. So, share all the files you want. Go and get satellite radio. What matters is that this message was heard tonight. And that The New Mambo Revival is alive and well in Colorado!" Thank you Cabaret Diosa and...Viva La Revolution! - Denver Mix