Delirio

Author(s): MARC CABRERA Date: January 24, 2008 Section: Go Magazine

As an agile, undersized point guard at Alisal High School, Edgar Escobedo led the team's offense to a league title and proved that hard work pays off on the court. Now, as the lead singer and guitarist for the Latin rock band Delirio, Escobedo is crossing over his court success for music industry stardom.
Delirio brings its brand of alternative Latin rock to Monterey Live in Monterey on Saturday night. Opening acts are Grito Dolores and Doctor Walken.
Prior to that, they will perform an in-store showcase at Wise Music in Salinas at 7 p.m. Friday night.
The band has been grinding it out over the past 10 years, taking their sound from east Salinas bedroom jams and quinceañeras to opening up for Mexican rock legends El Tri at Shoreline Ampitheater in Mountain View.
Along the way, they've endured members living in different states and taking on various responsibilities to achieve their vision.
The band didn't release its first album until 2006, honing their sound through live shows and four years of studio recording.
"We just had other commitments going on," Escobedo said of the band's seeming lag time to complete their debut, "Auto Destruccion."
Those commitments included Escobedo moving to Las Vegas to run his own real estate company and the band's record label, Gold Flame Records.
The Lopez brothers have stayed in Los Angeles, but the band manages to record and perform on a consistent basis, rotating between Vegas, L.A. and their hometown of Salinas.
They have high hopes for a breakthrough in 2008. Aside from a planned 40- to 50-show tour schedule, they are close to booking a spot at the acclaimed South By South West music industry festival in Austin, Texas. They are also pushing hard for a national late-night television spot.
The album has posted three songs on national Latin rock charts. The video for the single "Angel" is getting rotation on several Latin music video channels as well.
The band's lofty aspirations are balanced with a love for their hometown roots. They are looking to book shows at Fox Theater in Salinas with national Latin Rock acts like Pastilla and Maria Fatal. They hope to both perform and showcase other local bands.
"We want to give back to the community," said Escobedo.
Which leads back to Escobedo's days as a scrappy prep point guard.
Much like those Alisal High teams that defied expectations on the court, Escobedo hopes Delirio can broaden horizons for local garage bands.
"For our band, we try to give ourselves value for what we are," he said. "We push for shows. We're always pushing for what we can. No one's going to give it to you."

Marc Cabrera can be reached at mcabrera@montereyherald.com. GO!
CONCERT
- Monterey County Herald

Written by Jesus -El Pelos- Olvera
Wednesday, 30 November 2005


Mientras que el pasado 18 Jarabe de Palo le diera la alternativa a Roxing Kafé y a Curanderos para abrir su única presentación en el sur de California, en la víspera del Día de Acción de Gracias Los Abandoned, Pastilla, Juguete, Delirio y Cábula compartieron el escenario con Salón Victoria en el quinto aniversario de XsGrita Radio. Fue una de esas raras tocadas en donde el indie y el ska se tomaron de la mano para crear un show excelente, con buena dosis de talento local y un buen acto de carácter internacional (Salón Victoria también se dio la vuelta por el Allen Theatre, El Terraza Jamay y el JC Fandango y promete regresar en febrero). Todos estuvieron excelentes pero nos sorprendió gratamente la banda Delirio, a quienes no habíamos visto mucho por estos lados y que esperamos que siga incorporándose a otras tocadas locales. XsGrita Radio es una estación de radio que transmite desde México a través de Internet y en donde colaboran muchos de los DJs de la extinta OrbitaFM. También transmite simultáneamente algunos programas para la estación de FM Reaktor, que ha ayudado a que se popularicen en México bandas como Pastilla y Los Abandoned.

- Al Borde Magazine

Spanish rock group among
Cinco de Mayo performers
Annelinda Aguayo, Daily Staff Writer
Issue date: 5/2/03 Section: Campus News

Technical difficulties were not enough to keep Delirio from rocking the Student Union Amphitheater on Thursday.

The Spanish rock band was invited to San Jose State University to be a part of Gamma Zeta Alpha fraternity's "Celebrando Nuestra Cultura," the organization's weeklong Cinco de Mayo celebration.

"(Spanish rock) is starting to become a big part of the Latino culture," said Martin Ayala, a senior majoring in nuclear physics and the Cinco de Mayo celebration chair. "It's a new piece of culture added through the arts."

Ayala said the fraternity was trying to represent different parts of the Mexican culture by bringing a variety of music and dance groups to SJSU.

Despite glitches in the sound equipment, Delirio started playing some serious rock 'n' roll for the audience of about 40 people.

"We're having technical difficulties, please bear with us," said Edgar Escobedo, a junior majoring in music education, and the band's lead singer and rhythmic guitar player.

Because Escobedo's microphone was not working, he had to fight to not be drowned out by his band members' massive sound.

Delirio's raw sound drew in more students, as the audience grew to about 50 midway into the second song.

In the middle of the group's third song, Escobedo threw off his denim jacket and pulled the microphone close to his lips, causing some of the women in the audience to howl and cheer with approval.

As the group continued to play, more students stopped to listen to the band's mighty sound.

There was a very diverse crowd of about 60 people by the end of Delirio's performance.

Robert Doidge, a junior majoring in computer science, said he stopped at the amphitheater because he heard the music.

"I thought they were good," Doidge said. "It was something neat to do in between classes."

Rosa Revuelta, a freshman majoring in social work, said she enjoyed Delirio's performance.

"It was good to see Spanish rock on campus," she said. "It showed a different part of the Latino culture."

Revuelta said such events are important to bring to the campus community because it gives students different things to see and do.

Members of Gamma Zeta Alpha were pleased with the turnout and the good weather.

Lupe Ramirez, a senior majoring in mechanical engineering and a member of the fraternity, said he took pleasure in the diversity of the audience.

"There were a lot of different faces out there, not just Latinos," Ramirez said. "It was nice to see."

Escobedo said despite technical difficulties, it felt great playing in front of his schoolmates.

"I liked that my peers came out," Escobedo said. "It was an honor to play for them."

Marco Lopez, a senior majoring in finance and the band's drummer, said he was grateful to be invited by the fraternity to be a part of the Cinco de Mayo celebration.

Lopez said, "It felt good that a fraternity like Gamma Zeta Alpha would look to us to represent them and the Mexican culture."
- Spartan Daily

On “Auto Destruccion,” a track from their upcoming EP, the Salinas trio Delirio has an alternative rock sound—think the heavier songs of The Smashing Pumpkins or Filter sung in Spanish—with electronica noises gurgling beneath the surface. The group is part of the “rock en Español” scene, which includes other artists that have wildly different takes on music, like the ska/punk outfit Firme and the Beatles-influenced Pastilla.

Edgar Escobedo, singer and guitarist for Delirio, believes that it is their shared culture that allows the many disparate bands to forge a strong bond with one another in the rock en Español movement. Escobedo contends that the bands are assisting one another with the hope that one will eventually breakthrough into the mainstream.

“I think everyone is trying to help everyone out,” he says. “If someone is successful, it will grab attention to the scene.”

Escobedo attributes the recent rise of the movement to two factors: the growing number of Hispanics in the United States and the increasing quality and innovativeness of the groups. For the latter, he cites the success of the always-evolving band Café Tacuba.

Like the other bands in the movement, Delirio has its own distinct story. Escobedo met his future bandmates—guitarist Albert Lopez and drummer Marco Lopez—after his family moved from Mexicali to Salinas when he was 10 years old. “They were my first friends and bullies at the same time,” he says.

After their initial meeting, years passed, and Escobedo and the Lopez brothers went their own ways. An Alisal High School guitar class brought the three back together.

Before the class, which the students took during their senior year, the Lopez brothers had been performing in conjuntos, which are traditional folkloric groups, at weddings and quinceaneras. On the other hand, Escobedo didn’t know how to play guitar at all.

Escobedo says that during his final school year he devoted himself to learning the instrument, spending hours after classes practicing guitar at the Lopez household.

By the last day of class, the trio was performing a batch of originals and some covers, such as the Eagles’ “Hotel California.”

“They were a little surprised we learned our instruments so quickly,” Escobedo says of his classmates.

Since high school, the band has been developing its own sound, a sound that reflects their love for other hard rocking alternative bands with an electronic edge, like Nine Inch Nails and Stabbing Westward.

“We like that big sound,” Escobedo says. “That big kick-your-butt rock sound.”

In addition to drawing from a well of about 25 originals, the band has been known to cover ‘80s synth rockers Depeche Mode’s “It’s No Good.”

“We do our own style to it,” Escobedo says. “It’s been a crowd favorite for a while now.”

As for the band’s originals, Escobedo describes them as “very alternative, electronic and industrial.”

http://www.montereycountyweekly.com/archives/2005/2005-Sep-08/Article.clubs1/1/@@index - Monterey County Weekly

The Delirio project began in 1996 while three High School students experimented with a form of music that was about to change their lives. Delirio began their career in one acoustic presentation at their high school to promote music programs in school. It was unbelievable how these young men could manipulate an electric sound on an acoustic instrument. They had discovered a way to show their electric emotions trough music.
This presentation sparked a following and began Delirio's music career. In just a matter of weeks Edgar Escobedo, Alberto Lopez, Marco Lopez & Diego Lopez were recognized by leaders of the Rock n' Español scene and were invited to present themselves all over the state of California and eventually led to presentation in Baja California Mexico.
If you had to describe the style of music of Delirio, it would be; "A Dark and Sexy" style. With their influenced being from such groups as Depeche Mode, Filter, The Cure, Stabbing Westward, Guns N’ Roses, La Ley, Nine Inch Nails among many others. These artist have helped Delirio form a style of their own and and express their musical talent.
Over the years Delirio has had the opportunity to share its music on large venues accompanied by well-established international artists in the rock industry. Artis such as El Tri, Maldita Vecindad, Victimas, Angeles Del Infierno, Jumbo, Pastilla, Moenia among many others.
After a few years in the music scene Delirio continued to learn and grow musically. Most recently Delirio releases it’s first full length album entitled “Auto Destruccion” under the independent label Gold Flame Records. The release, features 10 full tracks of Delirio best work till this day. It has also been part of various radio stations top 20 on their playlist for the past month. With this release Delirio hopes to open new doors in the emerging Rock n’ Español scene in the US.
Few artist can take different styles of music and overcome obstacles in leading the way for a new generation of musicians. With their priorities in order Delirio has the potential of breaking through the boundaries of the music by capturing not only the attention of the Latin community but also the American music scene. - Rockeros.net