Neoma

When Neoma, one of Ecuador’s most promising young musical acts, decided to move to America, the band had to make a tough call — but not about whether to move to New York or Los Angeles. Rather, how long could they sleep and write their debut album in their manager’s living room in downtown Denver?

Long enough. Building off a radio hit in Ecuador and hundreds of thousands of streams on Spotify, the band released its debut album, “Real,” on Friday. The 10-song indie-pop album tracks the journey of frontwoman Carla Huiracocha — and her producer, Danny Pauta — from small kids growing up in Cuenca to American artists with, from the sound of it, big futures.

And, as of this year, Huiracocha and Pauta have their own place in Denver, too. The city suits them: it, like Cuenca, is “chill,” high-altitude and flanked by mountains. The duo recounts their whirlwind year in front of a bank of synthesizers in their Capitol Hill studio apartment. As famous musicians in Ecuador, the two friends were used to being spotted by fans in public — but here, they’re unassuming. Pauta has the glasses and lankiness of a chess club champ; Huiracocha is maybe five feet tall under her blonde pixie cut. They’re also young — Pauta 22 and Huiracocha just 19.

But none of that matters on stage. The duo met three years ago at a music festival Huiracocha helped promote. Pauta was singing with La Máquina Camaleön, a “top-five band in Ecuador,” he said.

“She was in the crowd on someone’s shoulders,” he remembers. “The only person I saw was her.”

Huiracocha had studied music from an early age, but wasn’t planning to be a musician. After volleying some messages back and forth on Twitter, Pauta sent her the instrumental version of “Lunares,” a track that another singer had backed out from recording.

“Lunares,” which has an impressive 40,000-plus streams on Spotify, spread fast on Ecuadorian social media. A few months later, “Real,” the band’s second single, came out; almost immediately, it shot to No. 1 on the biggest radio station in Ecuador.

“Real” made Neoma. But on the band’s debut of the same name, it’s just one chapter of a long story. The album tracks their coming-of-age, boomerang journey between the U.S. and Ecuador — both were born in New Jersey — and the cultural whiplash in its wake.

Huiracocha had only written in Spanish before she moved here, but she’s studied English since she was four, around the time her mom moved her from New Jersey to Ecuador. Her mother, an immigrant, worked odd jobs in both chocolate and clothing factories while pregnant with Huiracocha.

“She always tells me the craziest stories about immigrants trying to get jobs here,” she said. “If you don’t know English, you get the worst job. She didn’t want me to to experience the same thing here. That’s why we went to Ecuador.”

Pauta, who moved to Ecuador from Mississippi when he was 13 with his brother, Kleber Pauta (who also acts as Neoma’s manager), had already established an American identity before he moved.

“When you’re in a different place, you always represent where you were,” he said. “Now that I’m here, I want to represent Ecuador, my lineage.”

Hence “Himno,” the last song on Neoma’s debut album. The song, which roughly translates as “anthem,” was written in the style of traditional Ecuadorian folk. The duo imagines it as the future national anthem of Ecuador.

But “Real,” which can be read in English or with the Spanish pronunciation “re-al,” includes nearly as much of the group’s American identities. Since moving to Denver, Huiracocha has written almost exclusively in English. Three of those songs came in one night, just a few weeks after she had moved here last fall. As if moving to another country to crash on a stranger’s couch wasn’t enough, a blackout suddenly cut the lights in the complex.

When panic set in, they channeled it. Pauta pulled out the only instrument he had with him at the time — a $40 Epiphone guitar he bought on the 16th Street Mall — and he and Huiracocha wrote three songs that ended up on the album: “Star,” “Demons” and “Into You.” All three feel like familiar pop gems — shimmering meditations on the ecstasy and agony of love — refracted through the duo’s own distinct prism. “Into You” invokes a half-tempo Cumbia rhythm, and “Star” imagines what the first Beach House album might sound like if Lady Gaga fronted the indie outfit instead.

Since then, inspiration has come in avalanches.

“The first single, it was like we were pretending to be a project almost,” Pauta said. “But Carla has evolved so much since then. She’s kind of Elton John-y. She just sits down on a piano and cranks stuff out.”

In fact, the duo said they already have enough material for two more albums. But they’re trying not to get ahead of themselves. Though a draw back home, Neoma still has a long climb to the top of American charts. That chapter of the Neoma story starts next year, with a 2020 tour capped by a gig at South by Southwest, the Austin festival where bands routinely find their big break.

They might not need to wait that long: “Young,” the band’s first English single, hit No. 1 in Ecuador last week.

“With the album, we made something that people in any part of the world will love,” Huiracocha said. “I’m not making songs only for Cuenca or Denver. Our music is for everyone.” - The Know - Denver Post

Ecuadorian indie-rock artist Neoma only moved to Denver a year ago but already she’s making waves in Denver’s music scene. Sitting down to talk with her in her Capitol Hill studio, lit by purple LED strip lights, she brings an energy of quiet excitement to the room. Soon, she’ll be part of the extensive line-up for 303’s Cover Challenge LIVE and she’s really looking forward to it. “It’s such a different experience, singing songs that I never thought I would sing,” she says. Her music producer, Danny Pauta, chimes in laughing. “Yeah, we don’t really do covers ever, so it’s gonna be like, probably the only time.”
Neoma, born Karla Huiracocha, started making music in Cuenca, Ecuador at 16-years old. She first began pursuing a music career in secret. “People there just think that a music career is not worth it. Because you can’t make money with that, you can’t make a living with that. It was kind of hard, for my family too,” she said. “It was kind of funny, I didn’t tell them at first that I was with this new music project until they were like ‘Why do you have a song on the radio? Why didn’t you tell us that? Why are you in a magazine, doing interviews?’ I was kind of scared if it didn’t work out. I didn’t want them to be disappointed.”

As she continued to make hit after hit, Neoma became a prominent figure in not just the Cuenca music scene, but the country as a whole. “She was well-known nationally,” Pauta explains. “Every time we’d go out to eat, she’d get noticed.” Neoma recalls a time when she went to the mall in her school uniform. “I was just walking in the street and some random people came up and said, ‘Hey, you’re Neoma! Can I take a picture with you?’”
However, she found that the ceiling for the music scene in Ecuador wasn’t very high and while she had a fair amount of notoriety, she felt creatively stuck and decided that moving to the Denver would be a good way to find some new musical inspiration and get a fresh start.

“Actually, it was a quick decision. It was super fast. I just felt like I needed to get out of there. It’s a beautiful country, people over there are great. I was just feeling stuck. The thing is, there’s not too much to do over there. So, you have a song on the radio, you hit number one, you’re playing concerts. But that’s it. Also, I just wanted a new start, some fresh air. I was feeling kind of lost over there. It was like, nothing makes sense. Even going out with friends, I was just feeling stuck. So, I moved here. It’s been hard, of course. Moving is hard until you get used to it.”

As if moving away from home isn’t difficult enough, Neoma also had a language barrier to contend with. Pauta explains, “She didn’t know English at all. She didn’t know English until she got here.” Neoma herself spoke about the difficulty in learning a new language. “My first weeks here, I was so scared of even going out and asking for coffee in English. I was like, I just can’t,” she said. “I still kind of feel that. I’m scared I won’t find the right word or the right thing or I can’t express myself. But that’s part of moving and having a second language. But it’s been great.”
Moving to Denver sparked her move to start writing some of her songs in English, and as she did so, she began to love the language. Recently, Neoma released “Young” – her first release in English. Speaking about writing this song, she said, “I started writing in English and I got so connected with the language. I feel like it’s such a melodic language. Spanish is more strong and romantic. English can be – it just goes with the flow, you know?”

Moving into Denver’s music scene, Neoma feels that she’s found a supportive community of people, both in listeners and fellow musicians. “People here in Denver are so great and it’s been so fast,” she said, smiling. “We put a new song out recently – “Young” – and people just love it. We’ve done three concerts already. I played UMS and the place was packed. I saw people I’d never seen before.”
While she feels growth being in the United States and making music, something she mentions feeling is a lack of a community for young, Hispanic musicians in Denver’s music scene. Pauta explains, “There’s really no one representing that community here and we’re looking for people. We definitely want to find that and see those artists here.” Neoma and Pauta are looking to be the trailblazers in creating that community here in Denver. “If no one’s gonna do it, then we’ll do it. I think in Ecuador we were kind of doing that as well. I want to make music to make a difference,” she said.

When asked if she feels any pressure in taking that mission on, Neoma confidently says, “Actually, not really. It feels great. I love doing this. I love writing, I love making music, I love representing my own country.” And while she does consider Ecuador to be her first home, it’s obvious she feels that she’s made a new one here. She smiles as she says, “This is my country, too.” - 303 Magazine

Hace poco más de un año Karla Huiracocha aka Neoma junto a su productor Danny Pauta se lanzaron al norte, a los EEUU, en búsqueda de creatividad musical para completar un disco que ya estaba a medio camino. Con menos de 20 años el talento de la joven artista cuencana era más que evidente. Habiendo presentado un par de canciones que hasta entonces, la joven promesa daba destellos de deslumbrar en ambos mundos.

Con el paso del dúo al país del norte no solo se divisaron nuevos horizontes para el proyecto sino también se establecieron nuevas metas. El disco debut que estaba prometido desde hace ya algún tiempo logró por fin ver la luz el pasado 29 de noviembre y junto a él, el videoclip del sencillo Into You también.

Neoma: cuajando pop en dos mundos musicales.
La promesa del pop bilingüe ecuatoriano lanza Real, su primer disco desde Denver en Estados Unidos.


Hace poco más de un año Karla Huiracocha aka Neoma junto a su productor Danny Pauta se lanzaron al norte, a los EEUU, en búsqueda de creatividad musical para completar un disco que ya estaba a medio camino. Con menos de 20 años el talento de la joven artista cuencana era más que evidente. Habiendo presentado un par de canciones que hasta entonces, la joven promesa daba destellos de deslumbrar en ambos mundos.

Con el paso del dúo al país del norte no solo se divisaron nuevos horizontes para el proyecto sino también se establecieron nuevas metas. El disco debut que estaba prometido desde hace ya algún tiempo logró por fin ver la luz el pasado 29 de noviembre y junto a él, el videoclip del sencillo Into You también.


El nuevo trabajo de estudio de Neoma contiene 10 canciones, algunas enteramente en español, otras en inglés y otras que juguetean melodiosamente entre ambos idiomas. A pesar de la mezcla el álbum logra sostener en conjunto un estilo propio, particular y original que le dan su propio aire al proyecto.

Se nota que el trabajo detrás del disco se lo hizo en función de darle una identidad a través de la potencial voz de Karla, pero sin descuidar los detalles musicales que le conectan con el mundo mainstream del pop y sonidos un poco más autóctonos que se ligan con el imaginario ecuatoriano.
Por su parte el videoclip que lanzó también apuesta por conjugar mundos mostrando dos facetas de la artista, una primera un poco más brillante futurista y una segunda que más bien muestra algo de inocencia y fragilidad en su compostura.
Real es la muestra de los pocos límites que se traza el talento. A tan corta edad Neoma ha demostrado su capacidad para sobresalir en dos mundos, en dos escenas a la vez, mostrándose como la promesa y representante de un estilo que resulta bastante difícil explotar.
Si bien la producción del disco ha tomado un tiempo considerable (desde el 2017), no exime del reconocimiento que merece lograr un trabajo como el que nos está presentando para cerrar exquisitamente el año. - La Descarga - Plataforma Cultural - Ecuador

Faltan 15 días para el álbum de Neoma, desde hoy, 14 de noviembre del 2019. Karla, que toma su pseudónimo de la luna nueva, nos habla sobre la ansiedad en el grupo entorno a su primer disco y detalles exclusivos del primer videoclip del disco, que será sobre INTO YOU: “la canción para fiestas del futuro”.

Radicados en Denver, Estados Unidos, Danny Pauta y Karla Huiracocha han preparado su álbum desde el 2017, cuando Real se volvió el hit de Neoma, aunque la producción enseriada ha comenzado desde su asentamiento en territorio norteamericano. Neoma acudió a nuestros oídos desde Cuenca a sus 17 años, hace casi dos años.

Con cambios de estilo, al son de una Bowie, Neoma se ha transportado desde tener lyrics hechos por fans, a gozar de conciertos y festivales en Estados Unidos, con sólo 18 años. Desde ajustarse a planos de pop clásicos a probar en Young, su última canción, que el grupo está hecho para hacer hits y evadirse de las comparaciones con otr@s músicos.

Ahora la historia la presenta no sólo como una “joven promesa” sino como la semilla ideal para creer en el futuro de la música ecuatoriana. El 29 de noviembre lanzará su primer disco, titulado REAL, el cual contiene 10 canciones, que invaden sus perchas emocionales con asuntos amorosos, bailables-futuristas, combinaciones de inglés y español en la lírica, sensaciones musicales a lo Britney Spears y una última canción que parece sacada de los primeros discos de Mateo Kingman.

Neoma nos revela sus nervios previos al lanzamiento: “Antes de lanzar un álbum es como si te fueras a lanzar de panza contra el crowd (gente) y no sabes si vas a terminar como Jack Black en Escuela del Rock y nadie te va a agarrar o a surfear como Daniel Hurtado de Letelefono”. Danny Pauta, productor y también parte de la banda, resume que REAL será en lo que más se han sacado el sucio: “REAL es una colección de hits. Cada tema fue producido como un sencillo, explorando las diversas facetas y potencial de Neoma. Así como David Bowie, Neoma nunca dejará de evolucionar e impresionar”. El disco está bajo el sello Soundbreaker Studios, propiedad de Pauta.

Por otro lado, el grupo no ha estado acostado en su sofá, esperando a que sea 29 de noviembre. Han aprovechado este rango de tiempo para producir su primer videoclip fuera de Ecuador. Como lo dicho al inicio de la nota, será de INTO YOU, una de las canciones con la que iniciará el disco.

Lo visto en Instagram reveló que la grabación sucedió en un terreno a campo abierto, en Florrisant (Denver), con nieve regada en sus alrededores. Al puro estilo RBD. También ha sido grabado en una locación cerrada. Neoma nos cuenta que: “el video va a ser increíble, quiero que sea bien Lady Gaga, bien pop culture y de muy buena calidad. Si te das cuenta todo lo que hacemos es para la gente, es como un trabajo comunitario esto del entretenimiento y nos fascina, podemos hacer esto todas nuestras vidas, hasta me acosté en la nieve, se me congelaba la espalda y las manos sólo para tener una escena sobrenatural”. Un resumen del videoclip podría acomodarse, según Neoma, en que “es Neoma 3000”.

Tras cámaras en exteriores de INTO YOU - Indie Criollo