La Vida Boheme / photo by Kristie Bocanegra
The world’s premier Latin alternative music label knows how to throw a party. Nacional Record‘s Friday night South by Southwest showcase at Maggie Mae’s was one of the most memorable shows we’ve been to, and it happened on a packed Sixth Street on one of the craziest nights of the year. The atmosphere was festive, energetic and intimate. Musicians talked and took pictures with their fans. Nacional artists who weren’t performing that night were in attendance, like Bomba Estereo’s Liliana Saumet. Some fans wore pointy boots and lucha masks.
Loquat got the night started with a relatively relaxed set to ease us into the party. Ritmo Machine wowed the crowd with their high-energy performance. Percussionist Eric Bobo went off on a couple of solos that really had the crowd moving and their special guest, legendary emcee Sick Jacken, got the crowd pumped with his Spanish flows. La Vida Bohème was all energy, energy, energy. They had adoring fans bringing them beer in between songs. By the time 3BallMty took the stage, it was a big dance party. Everyone was drinking tequilla, dancing and wearing Nacional t-shirts.
