By: Fredwill Hernandez
On Wed. – April 17th there was excitement in downtown Indio, Ca. – “but this time” it wasn’t for the Coachella Music Festival, as the city got ready for their ribbon-cutting ceremony to unveil their new, very impressive [and state-of the- art] Center Stage right in the heart of downtown — to kick off [among other things] their Sonidos concert series.
“Thank you to everyone, good crowd for a hot afternoon. This is an exciting day for us, you know we’ve been planning a lot of exciting things for the downtown district and they’re starting to pop up. Every time you drive, and you drive through downtown you see something new. I’m very proud to make these remarks today on this momentous occasion, in the vibrant tapestry of Indio’s history, downtown is really where it all started and where Indio grew. We gather here in downtown Indio not only to commemorate the unveiling of Center Stage but to continue the celebration of [the] downtown revitalization, and I’d like to thank everyone who has contributed to this monumental project,” eloquently expressed Lupe Ramos Amith, [5th term] Mayor — City of Indio during the ribbon cutting ceremony. “This unity unveiled stage is more than just a structure, it welcomes all to share their talents, stories, and aspirations. I remember when I was a little girl and we had a stage at Miles [Avenue] Park, and some of you might remember that too. When on Saturday’s we’d come from school and do our little dances, or on fiesta’s we’d have our Mexican dances. I hope this comes back to this stage. This stage will be home to incredible performances, starting tonight with Sonidos. Tonight’s concert will spotlight several brilliant local artists and we look forward to continuing to spotlight a wide variety of talent at Second Saturday’s, our free monthly concert series, community events, and so much more. So, let’s us cherish this stage as a symbol of downtown Indio, and one that encourages each one of you and many generations to come to take Center Stage, thank you for being part of this day.”
To kick off the festivities was a local Latin rock band from Indio, Ca. named [Los] Vampiroz who surprised everyone [even me] with their musicianship, stage presence, and singing ability.
“The band is called [Los] Vampiroz, the musicians are two of my brothers: Jose and Adrian Garza, were brothers born and raised in Indio, Ca. JFK Hospital I have to shout that out. My other buddies are Razor J [Juan Espino] on guitar, and Andres Cansino on drums, he’s related to Chad Cansino who recently passed away. The Cansino family is a big [musical] family, along with the Garza’s: the first two big music families that started music culture here in the Coachella Valley,” explained [Los] Vampiroz lead singer [vocalist] Alejandro Garza, who did an excellent job of commanding and controlling the crowd. “Me and my brothers been playing [music] since we were kids because my dad had a group called Los Alegres de Lupe Garza out here from Coachella. Me and my brothers been playing and started a group in 1994 called Tercera Generacion, we played more Tex-Mex Cumbia, then from there we turned it into Los Garzas, and this is a project we started like a month ago. Our first performance was at Fantasy Springs Casino on March 24, from there I just released some content and it just caught the right eyes here who asked us to perform. I honestly can die happy, I’m not going to lie because I was born and raised in Indio and my dad used to play at a hotel called the Indio Hotel which used to be in these grounds. The hotel caught fire or burnt down like in 2000. We don’t have the hotel [here] any more but we have the [Center] stage now.”
In between different performers, attendees had a chance to purchase great food, make their rounds and speak to different vendors, and sponsors.
“I’ve always been into house music, the music festivals thing and I just love dancing, but I’ve always wanted to be a Dj,” eloquently explained Alexis Spencer who resides in Palm Springs, Ca., –and spins and is known artistically as [Dj] Ay-Lex Song, “I feel great, and honored to have been asked to spin, we had a good turnout and feel events like these are great for the community.”
Due to the rise, popularity and growth of Música Mexicana, and the fact that the Coachella Valley, and the City of Indio has one of the highest Latino population [predominately] of Mexican descent, it was [only] fitting to have a young up-and-coming Regional Mexican [Música Mexicana] group from the Coachella Valley perform.
“We felt prideful to be one of the first musical groups to perform and bless the City of Indio’s Center stage,” eloquently explained Javier Medina, who along with Jorge Villareal, and Abraham Robles formed and founded the [Regional Mexican] group artistically known as [Los] Queridos De La Sierra. “We play the Regional Mexican style known as Campirano, comprised of the electric bass, a requinto, and a regular acoustic [harmonic] guitar, and a few of the songs we sang and performed were “De Puntitas.” “Cortinass Guindas,” and corridos like “Ismael,” and “El 3.”
“I first heard about the Sonidos event through social media from a close friend who also hosted the event, Angel Chavez, also known as “CoachellaAngel” on Instagram. I have gone to the majority of his Desert Underground shows in Coachella and in other parts of the valley. As an Indio native, I love going to shows around the desert to support local bands and artists. It was no surprise to me and only a matter of time that there’d be a center stage to hosts live music since Second Saturday’s took initiative last year. Since I first heard of the first Sonidos show downtown Indio, I knew I had to be there,” explained 18-year-old Indio resident Maggie Bueno, who grew up in the Coachella Valley, and is very proud of her Indigenous Mexican roots, evident [also] through her fashion style of sombreros and boots she proudly wears. “It was a great turnout, with a range from all different kinds of music genres performed by local musicians. As someone who hasn’t gone to Coachella Fest myself, I love and prefer local shows since they are authentic and actually represent our culture. While Desert Underground, being one of my first ever shows to attend and is continuing to have my support, brings music to our city by giving the chance for local communities to attend and experience a festival that is inexpensive. There’s truly no other show that I’d rather be.”
The evening came to a close with a drone show “right after” an electrifying performance by Gisselle Woo & the Night Owls, who in between songs [as has been customary in hers shows] got off the stage approached attendees and personally handed out roses, and keep performing songs that included “Everything,” “Oye Guerita,” “Coachella Gold,” “Azul,” and others of her debut album titled “Everything,” the band released in 2022.
