Ollin @ Mr. T’s Bowl
Ξ November 13th, 2007 | → | ∇ 90042, Highland Park |
A friend of mine who attended the Pogues concert at the Wiltern last week came back raving about a “Mexican Pogues” band she saw open for the famed Irish group. Ollin, a band hailing from East L.A., draws their eclectic influences from traditional Mexican music, Irish folk songs, Rock, Ska, and Zydeco to name a few. After listening to a couple of their samples on their website, (www.ollinband.com) I was excited to see that they’d be playing a free show every Monday this month in Highland Park’s own Mr. T’s Bowl.
Despite a very intimate crowd (read about the size of a tranquil houseparty), Ollin squeezed their nine-member band on stage and put on a high energy show worthy of their name (which translates from Nahuatl as ‘movement’). How to define these guys is tricky and almost pointless. Their instruments vary from guitars (acoustic and electric) drums, maracas, violin, sax, accordion, banjo, clarinet, and mandolin just to name a few. They’re like watching an Irish Mariachi band that’s into rock music one moment, and the next, they’ve switched to an Gaelic dirge. Moments later, they might be singing a love song to Angelina, the celebrity billboard model of Hollywood fame. There’s really nothing to compare them to as they are a very original blend of music. True, the Pogues (and several more recent imitators like the Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly) have popularized ‘Gaelic Punk’, and Los Angeles is no stranger to crossover Latin acts (Ozomotli comes to mind). Still, Ollin manages to carve out a unique musical niche for themselves. But why take my word for it? Ollin is playing two more free shows on the 19th and 26th at Mr. T’s. Judge for yourselves.
on November 19th, 2007 at 8:55 am
I was bummed that I missed the show. I got kicked out because the door guy was a jerk w/ a power trip. I’ve seen the band a bunch of times and they’re GREAT. The other 2 bands are also awesome. A new band “Bill” and a local favorite “Tango Nuevo”. You must see these bands. Mr. T’s ROCKS!