Starting out as an East LA garage band in the 1970s and then rising to meteoric fame in the ’80s with their cover version of Ritchie Valens’ “La Bamba,” which headlined the blockbuster movie of the same name, Los Lobos is coming to the Big Island.
And they’re packing with them 40 years of musical stardom, 20 albums and three Grammy awards.
“We still love playing,” band member Steve Berlin said. “But you have to find your tribe. We are lucky to have found such a fan base of support. It helps us remain inspired.”
The band just finished up a three-month tour with the Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Carlos Moreno. And with a new album, “Gates of Gold,” to share, Los Lobos is bringing in the new while getting ready to break out the old favorites, too.
“We will be featuring a lot of songs from our new album at our Big Island show,” Berlin said, “but we always like to play songs from each era of our career. We are still reaching for that artistic edge, and to play music that matters.”
Being described as Chicano-rock, Tex-Mex, Spanish and Mexican traditional and roots rock, Los Lobos pulls from a wide variety of Latin sounds to create a unique genre of music of their own. In 2015, the band earned a nomination for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
“My heart goes out to all the really talented musicians trying to make it today,” Berlin said. “You wouldn’t believe all the artists who have a hit song or two and are still working their day jobs to make ends meet.
“You have to just be 100 percent committed to your music,” he added. “And God bless them … I hope they all make it.”
The music scene has changed since Los Lobos started four decades ago. The days when you could just play and be good at playing, while agents handled your career — are over. Musicians and artists in general have to not only be 100 percent devoted to their craft over the long haul, Berlin explained, they also have to work social media tirelessly and be their own promoters — and be happy if they can get a single song noticed, let alone find an audience for an entire album. He doubts that Los Lobos could ever have gotten off the ground if it had started in today’s Internet-dominated market.
“I just don’t know that we would have had it in us,” he said.
Despite these changes, he believes it still comes down to the experience of the live performance. And the Big Island will get to experience live shows April 16 at the Hapuna Ballroom in South Kohala and in Hilo at the Palace Theater the following night. The shows start at 7 p.m. and tickets range from $45 to $65.
“We are always striving for that special show, when the mundane dissolves in a moment,” he said during a phone interview from Austin, Texas. “A live performance is still a very powerful experience.”
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