KENORA

The musical trio named “Kenora” is rocking to the sound of Classic Rock. The music they play is clearly influenced by groups of the past such as “The Beatles”, “Led Zeppelin”, “The Doors”, and “The Rolling Stones”. Great bands such as these that have stood the test of time and have inspired many other numerous bands, usually end up spawning imatations. This however, is not the case with the band “Kenora”.

The members of “Kenora” are Leonardo Ruiz who does vocals, piano, and the guitar. The second member is Daniel Hidalgo who plays base. The third member is Carlos Reyes, the drummer.

Recently the young band has been receiving rave reviews from the local music scene for their debut album that has a mixture of ballads and rock, creating this Rock-Pop feel that has been getting a lot of attention.
Just last month one of their singles ´´Littlechild´´ won a song competition. The song contains a piano opening that really grabs you and takes you in.

The sound is original and does not sound cheesy like most bands trying to make it in the music industry. Their sound truly leaves the listener wanting for more.

A disadvantage for this band is that only a few people have ever heard of “Kenora” but that fact alone is not stopping them. They seem determined to make it all the way and there’s no doubt they have the talent to take them there.

Just after finishing a taping for a local music show, the band “Kenora” was more than happy to give MW an interview.

MW: Just to start off, What was the prize for wining the song competition?
KENORA: Some scholarships from UNINTER and G-Martel a Music School, to play one of our songs and an interview at Los 40 Principales radio station, and the best of the prizes, a DVD player. We were not going to use the scholarships so we asked if we can give them away to someone else but we were told “NO.” As for the interview on the radio we are currently checking on the date.

MW: Gives us a little Kenora history review?
KENORA: It began in middle school four years ago as Zoda-k. Then later we started playing cover songs in front of seven people at our high school, halloween festival. We wrote our own songs and recorded our CD. That took about a year to make. We changed our bands name just before going on stage for a show in Kenora, Canada last November. And recently we are receiving positive reviews for our music, winning competitions and appearing on TV. Its been really great so far.

MW: What has Kenora been up to lately?
KENORA: We are composing new material for our next project and experimenting with new styles of sound, we want to add a some latin rythms.

MW: Has it been diffuclt to get playing gigs?
KENORA: Yes, here in Cuernavaca there isn’t a lot of places for bands like us to play our music, so we have to look for alternatives like City sponsered events.

MW: What made you guys choose this type of music?
KENORA: We found that the three of us liked the same type of music. We also wanted to make something different from what everyone else is doing.

MW:You guys are young are you still in school?
KENORA: Yes; Leonardo is about to finish high school and plans to attend a good music school and Daniel is currently in a music school and as for me, (Carlos) I plan to attend a music school. We all plan to devote our full time to school and the group.

MW: At the end of the day what would you like people to know you for?
Leonardo: I want people to know Kenora for its good music.
To check out Kenora´s music, log on to www.myspace.com/kenoraplaykenora

Filed under: Blog

At the movies no more.

I Am A Pirate

Today I was gonna go to the movies but I thought of something better. Instead I’ve decided to take part of something I never would have thought of doing, purchasing pirated movies. As I think about all the movies I could have had so long ago for less money, I begin to regret not doing this sooner.

For many people in Mexico, inlcuding myself, going to the movies is considered a luxury. The reason for that is because a movie ticket price equals the same amount of money an average person would make in a days work (at minimum wage $4 U.S.). This harsh reality has turned many of us regular people into criminals.

In my opinion, to earn Mexican Pesos and then spend them as if they were U.S. dollars is plain stupid. The average Mexican citizen can not afford to spend money like that and still provide for a family. This is why many Mexicans turn to piracy when it comes to purchasing entertainment products. One of the most pirated products are DVD movies.

“Why buy an original DVD that costs 200 pesos when you can buy it for 15,” says Miguel Gonazlez, a pirated DVD vendor. “I sell 4 DVDs for 50 pesos, that’s the best deal.”

In the corner of every neighborhood here in Mexico, you can easily find pirated movies for sale, most starting at 10 pesos (about 1 U.S. dollar). Some vendors even have computers on stand-by, ready to burn DVDs for clients. However, I would not recommend those vendors because they charge 25 pesos per movie. I’m not saying that I’m cheap, I just don’t like getting ripped off.

Even though it’s a crime to make or buy pirated movies in Mexico, it is allowed in most states. An exception to these lenient states is Mexico City, were the local government is trying to keep to the law when it comes to pirated goods. Ironically enough, Mexico City is the capital of pirated goods.

There is no need to worry here in Morelos though. I have personally seen police officers looking through pirated movies, searching to see if their movie of the week is available.

Finally a word of advice to my American friends who plan on taking their copy of “Shrek The Third” to their little sister back home. Be careful when going through U.S. Customs, if your pirated products are spoted they will be seized and you will be fined. An easy way of smuggling your pirated DVDs is by simply hidding them in your cd holder. This makes them less suspicious and near impossible to spot.

Fabian

Filed under: Blog