OZOMATLI DEBUTED AT #2 ON THE BILLBOARD TOP NEW ARITIST CHARTS BEHIND MUSE

AND #125 ON THE BILLBOARD TOP 200


Ozomatli - LA’s beloved Afro-Latin-and-beyond style mashers - return with their new Concord full length “Street Signs”, debuting at #2 on the Billboard New Artist chart, # 125 on the Billboard Top 200, and # 2 on the Billboard Latin chart (behind Marc Anthony). “Street Signs” is also currently the #1 record on KCRW in LA (ahead of artists such as the Beastie Boys and PJ Harvey) and getting extensive airplay on multiple formats across the country.

Ozo marked their record release week with a string of sold out shows at LA’s Dragonfly club, and one of the largest in-stores ever at Amoeba Records in Los Angeles with over 1200 people in attendance. Ozo rounded out the week with national appearances on “Late Night with Conan O Brien” and “Sabado Gigante”.

The press response to “Street Signs” has been nothing short of effusive. The WASHINGTON POST said "Street Signs" is the sound of a dozen different forms of music blasting from car stereos and mingling in the air... It's a microcosm of 21st-century America, a 50-minute travelogue through our back yards and barrios. ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY went on to add “If the U.N. needs a house band, Ozo's the act to call” while DAILY VARIETY said of their live show, “Ozomatli does it effortlessly, throwing the kind of party most bands dream about while never undermining its all-encompassing spirit of unity.”

The last time Ozomatli released an album, it was September 11, 2001. While most bands in the United States responded to the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon by canceling their concerts, Ozomatli - a multi-racial crew who have never been shy about their commitment to social justice, progressive politics, and anti-war convictions - decided to keep their dates and keep playing.

“Music is the key to every culture, the beginning of an understanding,” says the band’s trumpet player and co-vocalist Asdru Sierra. “September 11 really pushed us to delve into North African and Arab music. For us, music is a language far more universal than politics.”

“Street Signs” bears this new Middle Eastern influence out in typical Ozo style, by mixing it into their trademark blend of hip hop and Latin styles. When the band’s original MC Chali 2na (now of Jurassic 5) returns to take center stage on “Who’s To Blame,” he drops rhymes about “presidential motorcades” and “Yakuza tattoos” over a reedy gnawa trance session complete with tablas and hand-claps. “Believe,” the album’s uplifting opener that looks for hope in destruction, features Veteran Moroccan sintir master Hassan Hakmoun, who’s joined by the acclaimed French-Jewish gypsy violinsts Les Yeux Noir and The Prague Symphony (yes, The Prague Symphony).

“Street Sign’s” body-moving urban globe-trots were encouraged by Ozo’s new label, Concord Records, who gave them total creative freedom to follow their songs wherever they went. “With the last record, I loved all of our collaborations, but it wasn’t a complete representation of who Ozomatli is,” says Sierra of the band’s sophomore outing that paired them with the esteemed hip hop likes of Common and De La Soul. “Concord just seemed happy to let us go off and do our thing. There’s a real sense of acceptance of what we do. Plus, I’m really honored to be on the same label as Eddie Palmieri. He’s my idol.”

The band invited Palmieri, the legendary Latin jazz and salsa pianist, to play on “Nadie Te Tira,” where his gorgeous solo piano lines set off a round of horn-blasted salsa fusion. Along with Palmieri, Hakmoun, Les Yeux Noirs, Chali 2na, and the Prague Symphony (who grace three tracks), Ozomatli are also joined by Los Lobos singer-guitarist David Hidalgo (“Santiago”) and the band’s original DJ, Cut Chemist (“Dejame en Paz”). There’s also the band’s new MC (Jabu, formerly of 4th Avenue Jones) and guest drummer, Mario Calire (formerly of The Wallflowers).

Throw in a board mixologist who’s worked with everyone from Justin Timberlake and NERD to Michael Jackson and Prince (Serben Ghenea), and engineers who’ve collaborated with the likes of Beck, Santana, Jack Johnson, and Cypress Hill (Robert Carranza and Anton Pukshansky), and you get what is easily the band’s most vibrant and ambitious project to date.

“Street Signs” is both a mature testament to the band’s nearly decade-long evolution and a fresh, dance floor-rocking reminder of their commitment to creating original music in the face of industry conservatism. “Saturday Night” is a dip-dive-socialize hip hop block party. “Love & Hope” is an anthem waiting to happen with its English-language mix of Arabic strings and new school Chicano funk-rock. “Dejame En Paz” is a papi chulo merengue fest that boils over into the mosh pit. The band even re-mixes itself (with the help of Ghenea and John Hanes) on “Ya Viene El Sol,” turning its soaring concert sing-a-long into a piece of DJ heaven: a broken-beat electro cut-up of dancehall, batucada, and jarocho.

”We started, our perspectives have changed as our lives have changed,” says Bella. “We just trust each other more now. Everyone gives everyone the space we all need. This band did not start, at all, to get a record deal. It started out of love for the music we made, and that's exactly where we still are.”