ORIGINAL LATIN/ROCK BAND POISED TO MAKE IT BIG
by Ernest Barteldes

DeSol
appearing at The Crash Mansion
Friday, December 19th
199 Bowery
Internet: http://crashmansionnyc.com/

A few years ago Albie Monterrosa,a native of Hollis, Queens, took a trip to the Virgin Islands.

Already a rock songwriter, he met with a girl percussionist from New Jersey there and played his rock-infused songs with her and realized that he could blend his songs with the Latin sounds he had inherited from his parents, who emigrated years ago from El Salvador.

"I realized I had to tweak things", he told me over a phone interview as the band prepared for a gig in Trenton, NJ last Tuesday, "mixing Spanish into an English realm".

Upon his return, he met with Cuban-born Armando Cabrera, a percussionist who grew up playing salsa rhythms, and they began working with Monterrosa's "Spanglish" compositions. A second percussionist, James Guerrero joined, and then they recruited the other members, Chris Guice (bass and vocals), Andy Letke (keyboards), Tim Perry (drums) and Rich Soto (lead guitar).

The result is De Sol, an Asbury Park(NJ)-based band which blends Latin, rock and jazz in a way that brings to mind the kind of sound played by Carlos Santana(an influence to most of the band members) and Mana(the popular Mexican rock/Latin band).

They began performing professionally early in 2001, and they will be appearing on December 19th at The Crash Mansion, in The Bowery.

Their original material is mostly written by Monterrosa, but the band collaborates with many ideas. For instance, "Chica de Miami"(Girl From Miami), a song that will be featured on their upcoming CD was born as Cabrera played around with his congas inside their tour van while singing the refrain. Monterrosa then filled in the remaining lyrics and the rest of the band collaborated with the melody and arrangement.

"The people who are responding to us range from old to very young, so the music appeals to everyone", says Monterrosa.

De Sol recently signed with Warner Bros. Records, and they have a major-label CD coming out next Spring, a deal that happened after Franke Prevet(the composer of "Hungry Eyes", from the movie "Dirty Dancing") got involved with the band and began working with them as their manager.

"Franke came to see us and fell in love with the band", says Cabrera, "Then last Fall we began showcasing in New York, where we began meeting with labels."

"We're really psyched with the label", says Monterrosa. "They really care about us, and it's a very nice relationship."