In an interview at Amoeba Records in Los Angeles, Mexican flamenco guitar group Rodrigo Sanchez and Gabriela Quintero ran down some of their favorite albums as well as a couple picks that caught their fascination at the time. Sanchez, one half of the instrumental guitar duo, admitted to that he isn't really a "guitar music person" to which Quintero laughed and called such a claim "a paradox." Sanchez and Quintero, known professionally as Rodrigo y Gabriela, might indeed seem contradictory when they claim to not be "guitar music" people, but it does not take long while seeing them play that they are not just "guitar music" people, but "music" people in the purest sense.
The Origin Story
Originating in Mexico City, but launching their career proper in Dublin, Rodrigo y Gabriela's worldliness has always been an asset. Their distinctly flamenco-style instrumental guitar heroism, spurred on by their shared influences of jazz, rock, and heavy metal, would fuel their debut album singles "Tamacun" and a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven." Their self-titled debut would top the Irish charts and gain them notoriety internationally through television appearances.
The Secret Sauce
While Rodrigo y Gabriela's worldly impact evolved, they found themselves performing in venues all around the globe from Tokyo's Duo club to Glastonbury's West Holts stage to the White House's backyard for President Obama. Does it only make enough sense that flamenco instrumental guitar music would become such a cultural bloc in online music content moving into the social media age? We think so. Is it any wonder that fingerstyle guitar playing has become such a global phenomenon? We can't say it is. With such a pure musical force like Rodrigo y Gabriela at the helm, how could it be?
Our Call
It's talents like Rodrigo y Gabriela to whom the modern guitar landscape is indebted. A truly worldly mix of musical ingredients, Rodrigo y Gabriela reminds us of the universal truth that comes with music: we're all doing the same thing, more or less. Why overthink it?
