The Xxodus Cafe at The Black Rep
Thursday September 17th I took off to Providence after work for the Santa Mamba show at The Black Rep. This six piece, Providence based, Latin rock band blend many styles into an electrifying live show. Gio Murillo fronts Santa Mamba providing vocals and acoustic rhythm guitar accompanied by John Medeiros on lead guitar and vocals, Nick Wade on the bass groves, with Aaron Wade on keys and vocals, John “Drum Warrior” Ferreira on drums and Gary Mendoza on additional percussion. I arrived to The Black Rep early to enjoy a few drink specials and talk with the band a bit before their set. Once the room began to fill out Santa Mamaba took to the stage and rocked the house:
Santa Mamba
John Medieros
Starting the set off high note Gio and Nick were facing each other building off each other’s energy before John M ripped into the familiar riffs of “Senseo.” Aaron took center stage for a great piano portion, and the combined beats provided by John F and Gary on the various kits had me shaking my hips. Gio’s vocals were strong and passionate with tight harmonies from Nick and Aaron. John F and Gary started out “Sube Sube” with an great percussion duet. John M impressed on electric lead again, Nick thumped out a quick and intricate bass line while dancing all over the stage with infectious enthusiasm. Again during the song John F and Gary went to town on their respective kits this time followed by Aaron pounding on his piano for a bit. “Tierra Viento y Fuego” set the room on fire. Gio really took control of the stage and belted out the verses on this one, making his presence ever more prevalent. Everyone rocked out hard during an extended musical segment and as the band began to clap again, so did the audience. Santa Mamba next played an adaptation of a classic Cuban tune “Candela.” John M switched between a nylon string acoustic and his electric, again John F and Gary built the beat off of one and other. It was a high energy number and got the crowd up and dancing.
Gary Mendoza
“Ritmo” followed, and was a bit slower and more deliberate than their other tunes. The charismatic band leader Gio began calling to his cohorts one by one for 2 bar solos on their instruments. Going around the stage each musician took the chance to flaunt their skills. Gio brandished his acoustic again for their highly spirited original “Tu Bandera.” John M’s lead riffs hinted of blues while his rhythmic chops reminded me a bit of reggae. Both Wades contributed verses in English in addition to their harmonizing with Gio’s lead vocals. They closed the night with my favorite of their originals, the epic “La Mentira.” Starting with melodic lead guitar and marching feel it builds to a rocking groove. The whole audience started dancing and clapping along during their finale. It was another great showing from Santa Mamba., I had significant difficulty keeping the camera steady all night as my hips just wanted to shake!
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