Kinky

Known for dynamic stage energy alongside their studio output, Kinky emerged as a Latin alternative ensemble fusing funk-rock grooves with electronic dance textures into a singular hybrid that built them a worldwide audience. The quintet, based in Monterrey, Mexico, first assembled in 2000 as a trio of vocalist and guitarist Gilberto Cerezo, keyboardist and programmer Ulises Lozano, and guitarist Carlos Chairez. Drummer Omar Gongora and bassist Cesar Pliego came aboard soon after, lending the project a fuller band identity, which positioned them to play the Battle of Bands at that summer’s Latin Alternative Music Conference in New York City. British producer Chris Allison, whose résumé already included Coldplay, the Beta Band, Fila Brazillia, Dot Allison, the Wedding Present, and Ned’s Atomic Dustbin, among others, was struck by their performance and volunteered both to helm their debut and to issue it on his Sonic 360 imprint.

The self-titled album Kinky, released in 2002, drew widespread critical praise and received an additional commercial boost when a track appeared in a Nissan Altima television spot. While preparing the follow-up Atlas in 2003, the group deliberately scaled back programmed elements in favor of sounds they could reproduce on stage, reflecting their growing reputation for compelling live shows. Their third record, Reina, arrived in 2006 after sessions inside a cabin in the Southern California mountains and included guest spots from Men at Work’s Colin Hay and Intocable accordionist Ricardo Muñoz. The odds-and-ends set Rarities surfaced the next year, followed by the fourth studio album Barracuda in late 2008. After an extensive world tour, Kinky enlisted Dust Brothers producer John King to shape 2010’s Sueño de la Máquina. Their next project found them adapting their material for MTV’s Unplugged series, an atypical assignment for an electronics-heavy act; they integrated understated electronic touches while re-creating many loops and beats by hand, preserving the performance on the 2015 MTV Unplugged album. Two years afterward they issued their sixth studio LP, Nada Vale Más Que Tú, which deliberately revisited the dense electronic textures of their earliest releases.