Two Minute Interview: Sergio Rotman

Once upon a time I played guitar in a ska band. This was back in the nineties when the genre was in vogue and a group from Argentina could find fans in the United States by putting a Latin twist on ska. Nearly fifteen years later, following the release of their newest album, El Arte De La Elegancia, I caught up with one of the founding members of Los Fabulosos Cadillacs. Here, in my first Two Minute Interview for Where and Back, I ask saxophonist Sergio Rotman about tour highlights, the influence of travel, and the best new band in Buenos Aires.

1. How has travel influenced the focus of your music? Traveling has changed our perception of the world radically. Our first US/Mexico tour was in October 1990 and the life of Los Fabulosos Cadillacs was never the same.
2. What are some of the most memorable places LFC has visited, and why? I remember our first show in the Sonoran Desert (in Mexico), playing while it was more than 120 degrees in Hermosillo. It was with Café Tacuba, Negu Gorriak, and Paralamas, and it was kind of a breakthrough show in the history of Latin rock. I also remember our tour through Europe in 1995/96, when we participated in the first Sex Pistols' comeback tour. The bill? Cypress Hill, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Fabulosos Cadillacs and... the Sex Pistols! What else could you ask for in life?
   
3. Many groups compose songs while touring—during sound checks, on the bus, etc. Is that also true for LFC? If so, which songs came to life that way? It's not like that for Los Fabulosos Cadillacs. While it's true that we've been together for 25 years, it's rare to find songs composed collectively, as a group. Composition for LFC is something very personal where Vicentico, Flavio, and eventually myself build the band's repertoire.
4. What about the current music scene in Buenos Aires makes it so exciting? Well, just three words: Boom Boom Kid! Check them out!
5. Where in your travels together has the band experienced something spectacular, or maybe just funny? When you travel the world, you are influenced by everything and it's exciting. We have all kinds of anecdotes, but we keep them to ourselves! Life is full of surprises!
6. How has the Internet changed the way you connect with your audience or collaborate on various musical projects? Not as much as the way it changed the way music is marketed. We are a classic band. For us it's still: Album, Stage, Tours, and Music. Everything else is skin, just superficial!