Afro-Latino rock group Making Movies will release the album XOPA via Cosmica Artists on June 17 and has shared the first single and video “Calor.”
Memphis soul and salsa sensibilities come together in “Calor,” the band’s approach to a classic love song, featuring organist Rev. Charles Hodges (Al Green) and the vocals of the Sensational Barnes Brothers. “Calor” is also going to be featured next month in the band’s PBS music documentary AMERI’KANA, to be aired in May 2022 in various markets.
Explosive riffs, urgent lyrics, and rumbero rhythms take flight on XOPA. Produced by Ben Yonas and mixed by Tchad Blake, the band’s fourth album features performances by Marc Ribot, Rubén Blades, David Hidalgo of Los Lobos, Jeremy Kittel, Martha Gonzales, Asdru Sierra, Dolores Huerta, and Alaina Moore of Tennis.
“It feels like we arrived at something,” says founding singer, guitarist, and songwriter Enrique Chi.
XOPA is, of course, a nod to sopa, the Spanish word for soup.
“Our music is what happens when that Salsa blend stews for a couple of hours till you can’t recognize the ingredients,” Enrique said. “You don’t know what the originals were because they’ve all been cooked down together.”
Watch ‘Calor’ by Making Movies here: