Grizzled veterans of Milwaukee's rock scene, Motivo Loco fuse alternative rock with sweeping time signature changes. Tracks such as "Bizarro," which appears on their new album "Tastes Like Burning," shows the band has a keen sense of dynamics.
El Gordo, card-carrying members of the Brew City's hip hop community, pulsate with jams such as "Momento de Verdad," the title track from their new release. This song features a catchy sample, as well as a beat-box tempo.
So what do these seemingly separate entities have in common? Chris Ortiz. He bangs the drums for Motivo Loco, and plays bass for El Gordo.
Finding the time for both acts does not seem to be an issue for Ortiz. He flat out enjoys pulling double duty.
"Each group has a definite direction apart from each other," says Ortiz, whose brother Nicolaus sings and plays guitar in Motivo Loco. "El Gordo is more about the beat and the groove. Motivo Loco is approached from a hardcore and '90s rock mentality."
Loco unleashes their heaviness on "Thinking in the Rain," an epic tune that clocks in at over eight minutes. Nicolaus Ortiz and second guitarist Jim Welniak show off their six-string abilities, while the haunting vocals conjure up comparisons to Tool's Maynard James Keenan. Bassist Alex "Pekoe" Unold holds down the fort nicely.
The dual role seems to work nicely. But does Ortiz have difficulty writing for both acts? "No. Nicolaus has always been the main songwriter in Motivo Loco. In El Gordo, I'm playing bass, so I'll come up with the licks. Then DJ Phella puts beats to them."
Phella, the man responsible for El Gordo's production, shows off his scratching skills on the track "Pero Es." Also a highlight on "Pero Es" is the MC skills of Noel "Fatman" Arteaga, the voice of El Gordo.
Arteaga's lyrics are mostly in Spanish, and give the songs an extra zeal. According to Ortiz, El Gordo has never worried that the different language would become a barrier.
"We think of it as a positive," he says. "We are part of a Spanish speaking culture, and many of our fans are, too. And those who aren't have a chance to indulge in it."
With both bands all over the map musically, how does the live performance of each go down? "Performing with both groups is an all-out effort to the max," says Ortiz. "With Motivo Loco, we explore different time signatures and tempos. And different members take control of the mic. In El Gordo, there's much more audience participation. But both groups are hell bent on rocking you out."
For the future, Ortiz sees album distribution for both bands as a possibility. "But for right now, we're doing our best to keep our juices flowing and getting our material out to the public."
Motivo Loco and El Gordo will be performing at the Points East Pub Jan. 14. The show begins at 9:30 p.m. "Tastes Like Burning" will be available Jan. 17 at Atomic Records and the Exclusive Company.
