Como Las Movies

Artist of the Month - October, 2022

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by Jeff McCord

It’s been quite a ride over the last couple of years, and re-reading the 2020 Chronicle interview with Como Las Movies frontman Nelson Valente Aguilar brings all the anxieties of the time back to the fore. So have things settled down? Yes and no.

“Post-pandemic has been a whirlwind,” says Aguilar. ”I was planning to take a break from Como Las Movies and focus on dj-ing, since my singer decided to step away. I did not have any interest in having to search for a [new] singer. After a DJ gig with my drummer in Mexico City last December, he suggested that we should come back and play a gig. My response was, ‘What about a singer?’  He responds with a simple ‘You’.”

So Aguilar has jumped back into the music with both feet. He had been teaching fifth grade, but like everyone else, his priorities have shifted.

Listen to the new single “Café”

“I’m not teaching at the moment, but I am still working in education part-time. It’s tough to have a full-time job and be serious about music. I am focusing my energy on music and all that it entails. It’s a lot of moving parts.”

“My favorite people in the world are musicians and people that love music.”

Nelson Valente Aguilar

If Aguilar sounds a bit overwhelmed, it’s likely from his newfound enthusiasm for re-launching his on-again off-again project. (Starting up in 2013, the band took a break from 2015-2017, and sat out the pandemic along with everyone else.) Como Las Movies’ new single, “Cafe’, picks up right where they left off, with a smart groove and an easy charm.

Asked about what he is enjoying the most, Aguilar responds, Everything about the process is enjoyable.”

“What is the process for me? Creating music. Spending too many hours re-recording a single keys or vocal line (that probably sounded fine on the first take). Bringing the songs to bandmates and hoping they like it. Rehearsing songs. Recording the songs. Playing them live. Networking. Talking about music.”

Aguilar is clearly back in his element.