Category Archives: videos

Los San Patricios de World Cup

Posted on by
6


The celebration of Blanco’s penalty to make it 2 nil to the Mexico! Filmed in Blakes Of The Hollow Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh, N Ireland by Claire Gillen, and edited, directed and all that jazz by her also.

“The Irish are the Mexicans of Europe.”
– Luis Valdez

The past couple of weeks I’ve been bleary-eyed mess. My day consists of waking up early, watching a World Cup game, going to work and then planning my breaks so I can catch snippets of the midday games. Yes, I am a World Cup fan and I have been since World Cup came to Los Angeles in 1994. It was during this time, that I began to understand the passion of game, of how it’s not just what happens on the field that’s important but also what happens in the stands with the supporters. One of the best parties I’ve ever been to was the after game celebration in Old Town Pasadena when Brazil won the World Cup in 1994. Wild dancing in the streets followed by public amorous interactions, the most innocent being spontaneous hugs from strangers – really, that’s the best way to celebrate a victory!

It’s this global communal aspect of the game, of folks around the world who cheer and sometimes cry together, that draws me into the competition. The video above is a perfect example of this cross-cultural and international phenomenon. It’s a video taken in an North Irish pub, full of Irish folks in Mexico jerseys celebrating Mexico’s win over France. They even have their own Mexico supporter’s song, that starts with “Oh, Mexico is wonderful…” There’s been a long history of Mexican-Irish connections and it’s nice to see the traditions carry on.

This Sunday is the big match-up between Mexico and dreaded Argentina, who despite my prejudices, I must admit are playing very well. It will be a tough game but if Mexico pulls through, expect wild revelry in the streets. Hopefully this revelry will consists of spontaneous dancing and an amorous atmosphere but we Mexicans are no Brazilians, so most likely it’ll be flags and honking horns. I’ll take it! Viva Mexico!

Eastside Lakers Street Party Part 1

Posted on by
3

After the Lakers won the championship last year, I watched the news coverage of the street celebrations that took place on the Eastside.  I decided that day, that if the Lakers won the NBA crown once again, this time I would witness the street celebrations firsthand from the “Belly of the Beast.” Continue reading →

Day Trippin’: El Golfito aka Golfland!

Posted on by
9

I mean really, who has money to go anywhere these days? The fake ass economists keep talking up the fact that stocks rich people own are doing slightly better, like it has any bearing on our miserable lives. Woohoo, GM turned a profit after they were showered with tax dollars! Fucking Yay! The surge of employment due to the temporary I’ll-take-anything-now Census jobs  is suddenly a harbinger of good times ahead! Reading the news is inspiring.

Yet at my job there’s talk that they will close up shop, or at least get rid of some of the expendables. (And we are all expendable.) It’s all worries and rumors about the impending doom. Better start saving my nickels. And so my weekends are reduced to finding amusing things to do a bit closer to home, things that will keep me distracted from the precarious nature of our current means of survival. Hmm, now I understand why my parents brought me to this place all those years ago.

I present to you this cheap distraction, an institution that doubles as an old friend: Golfland!

Continue reading →

Low End Theory

Posted on by
2


Low End Theory at the Airliner
 “What part of town is this? This is Lincoln Heights”

There’s been an under-the-radar, beat-thumping musical revolution going on right here in Lincoln Heights. More specifically, it’s been happening at The Airliner, a popular music venue on North Broadway. It’s where a collective of DJs, who favor beats over vocals, has been putting together shows for the past few years under the banner of “Low End Theory.”

As a frequent listener to NPR, I got a thrill out of them mentioning Lincoln Heights in a recent piece they put together about Flying Lotus, a Low End Theory DJ. Here’s an excerpt:

Ellison began creating new-school hip-hop in his bedroom. For years, he traded tracks with other budding DJs and played music in nightclub parking lots. Then the scene got organized, at a club in L.A.’s Lincoln Heights neighborhood.

“Eventually, there was this party started called Low End Theory, which was geared toward this sound,” he says. “It was more of a producer’s lounge, basically. If you got talent and you got tracks and you hang out enough at Low End Theory, eventually someone will hear something and you can do something.”

Visit the site to hear clips of the music and interview with the DJs.
Flying Lotus: ‘Beat Music’ And The Coltrane Family Tradition

Continue reading →

Notice Served: “The 800 Mile Wall”

Posted on by
4

RADIO SOMBRA’S FRIDAY FILM NIGHTS
FRIDAY MAY 7, 2010 7 pm

THE 800 MILE WALL
Special Screening and Dialogue with Film Maker John Carlos Frey
+ Guest Music Performance

(2009, U$A, 90 mins) English/Spanish w/ English Subtitles

The 800 Mile Wall highlights the construction of the new border walls along the U.S.-Mexico border as well as the effect on migrants trying to cross into the U.S. This powerful 90-minute film is an unflinching look at a failed U.S. border strategy that many believe has caused the death of thousands of migrants and violates fundamental human rights.
Since border walls have been built, well over 5,000 migrant bodies have been recovered in U.S. deserts, mountains and canals. Some unofficial reports put the death toll as high as 10,000 men, women and children. As a direct result of U.S. border policy, migrants are forced to cross treacherous deserts and mountains in search of low skill and low paying jobs in the United States. The New York Times writes, “Current border strategy is serving as a funnel through deadly terrain.” The 800 Mile Wall documents, in great detail, the ineffective and deadly results of a failed border policy and offers some thoughts and on how the current human rights crisis may be resolved. Directed by John Carlos Frey and Produced by Jack Lorenz.

More info:
http://www.800milewall.org/

View Trailer

K-12 Students free!
Suggested donation: $3 – no one turned awayy.
*Donations go towards keeping Centro Comunicacion Comunitaria operational and East L.A. Sombra

Centro Comunicacion Comunitaria
3806 E. Cesar Chavez Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90063
Boyle Heights-East Los Angeles
Just below Self Help Graphics

For more info and complete schedule for May 2010 visit us at:

www://radiozombra.wordpress.com

Dark Crossing Opens Today!

Posted on by
4

Dark Crossing finally hits the theaters today! Never heard of it? Me neither. But hey, it has Miklo of Blood In, Blood Out fame so its got to be good. Showing in select theaters only, the nearest one seems to be in Texas.

Or you could wait a few weeks and check it out at your local library.

Action Packed!

Click ahead for some classic Miklo clips. You know you’re gonna.
Continue reading →