Monday, April 20, 2009

Ozomatli

At the end of each season, Whistler hosts the Telus Festival--a huge blowout party to end the winter season and kick into summer. It started Friday and will run through Sunday--10 days of events, bands, competitions, and myriad other goings-on.

Saturday night was the Big Air competition. Whistler Parks crew built a truly massive booter right next to the gondola above skier's plaza. Held under the lights, it was a perfect showcase for talent from all corners of the world--Japan, Colorado, California, Idaho, Norway, and of course some of Whistler's local talent. Simon Dumont even showed up to compete. The competition was sick. The winner threw a switch 1440 (that's 4 complete rotations while taking off and landing backwards), and made it look like nothing.

To my delight, Ozomatli was also booked for the festival. Ozomatli is one of my favorite bands. They hail from LA and their music is a mix of Latin, Hip-hop, funk and reggae. They rock., and they've got the Grammys to prove it. I saw them live at the Aggie in Fort Collins a year ago and it was spectacular.

They didn't disappoint. I saw them perform 2x in 1 day--first at the outdoor venue in the afternoon and then in a tiny bar that night, front row both times. It was pretty epic. I've put up a playlist of their music, so listen if you like!!

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