Los Amigos Invisibles (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

for "The Invisible Friends") is a

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

n band which plays a blend of

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

, acid jazz and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

mixed with Latin rhythms. In addition to releasing eleven critically acclaimed albums, the band have been lauded internationally for their explosive, live shows, spanning nearly 60 countries. They are considered the Venezuelan band with the greatest international recognition.

History

In 1995, EMI released their debut album, ''A Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance Band'', which was a huge success in their home country, enabling them to sell out clubs around Caracas for the next couple of years. In 1996,

David Byrne David Byrne (; born 14 May 1952) is a Scottish-American singer, songwriter, record producer, actor, writer, music theorist, visual artist and filmmaker. He was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of ...

Luaka Bop Luaka Bop is a New York–based record label founded by musician David Byrne, former lead singer and guitarist for the art rock– new wave band Talking Heads. What began with Byrne making cassettes of his favorite Tropicália tracks for his frien ...

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

signed the group after discovering a CD they had planted in a New York City record store. Shortly thereafter, they went into the studio to work on their sophomore record, ''The New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera'', which was released in 1998. Two years later and under the direction of famed producer

Philip Steir Philip Steir is an American drummer, remixer, composer and record producer. Life and career As a drummer, he played in the critically acclaimed band Consolidated he co-founded, which was signed to Nettwerk Records and later London Records. Co ...

, they released ''Arepa 3000: A Venezuelan Journey into Space'', which received a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

nomination in the category of "Best Latin Alternative Album" and a

Latin Grammy The Latin Grammy Awards are an award by The Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from anywhere around the world that has been r ...

in the category of "Best Rock Album." Following the success of this release, the band relocated to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and began work on ''

The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1 ''The Venezuelan Zinga Son, Vol. 1'' is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles in 2002 (Long Lost Brother Records) and 2004 (Luaka Bop). It was produced by "Little" Louie Vega and Kenny "Dope" González of Masters at Work, exc ...

'', produced by "Little" Louie Vega of

Masters at Work Masters at Work is the American garage house production and remix team of "Little" Louie Vega and Kenny "Dope" Gonzalez. The duo has produced music together under the names MAW, KenLou, Sole Fusion, Hardrive, and Nuyorican Soul. They have been r ...

. Initially, the album was released in the UK and Japan through Long Lost Brothers Records, although a year later Luaka Bop released the album in the US, resulting in another Latin Grammy nomination in the category of "Best Alternative Latin Album." After ending their

recording contract A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist (or group), where the artist makes a record (or series of records) for the label to sell and promote. Artists ...

with Luaka Bop, Los Amigos Invisibles started their own label, Gozadera Records. The first release, ''Chill Out Venezuela'', was a multiple-genre collection of Venezuelan artists, produced by Los Amigos Invisibles. For Gozadera's next release and the band's fifth studio album, they enlisted

Dimitri from Paris Dimitri from Paris (born Dimitrios Yerasimos, el, Δημήτριος Γεράσιμος; 27 October 1963) is a French music producer and DJ of Greek descent. His musical influences are rooted in 1970s funk and disco sounds that spawned contempo ...

to produce a collection of Venezuelan cover songs entitled, ''

Super Pop Venezuela ''Super Pop Venezuela'' is an album released by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles Los Amigos Invisibles (Spanish for "The Invisible Friends") is a Venezuelan band which plays a blend of disco, acid jazz and funk mixed with Latin rhythms. ...

'', which was initially offered in their native country only. In 2006, the album was released in the US, landing the band another Grammy nomination, in the category of "Best Urban Latin Alternative Album." After three more years, Los Amigos Invisibles released their album, ''

Commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

'', in a joint production between Gozadera Records and

Nacional Records Nacional Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, California. It is home to numerous artists including Manu Chao, Grammy-nominated Mexican electronica group Nortec Collective, Colombian rock band Aterciopelados, Argentine rock ...

. In an interview with America's

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

, the band explained that the change in style was not by accident, nor was the decision to name the latest project ''Commercial''. Rather, it was a tongue-in-cheek reference to band's former musical self. The release was a hit in Venezuela, debuting at #1 on the music charts. During the week of July 7, 2009, their song, "Vivire Para Ti" featuring

Natalia Lafourcade María Natalia Lafourcade Silva (; born 26 February 1984) is a Mexican pop-rock and folk singer and songwriter who, since her debut in 2002, has been one of the most successful singers in Latin America. Lafourcade's voice has been categorized a ...

, was offered as Single of the Week in the

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

music store and in November 2009, ''Commercial'' won the Latin Grammy in the category of

Best Alternative Music Album The Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album is an award presented to recording artists for quality albums in the alternative genre at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Ho ...

. Following their

win, 2010 saw festival appearances and shows throughout the United States, Latin America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. In 2011, the band released ''Not So Commercial'', an EP of outtakes from the ''Commercial'' album. This album was a nominee for the

Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop, Rock or Urban Album The Grammy Award for Best Latin Pop, Rock or Urban Album was an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for releasing albums in the latin pop, ...

in 2012. In April 2013, ''Repeat After Me'' was released. This album received a

nomination in the category of "Best Latin Alternative Album" and a

in the categories of "Best Alternative Album", "Song of the year" and "Best Cover". In 2014, the band were named Pop Artist of the Year at the

Pepsi Venezuela Music Awards The Pepsi Venezuela Music Awards ( es, Premios Pepsi Music Venezuela, links=no; PPM) are honors for the best music in Venezuela in various genres. Its first edition took place on 29 March 2012 in Caracas and was broadcast on Venevisión. Since ...

. That year, keyboardist Armando Figueredo and guitarist José Luis Pardo (Cheo) left the band. Both were original members. In 2015, the band released ''Acústico'', a compilation of their greatest hits played in an acoustic style. 2017 saw the release of the album ''El Paradise''. This was followed by a concert tour in the United States. In 2019 they won a

Latin Grammy Award The Latin Grammy Awards are an award by The Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from anywhere around the world that has been r ...

again, this time in the category "Best Alternative Song" with the song "Tócamela".

Band members

Current members

*Julio Briceño (a.k.a. "Chulius", vocals, percussion, songwriting) *José Rafael Torres (a.k.a. "Catire", bass, songwriting) *Juan Manuel Roura (a.k.a. "Mamel", or "Mamulo," drums, percussion, songwriting)

Former members

*Armando Figueredo (a.ka. "Armandito", keyboards, background vocals) *José Luis Pardo (a.k.a. "Cheo" or "DJ Afro", guitar) *Mauricio Arcas (a.k.a. "Maurimix", percussion, background vocals) =Awards and Nominations=

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

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43rd Annual Grammy Awards The 43rd Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 21, 2001, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Several artists earned three awards on the night. Steely Dan's haul included Album of the Year for ''Two Against Nature''. U2 took ...

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49th Annual Grammy Awards The 49th Annual Grammy Awards was a ceremony honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2005 and ending September 30, 2006 in the United States. The awards were handed out on Sunday, February 11, 2007 at the Staples Ce ...

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Best Latin Rock, Alternative or Urban Album The Grammy Award for Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album (until 2020: ''Best Latin Rock, Urban or Alternative Album'') is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, ...

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54th Annual Grammy Awards The 54th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 12, 2012, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles being broadcast on CBS honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2010 through September 30, 2011. LL Cool J hosted t ...

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56th Annual Grammy Awards The 56th Annual Grammy Awards presentation was held on January 26, 2014, at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The show was broadcast on CBS at 8 p.m. ET/PT and was hosted for the third time by LL Cool J. The show was moved to January to avoid comp ...

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60th Annual Grammy Awards The 60th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 28, 2018. The CBS network broadcast the show live from Madison Square Garden in New York City. The show was moved to January to avoid coinciding with the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongc ...

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2nd Annual Latin Grammy Awards The winners of the Second Annual Latin Grammy Awards were announced during a press conference on Tuesday, October 30, 2001 at the Conga Room in Los Angeles, California. The conference, which was broadcast live on the internet, was hosted by Jimmy ...

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6th Annual Latin Grammy Awards The 6th Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held in Los Angeles at the Shrine Auditorium on Thursday, November 3, 2005. It was the first ceremony to be broadcast by Univision in the United States. Ivan Lins was the big winner, winning two awards, inc ...

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10th Annual Latin Grammy Awards The 10th Annual Latin Grammy Awards took place on Thursday, November 5, 2009 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. This was the second time the show took place in Las Vegas. Juan Gabriel was honored as the Latin Recording Academ ...

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14th Annual Latin Grammy Awards The 14th Annual Latin Grammy Awards was held on Thursday, November 21, 2013, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. This was the sixth time that Latin Grammys has been held at this location. The main telecast was broadcast on Univision a ...

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Best Recording Package The Grammy Award for Best Recording Package is one of a series of Grammy Awards presented for the visual look of an album. It is presented to the art director of the winning album, not to the performer(s), unless the performer is also the art dire ...

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20th Annual Latin Grammy Awards The 20th Annual Latin Grammy Awards was held on Thursday, November 14, 2019, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada and was broadcast on Univision. The telecast marked the 20th anniversary of the Latin Grammy Awards and honored outsta ...

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Discography

*''

A Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance Band ''A Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance Band'' is the debut album by the Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles Los Amigos Invisibles (Spanish for "The Invisible Friends") is a Venezuelan band which plays a blend of disco, acid jazz and fu ...

'' (1995) *''

The New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera ''The New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera'' is an album by the Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles, released in 1998. Critical reception The ''Sun Sentinel'' called the album "dance music as self-referentially playful and goofy as anything the ...

'' (1998) *'' Arepa 3000: A Venezuelan Journey into Space'' (2000) *''

'' (2003) *''

'' (2005) *''Super Pop Venezuela, Remixes'' (2008) *'' En una noche tan linda como ésta'' (2008) *''

'' (2009) *''

Not So Commercial ''Not So Commercial'' is the seventh studio album recorded by Venezuelan band Los Amigos Invisibles. Released on 15 March 2011, it was nominated in the Best Latin Pop, Rock or Urban Album category at the 2012 Grammy Awards. Track listing This ...

'' (2011) *''Repeat After Me'' (2013) *''Acústico'' (2015) *''El Paradise'' (2017) *''A Typical and Autoctonal Venezuelan Dance Band Remastered'' (2020) *''Cool Love'' (2022)

References

External links

*
Los Amigos Invisibles' myspace websiteLos Amigos Invisibles at Yahoo Music
{{DEFAULTSORT:Amigos Invisibles, Los Venezuelan musical groups Luaka Bop artists Latin Grammy Award winners Musical groups established in 1991 1991 establishments in Venezuela Nacional Records artists

History

Band members

Current members

Former members

Grammy Awards The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

Latin Grammy Awards The Latin Grammy Awards are an award by The Latin Recording Academy to recognize outstanding achievement in the Latin music industry. The Latin Grammy honors works recorded in Spanish or Portuguese from anywhere around the world that has been r ...

Discography

See also

References

External links