Adrian Quesada Writes Boleros with a Psychedelic Twist

Summary

Podcast Episode Summary: "Adrian Quesada Writes Boleros with a Psychedelic Twist"

All Of It by WNYC, hosted by Alison Stewart, delves into the vibrant intersection of culture and music, spotlighting influential artists and their creative processes. In the August 11, 2025 episode titled "Adrian Quesada Writes Boleros with a Psychedelic Twist," Alison engages in an in-depth conversation with Adrian Quesada, renowned musician and producer, exploring his latest solo venture, Boleros Psychedelicos 2.

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Introduction to Adrian Quesada and Boleros Psychedelicos 2

The episode opens with Alison Stewart introducing Adrian Quesada, known as one half of the acclaimed band Black Pumas. However, the focus shifts to his solo project, Boleros Psychedelicos 2, a summer tour capturing the essence of his new album. Adrian performed live at the Bricks Celebrate Brooklyn Summer Festival in Prospect Park, marking a notable moment where his voice was notably mellow due to recovering from a cold (00:09).

Exploring the Boleros Psychedelicos Series

Adrian elaborates on his new album, describing it as the second installment in a series that reimagines traditional bolero music with a psychedelic twist. Growing up on the Texas-Mexico border, bolero was a significant part of his childhood, and his contemporary take fuses late 60s and early 70s influences with electric instruments and psychedelic elements.

"Boleros are probably the greatest songs ever written. So if you combine those two, that's what just makes fireworks in my brain." (07:49)

Musical Influences and Style

Adrian traces his inspiration to bands like Los Pasteles Verdes from Peru and artists such as Jose and Tito Rodriguez. He emphasizes the fusion of traditional bolero forms with modern electric sounds, aiming to create a unique auditory experience that resonates with both nostalgic and contemporary audiences.

"They're playing these traditional boleros song forms with electric instruments, with a little bit of that psychedelic and soul and rock influence." (07:49)

Collaborative Process with Vocalists

A standout feature of Boleros Psychedelicos 2 is Adrian's collaboration with diverse vocalists, including Marea Ramos, Angelica Garcia, and Ile. During the episode, Adrian introduces his band members and discusses why each vocalist was chosen for specific tracks.

"Merea has just got incredible passion, coming from her background in mariachi music. Her experience really elevates this music." (07:18)

Adrian highlights the importance of letting vocalists bring their unique interpretations to the music, fostering a dynamic and collaborative environment.

Recording Process: From Isolation to Intimacy

Adrian contrasts the recording processes of the two parts of his project. Part One was created remotely during the pandemic, where collaborations happened virtually, leading to a more detached production.

"We recorded remotely, nobody was ever in the room with me. I'm really happy with the album the way it came out, but I wanted to take advantage of being in the room." (09:51)

In Part Two, Adrian sought a more intimate and cohesive sound by recording live with his band, Jay Mumford on drums and Taran Ector on instruments, enhancing the human connection inherent in live performances.

"There's nothing like that human experience and connection that happens when people are in a room and interacting like that." (10:47)

Influence of Austin, Texas on Artistic Development

Having lived in Austin since college, Adrian discusses how the city's reputation as the "live music capital of the world" has profoundly shaped his musical journey. He praises the high level of musicianship and the supportive, non-competitive community that fosters creativity.

"Everybody knows each other. Everybody supports everybody. It's a great community of musicians." (17:57)

Adrian also touches upon the significant changes Austin has undergone, particularly the challenges of gentrification and affordability, while noting that the city's unique spirit, famously encapsulated in the phrase "Keep Austin Weird," remains intact despite these transformations.

"It's hard to completely wipe away the spirit of Austin with that, because it is still like, it was started by the freaks, but it's still." (20:24)

Electric Deluxe Recorders: Bridging Analog and Digital

Adrian founded Electric Deluxe Recorders, a studio epitomizing the blend of analog warmth and digital precision. He underscores his commitment to capturing the authentic sounds he envisions, balancing traditional recording techniques with modern technology.

"The analog meets digital thing was, you know, it's like I just think that the music that was recorded mostly analog is the stuff that I'm attracted to, but I do embrace technology." (21:20)

Academy Award Nomination for “Like a Bird”

A significant highlight of the conversation is Adrian's recent Academy Award nomination for the song "Like a Bird," co-written with Abraham Stotland for the film Sing Sing. He recounts the surreal experience of discovering the nomination and the joy of contributing to what he regards as an outstanding film.

"I always just tell people, like, whether or not I was involved in Sing Sing, people have to go watch Sing Sing. It's such an insanely incredible film." (24:10)

Adrian describes the creative process behind the song, which involved meticulously aligning the music with specific scenes from the movie to enhance the emotional resonance.

"We watched it over and over and piped it together, tapping a drum track until I got the feel of it." (23:39)

Live Performances and Final Remarks

The episode culminates with Adrian and his band performing "Mentiras con Cariño" featuring Angelica Garcia and Yvette Cook. The live rendition showcases the seamless integration of traditional bolero rhythms with psychedelic undertones, encapsulating the essence of Adrian's musical vision.

"It's kind of got like a James Bond theme about it, a 1960s James Bond theme about it." (25:03)

Adrian concludes by expressing gratitude towards his collaborators and listeners, hinting at future musical endeavors while emphasizing the importance of community and shared artistic expression.

"Thank you for having me. And thanks to everybody in the studio as well." (31:33)

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Conclusion

This episode of All Of It provides a comprehensive look into Adrian Quesada's artistic journey, highlighting his innovative approach to blending traditional bolero with psychedelic influences. Through insightful discussions and live performances, listeners gain an appreciation for Adrian's dedication to musical authenticity, collaborative spirit, and the cultural landscapes that shape his work. Whether you're a long-time fan or new to his music, this conversation offers a rich exploration of creativity and cultural fusion.

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Transcript Reference

For detailed quotes and specific timestamps, refer to the transcript sections indicated throughout the summary.

Transcript

[Alison Stewart]

This is all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. Adrian Quesada is one half of the band Black Pumas, but this summer he's touring a new solo project, Bolero Psychedelicos 2. If you were in Prospect park on Friday night, you may have stumbled into Quesada's concert as part of Bricks Celebrate Brooklyn Summer Festival. But before the concert, Quesada and his band came to WNYC to perform, which is why you might hear my voice sounds a little more mellow that day.

[Adrian Quesada]

I was recovering from a cold.

[Alison Stewart]

Quesada's new album is the second part of a series exploring bolero music, which he grew up with as a child living on the Texas Mexico border. But Adrian's boleros comes with a psychedelic twist. He is first and foremost a musician and a producer. So every song on the album, Quesada invites a different vocalist to feature. For our session, he brought in Marea Ramos, Angelica Garcia and Ile to sing. We started with Adrian introducing the first song that we're going to hear.

[Adrian Quesada]

We're going to hear two stormentas featuring the amazing Mirea Ramos.

[Marea Ramos]

Sam.

[Angelica Garcia]

Sara Jevam.

[Marea Ramos]

Sa.

[Angelica Garcia]

K.

[Marea Ramos]

Ram Sam.

[Adrian Quesada]

Sa. That was Adrian Quesada performing Tus Tormentos with vocals by Moreno Ramos. The new album is called boleros sica delicos 2. Did I get it right?

That's correct.

Oh, yes. Would you introduce us to your band?

Yeah. On the drums, that's Jay Mumford. This is Taran Ector. That's Joshie Soul aka. Just kidding. Mirea Ramos on vocals. There's a lot of AKAs for Joshi.

Soul is all right, well, we'll get to them all. We're going to talk about you like you're not here for a second. Why did Marea's voice. Why was that right for that song?

I think you heard for yourself as well. But Mirea has just got, like incredible passion, I think, coming from her background in mariachi music as well. We also grew up on the same music, you know, hip hop music and things like that. But her, I think the passion that she also has from her experience in mariachi just really elevates this music and just lends itself perfectly to it.

From what I understand the new album, after listening to it, it's sort of like it shows your attraction for bolero. What is it about traditional bolero that you find so attractive?

So, you know, funny enough, the traditional bolero I'm more into kind of like in the late 60s, early 70s, what they started calling Balada or Bolero Cico delicos. They start, you know, young kids in Latin America started to pick up electric instruments and play it. They were influenced by everything from the, you know, British invasion rock bands to psychedelic music and the psychedelic revolution and all that. And they're. They're playing it. They're playing these traditional bolettos, this song form with electric instruments, with a little bit of that, like, psychedelic and soul and rock influence. And to me, that was. That was what really, like, made my brain explode, was that sweet spot. I think I'm a big fan of psychedelic music. They're not always incredible songs. It's just like, cool vibe, you know, it's true, but. And then Boleros are probably the greatest songs ever written. So if you combine those two, that's. That's what, you know, just makes fireworks in my brain. And that's. That was kind of the inspiration for a lot of this.

When people finish listening to this interview and they want to go listen to some bolero music, what would you suggest?

Oh, God. I would say the first band that really inspired me was a band from Peru called Los Pasteles Verdes, and we've covered a couple of songs there over the two volumes. And I would say that's a good start of band. But, oh, they're just. There's so many on this album. In particular, singer from Mexico named Jose. Jose, who was doing incredible music, late 60s, early 70s. There's Los Angeles, Negros from Chile. There's, you know, even. Even more traditional molo music. There's a long list. So, yeah, there's a playlist out there somewhere on Spotify, if you're savvy to find our inspiration.

Or you can start your own starter playlist, something like that.

Yeah.

My guest is Adrian Casada.

[Alison Stewart]

You said this was part.

[Adrian Quesada]

Part of part one of part two.

That song was off of part one. Yeah. And part two just came out a month ago.

Now. Part one you made during the pandemic. How did you do that?

My studio was at home at the time. And, you know when, like, the height of quarantine, when the world just stopped and people were baking bread and finding new hobbies, I was just like, well, I have a studio here, and there's all these things I've always wanted to do, so I started doing it. It was done remotely. Nobody was ever in the room with me, so. And I'm really happy with the album the way it came out, but it would be like I would record the music, have friends, send it to friends. They would play on it and then send it to the vocalist. They would send their vocals on this one. I really wanted to, when possible, take advantage of being in the room, and I wanted it to feel more intimate, and I wanted to work closer with the singers whenever possible. And the band, we recorded live as well, so I wanted this one to have just a different feel from the first one.

From part one, though. What did you learn about playing with people when you weren't playing with them? Do you know what I mean?

That you can't. You cannot beat that feeling.

Yeah.

You know, even going back to just. At the time my band, we had to. That was like. I was a little bit burnt out from touring back then, I remember. And we had to then. So touring stopped and we had to do a bunch of live streams. And by, like, the third live stream, I was like, this is horrible. I want to play for people forever and ever, and I will never take that for granted again. Similar kind of thing with this album. It's like it was. I mean, I make a lot of music remotely, but there's nothing like that human experience and connection that happens when people are in a room and interacting like that.

Is there flow between one and two?

Sort of. Actually, the odd connection that we'll get to with Angelica was I had sent her a lot of demos and ideas for the second one, and she didn't get back to me for a long time and kind of ghosted me, blocked me, and. No. But then I remember all of a sudden, she was like, I like this one. And I'm like, that was a demo from the first album. So we just ran with it. So there sort of is a connection.

All right, Angelica, get up here. I gotta find out about whether or not you ghosted him or not. Let's talk about it. The song we're gonna hear is. No. Did you ghost him on this song?

[Angelica Garcia]

Absolutely not. Adrian, what are these allegations?

[Adrian Quesada]

Uh. Oh.

Let'S hear it. This is no Huego. This is from Adrian Quezada.

[Marea Ramos]

It. Sam.

[Adrian Quesada]

That was Adrian Quesada performing Newego featuring Angelica Garcia. That was awesome, by the way.

[Angelica Garcia]

Thank you.

[Adrian Quesada]

How did you decide which collaborators that you wanted to work with, which vocal collaborators on your album?

I mean, they're all people that I'm incredible artists that I'm a huge fan of. I think what was important is that they all have roots where they can do something like a Boletto, but they're also not afraid to take it somewhere else. So these are all, you know, just incredible. Artists that. That I've been following and I'm a fan of. I'm just lucky that they're here in the studio.

Did you write songs with certain artists in mind?

On a few of them, but they'd surprised me with what they were kind of into. You know, like, for example, with that one, that was an old throw. I thought that was one that nobody liked from the first album. And I sent her, like, 10 new ideas, and she's like, I like this one. I'm like, that was one from the first album that nobody liked and that I always loved, so. And then there was covers, too. You know, Eliz suggested a incredible cover for this second volume. And, yeah, I would just send a batch. Kind of had people in mind, but they kind of always would surprise me with what they would gravitate towards. So just let, you know, let them kind of sort out what they were inspired by.

[Alison Stewart]

I'm speaking with Adrian Cassada, who's performing live with his band and discussing his new album, Bolero Cicadelicos 2. We'll talk more with Adrian about how Austin, Texas, has shaped his sound, and we'll hear one final performance after a quick break. This is all of It. You are listening to all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. More of my conversation now with musician Adrian Quesada. He joined me in studio last Friday with his band ahead of his concert that night at Prospect Park. This summer, Quesada released a new album, Bolero Psychedelicos 2. Adrian has lived in Austin, Texas, since college, and I asked him how the city has developed him as an artist.

[Adrian Quesada]

I mean, it's been a big part of what. What. Everything I do musically. I think what Austin has is that there's. Obviously, it's known as the live music capital of the world, as people say. But what I love there a couple things. One is a lot of people are musicians. The level of musicianship there is very high, and there's no pretense to it. It's not. And people aren't, like, stepping on each other to get. So if you're gonna play or you're gonna have a band in Austin, there's a thousand bands. There's a. I mean, everybody I know plays guitar. And so you got to be, like, pretty good at your craft and take it seriously. It's not. People aren't playing there to look pretty. They're playing to, like, be really good at what you do. And you could be playing a small club show. And, you know, I'm speaking as A guitar player. You could have Gary Clark Jr. And Jimmy Vaughn, all these legendary guitar players, literally just standing there watching you. So the other thing that I love about Austin is there's a really good sense of community with the musicians. Everybody knows each other. Everybody supports everybody. It's not cutthroat in a way to, like, where people are stepping on each other to do everything. Everybody's in a bunch of different bands. Everybody supports each other. It's just. It's a great community of musicians.

It's changed a lot, though. I used to go to Austin in the 90s, and I remember I was, like, in a bar, and this old guy was like, some real estate agent told me, I live in Travis Heights. What the hell is Travis Heights? That was his. Like, he didn't know that they had started labeling parts of the city.

Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Has that changed?

[Adrian Quesada]

Oh, yeah, it's changed. The. The. I've been there for. Since 1995 now. The craziest change to me happened during the pandemic because everything shut down. And then when it reopened, it was almost like a different city. You know, that was because everything else has been happening in real time. So you almost kind of, like, you notice, but it's. It's happening in front of you. But that one was just, like. When it opened, I was like, what? This is a different city. It's changed. You know, the thing. The joke in Austin is Austin was cooler five minutes ago. Like, when I got there in 95, they were like, yeah, but it was cool. It was, like, way cooler in the 80s. And, like. And then in 2000, everybody's like, yeah, I was way cooler in the 90s. So it's like, it has that attitude where it's. But. And I wouldn't complain about all the change. There's been some good stuff, but there's some stuff. Affordability issues. The thing that attracted all the artists there and all the musicians there is gone. Affordability is completely gone with gentrification. But, you know, I'm old and bougie, and I like my good coffee shop and my good restaurants.

You know, do they still keep up with the. Keep Austin weird?

Yeah. Yeah. I think it's hard to, like, completely wipe away the spirit of Austin with that, because it is still like, it was started by the freaks, but it's still. But it's. It's a different place. It's a different place now. It's.

You know, how about in this climate, being in Texas?

Yeah, that's been surreal, because a lot of. If you look at the last election, and a lot of the major movers and shakers were in our little liberal freak town. Some major seismic shifts happened in our little town that we were all the weirdos. And so that was a little bit bizarre.

We looked on your website for your recording studio, Electric Deluxe Recorders, and it said the space where analog meets digital. What was the process for starting your own studio? Why did you want to call it where analog meets digital?

I started to do. To get into the technical side of it and starting a studio because I would go to studios and they weren't getting the sounds that I was hearing in my head. So I just started. Was like, trying to explain to people, and I would. And I wanted to be able to explain it. It's a slippery slope to go down that rabbit hole, to go down the technical side of it. Because sometimes I feel like it. My brain listens to music like that, and I try to remove that and be like, no, just enjoy it. Let go. Do what music did to you as a kid. But I just wanted to get the sounds that. That I heard in my head. And the analog meets digital thing was, you know, it's. It's like, I. I just think that the. The music that was recorded mostly analog is the stuff that I'm attracted to, but there's not gonna say I don't embrace technology and computer and. And everything that. That. That has. So it's kind of like Best of both worlds is what I like.

I'm speaking with musician Adrian Cassada. His new album is called Boleros Sica Delicos 2. He's here now to perform live with his band.

[Alison Stewart]

I wanted to ask you about being.

[Adrian Quesada]

Nominated for an Academy Award. That's huge for Sing Sing for people who don't know.

[Alison Stewart]

You wrote Like a Bird with Abraham.

[Adrian Quesada]

Alexander for the movie. First of all, when did you find out?

I was. I knew that they were announcing them that day, but I just thought in my head because of. I honestly didn't look at the time. It was just too much anxiety around all that stuff. Like, it's like another level of excitement and people like that. I just was like, I can't. So I. You know, I didn't know. I knew they were announcing them a certain day. I didn't know at what time. And I just. In my head was like, it'll be later in the day because it's on the west coast. So, you know, let's just say they do it at. So I just was not fully prepared. I was literally dropping off my daughter at school, and my phone just was like, non stop. And I was like, it's 7:00am like, how are. And I just knew it. I was like, there's nothing else that could be happening. I'm like, how are. Did they announce it at 5am on the west coast? So I pulled over and sure enough, just. My phone just literally did not stop for like two hours. And I. My daughter's school is right by my studio, so I, like, went to the studio, actually turned off my phone for a little bit and like, talked to Abraham and we. I just sat there for a little bit. I was like, holy cow. It was a really, really surreal day.

How is writing a song different when you were writing it for the film?

Actually having. We watched. We were. We were given the scene and we had to like, write it to the scene.

Oh, wow.

So just watched it over and over and I would just play guitar to it and, like, catching little things. Like there's a part where he rolls down the. Colin Domingo rolls down the window. And I was like, it'd be so cool if I just, like, strum the guitar there. And we just like, trying to catch those little cues. So I just watched it over and over and over and just tapped a drum track until I got the feel of it. And then we kind of pieced it together.

Were you happy with the end of it?

Yes. I mean, I'm not just saying this, but I always just tell people, like, whether or not I was involved in Sing Sing, people have to go watch Sing Sing. It's such an insanely incredible film by. By a mile. My favorite of last year. And we just can't even believe that we were able to be a part of it.

You're one half of the black pumas. For people who don't know you're gonna be out on the road anytime soon.

Not anytime soon. We just finished wrapping a touring cycle for the last album, so we got a much needed break after that because the first album, we just ran ragged with touring. So we. We had a finite, like, tour for the last album.

And we're gonna hear some more music from your new album. We're gonna hear Mientras con Carino, which my high school Spanish makes me believe is. Is it lies with affection? Is that correct?

[Angelica Garcia]

Yeah.

[Adrian Quesada]

By the way, how are you?

[Angelica Garcia]

Yeah. Lies with affection.

[Adrian Quesada]

How did you decide before we hear it, Adrian, how did you decide how you wanted the sound to accompany a lyric about lies with an affection? How did you want the sound of the song to sound like?

Okay, so I actually don't write any lyrics, right? They write all the lyrics. Yeah, for sure.

Write the music.

I had a few ideas. Eli and I on the first album was, I think, the last vocalist to finish on the album. And we just sent a bunch of ideas back and forth. I just kept writing stuff that I was feeling. We were kind of locked in on that. And then she kind of ran with the concept from there.

It's kind of cool. It's kind of got like a James Bond theme about it, a 1960s James Bond theme about it. What did you think when you heard his music? Ilay, by the way, this is Elay on the microphone.

[Angelica Garcia]

Hi. I was excited, obviously, in the middle of the pandemic, I was. My. My head was in another place. So it was like a little crazy for me to reconnect with. With this world that I felt at that time, I was a little apart. So it was nice, like, to reconnect with it. And maybe that's why I maybe overwhelmed Adrian with a lot of. With a lot of songs. But when I get, like, into something, I get overly excited, and especially when it's stuff that I love and I admire. So, yeah, I got excited. And it's great to see the way he understands everything so well. So we had a nice back and forth, and I know he had a lot of reference of Jose, Jose and myself. I have my own references from boleristas from Puerto Rico. So I was thinking more of Tito Rodriguez. He's more talkative. And Jose. Jose has, like, this more singing. So I try to balance both of them in a way.

[Adrian Quesada]

Let's hear Mentiras con carino from Adrian.

[Angelica Garcia]

Quesada and Yvette Cook.

[Marea Ramos]

Sam.

[Adrian Quesada]

Adrian Cassada, thanks so much for being our guest.

Thank you for having me.

And thanks to everybody in the studio as well.

I will say one thing we forgot to reference inspiration wise for that song was like she said, Jose, Jose. And Tito Rodriguez is also Jenny from the block. I kind of referenced a little bit there. Yeah. And the original Beat Nuts version. So if you can hear that in there, we'll leave you on that. Yeah.

Good news. Thanks, Adrian.

He live from the block.

[Alison Stewart]

That was Adrian Cassada and his band performing live. Adrian's new album is called Boleros Psychedelicos 2.