cuchataurbanAs we announced yesterday, Liga Masiva has teamed up with band Cuchata to bring you their expansive, gorgeously textured tunes along with our mini-documentaries on our work with farmers in the Dominican Republic. (To be released at our 3/13 and 3/18 events.)

Because you can’t listen to Cuchata without wanting to know more about them, we’re bringing you an exclusive interview with Cuchata frontman Marcelo Quiñonez. Thanks, Marcelo!

1) Finish this sentence: Without my coffee, I wouldn’t be able to… function normally. Though I do occasionally go without for short periods of time, which is never fun. By the way Liga Masiva coffee is freaking amazing! That’s coming from a very well seasoned coffee person. I did spend 10 years living in Seattle, and I actually owned my own coffee house in San Luis Obispo California, so I know a thing or two about coffee…Great stuff from you guys!

2) Other than Cuchata, what music do you listen to during an afternoon coffee break? I’m listening to the new album by Nneka right now and I listen to a lot of Hip-Hop as well. Coffee break favorites include: Fela Kuti, any sort of Cumbia or Chicha music (Psychedelic Cumbias from the Amazon), Kings of Leon too!

3) How does your Nicaraguan heritage/ancestry come out in your music? I think it plays a strong role in my lyrical subject matter. Nicaragua is a very political place, we talk politics a lot around the dinner table, during work, etc… I tend to be motivated lyrically by politics, not just governmental politics but philosophical and emotional politics as well. You’ll find a lot of traditional Nicaraguan music whose entire subject matter revolves around expressing political ideology… that has influenced me the most I would say.

I’m also very inspired by native and aboriginal philosophy and the perspective of indigenous peoples from around the world. You will find references to indigenous myths and ideology in a lot of my songs.

4) Item you can’t live without: My guitar!

5) Where can people find Cuchata online and in the world? Well you can always go to the official Cuchata site, or our myspace site. You can also check out the music I write for television and film here, and my random thoughts and such here on my blog.