Inna Soul Steady Situation

Description

If you asked Joey Quiñones where he draws his musical inspiration, you wouldn't have to look far: just listen to his music, and you're transported to a two-block radius around his neighborhood, from the grocery store to the Sign of Music record shop on Whittier Boulevard, then back to a friend's house. On these two streets, you hear cumbia echoing from the shops, punk rehearsals in a garage, old hits drifting from a neighbor's yard: a true sensory explosion that follows you home, all these genres blending in your head. This comes as no surprise to longtime fans of Quiñones. He has established himself as a major performer of his generation, dedicating his career to offering his unique vision of the Chicano soul repertoire. But before Thee Sinseers, before the lush orchestrations and flawless harmonies that became his trademark, Quiñones cut his teeth backing various Jamaican ska and dancehall groups on tour in Southern California. He describes those years as his reggae school, where he got yelled at by every Jamaican artist putting out a record. Those years of learning rocksteady and roots reggae deeply influenced everything that followed – and on his new solo album, Inna Soul Steady Situation, Quiñones finally brings these influences to the forefront.