Just in time for romance season, emblematic Mexican rock band Enjambre returns to the road for the second leg of its “Daños Luz” tour, including a stop at Chicago’s House of Blues in early February. After sold-out shows in Atlanta, Pomona, Phoenix, McAllen and San Diego, the band will debut songs from its upcoming album across eighteen U.S. dates.
With more than twenty years of musical history behind them, Enjambre returns with its unmistakable sense of nostalgia, delivering ballads like “Vínculo” that fans are already hailing as a classic. Daños Luz, which is also the name of the tour, is the band’s upcoming studio album set to release next month.
The Weekly caught up with lead singer and guitarist Luis Humberto Navejas to talk about the process and continued inspiration behind the band’s deeply personal songwriting.
The following interview has been edited slightly for clarity.
After playing shows in Mexico, the second leg of the tour brings you back to the U.S. How do the crowds compare?
They go and they love to sing the songs at the top of their lungs. I think the difference is that there are a couple of things there; I think that in the United States they like our more rock-and-roll music, in addition to the ballads, while here in Mexico they seem to prefer the ballads. I also think there’s a sense of appreciation for something of their own that they don’t have in the United States, something that comes to visit them and sing for them.
And I guess since they don’t have access to that as frequently, when they’re there, they’re completely immersed in the party atmosphere, up close, with a bunch of friends, buying the t-shirts. And it’s not that that doesn’t exist here in Mexico, but it feels different in the United States—in the best possible way.
Daños Luz has a very distinct sonic identity. Can you talk about the inspiration behind the album’s sound, and how you respond to frequent comparisons between Enjambre and Mexican icon José José?
I think all of our music has influences of rock and roll, maybe from the ’60s, and on this particular album, I think there’s something kind of ’50s about it. I think it’s like the transition between Noches de Salón and returning to rock, since Noches de Salón was our acoustic album, which had sounds more reminiscent of the ’30s and ’40s. [20th-century Mexican singer] José José has been a constant comparison, a great compliment, frankly. I didn’t listen to José José that much until people started telling me there were similarities, but my father, who is a great singer, sings beautifully, and he used to play many songs and ballads, and there was a recurring characteristic in his performances: the emotion. I think that was my main musical education, so maybe that’s why people associate our melodies with something like José José.
Our melodies always tended towards a more dramatic, more nostalgic direction, and that’s what ended up becoming Enjambre’s sound, and I suppose it’s a recurring sound from album to album, even though each album has its own personality and its own quest, and they are different from one another. I think those are characteristics that are very much part of the band’s DNA.
How does Enjambre continue to be inspired to create in a manner that stays true to the DNA of the band?
The reason we’ve stayed active and inspired for so long—twenty years is a long time, and we’ve released many albums—is that we continue to do things the way we did from the very beginning, from the first time we connected. I consider that Enjambre truly came into existence with “Manía Cardiaca,” that song from the album El Segundo Es Felino. That’s when Enjambre really began, because that was the band’s sound, and what dictated everything that has happened since then. And we continue to approach our rehearsal and studio days with the same enthusiasm with which we composed that album, El Segundo Es Felino, with those same people, with the exception of the guitarist. It’s that same enthusiasm, that same joy. W’’re passionate about doing this. Many people are passionate about soccer or other things and spend their whole lives playing that sport or participating in related events.
That’s what we do, rollas, and it continues to motivate us, it continues to inspire us, and there are always new things to sing about, always new things to express, always new sounds to explore. It’s something that’s endless.
Daños Luz feels like a dialogue between past and present. How does that sense of time influence your songwriting and lyrical approach?
We unearthed some songs from the past, from when the band started, that we had left abandoned because they had to do with this theme of damage, light, time, and what is lost.
I compose most of the songs; it’s always been that way. That’s my role in the band. Everyone contributes a lot, frankly, and everyone understands my point of view and identifies with it. We have similar tastes.
And there’s a song on this album called “Vinculo.” It’s about a specific person, but it’s someone I’ve had a connection with since childhood, and now she’s my wife. And it’s very interesting how in the song I say that she’s my time machine. And that’s what these songs have made me feel now that we’re reinterpreting them.
It’s a journey through time where I can remember how I felt back then and see where I am now. And even though I feel very different now, I can see a clear line connecting who I was and who I am. And those are characteristics of these songs that shaped me into the human being I am today.
Enjambre has always been a family affair. What has it been like creating music alongside your brothers and cousins?
In our dressing rooms, we love having our children and wives there, my mom, my dad, uncles, cousins. It’s always been a family affair. Everything that has to do with my artistic expression is a family affair, and it’s very important to us that it stays that way, always.
Sometimes people find it strange, because, well, we don’t see it as a business; for us, it’s the way, the platform through which we express ourselves, and the people we want to share it with most are our loved ones.
Speaking about family, the country is seeing widespread protests against ICE raids that are impacting Latino and immigrant communities nationwide. How is the band processing this moment?
It breaks our hearts to witness the mistreatment of our people. Every human being should be treated with dignity. We hope this ends as soon as possible and everyone and their families stay safe. We send our love, prayers and music to everyone who’s going through these difficult times.
Jocelyn Martinez-Rosales is a Mexican American independent journalist from Belmont Cragin committed to telling stories from communities of color through a social justice lens. She is also a senior editor at the Weekly.