Banda Maguey, May 31

Friday, May 31, 8 p.m.

Rhythm City Casino Resort Event Center, 7077 Elmore Avenue, Davenport IA

Playing from their extensive repertoire encompassing more than three decades of professional performance, the regional-Mexican musicians of Banda Maguey headline a special May 31 concert event at Davenport's Rhythm City Casino Resort Event Center, the group's many hit singles including "Las Nachas," "Me Llamo Raque," "El Próximo Tonto," "La Manguera," and "Sigues Siendo La Reina."

Nicknamed "La estrella de los bailes") and based in Jalisco, Mexico, Banda Maguey originated in Villa Corona, also the home of Banda Machos, who along with Banda Maguey have been called the two most successful exponents of the Technobanda sound. Banda Maguey was led by their singer Ernesto Solano, who has also composed a number of their songs, including "Pero Te Amo," a smash from their fourth album El Mundo Gira. In 1998, Banda Maguey signed a record deal with BMG U.S. Latin and recorded Lágrimas de Sangre. A favorite during the 1990s technobanda craze, Banda Maguey took over the Maxican radio waves with their debut album Tumbando Caña in 1994, which contained a number of hits including "El Alacrán," a cover originally sung by La Sonora Matancera. Signed to Fonovisa a year earlier, Banda Maguey wowed their native town with their onda grupera style, and in May of '94, the band performed live for the first time in the United States. In 1995, Banda Maguey released La Estrella de los Bailes, which featured the singles "Como la Luna," "Si Tú No Estás," "Que Sacrificio," and "Eva María," all of which climbed local charts.

Pioneered by bands such as Banda Maguey, Technobanda is essentially a hybrid of traditional banda with Grupero music. Beginning in the late 1980s, its popularity spread to the rest of Mexico's western states as well as a number of central states, as well as among the Mexican population in United States from said regions. The 1990s was the peak of Technobanda's popularity. In this subgenre, some or all of the horns are replaced by electric instruments. A typical Technobanda will substitute a sousaphone with an electric bass and the alto horns with an electronic keyboard and an electric guitar. The clarinets are frequently replaced with saxophones, while a drum set replaces the snare drums. This genre also popularized the dance style Quebradita, and Technobandas had already established vocalists within their repertoire before brass bandas officially added their own vocalists.

Bandra Maguey takes the stage at Davenport's Event Center on May 31, with admission to the 8 p.m. performance $30, and the concert will be preceded by a separate concert with the local musicians of Grupo Nuevo Estilo, whose free show will begin at 7 p.m. For more information and tickets, call (563)328-8000 and visit RhythmCityCasino.com.