Music
Alien Tango. Courtesy of Alien Tango.
After Years of Delays, Alien Tango Make His U.S. Debut at SXSW
March 15, 2023 @ 12:00pm
From Spain to London to Austin, Alien Tango on his musical journey to Texas.
When it comes to performing at this year’s SXSW, the fourth time will hopefully be the charm for Alberto Garcia. Performing under the pseudonym Alien Tango, Garcia has attempted to perform over the last several years at the annual festival (though he has performed online in the past) only to be thwarted by a variety of reasons.
“We have a joke that it’s like a curse,” Garcia tells District Fray. “We never can make it but this time, it looks like it’s happening. If they let us in the country.”
The Spanish musician currently lives in London, so getting to Austin isn’t a mere van ride for him. But the trip to the States (his first) is a very important one for Garcia, who finds that most of his influences and his fanbase are here.
“We have a lot of people [following us] from the U.S. and this is the first time we go,” explains Garcia. “All of my favorite bands and the bands that have the biggest influence on me are American bands so I always think that my music has an American flavor to it.”
Garcia, who counts indie dance bands like MGMT among his influences, will be self-releasing his debut album on May 12. He’s going old school, having a physical product to sell including a transparent yellow-colored vinyl. But his style of dance music is what he hopes will draw in the audience.
“[My music] is very fast-paced, fast-changing,” says Garcia. “It’s good for a low attention span. I have a very low attention span so whenever I’m making music and I make something that stays the same for 20 seconds, I think, ‘This is boring! This needs to change!’ So my music is constantly changing and kind of surprising you at every turn. And I get the impression that Americans will dig that for some reason.”
Excited to see SXSW and the U.S. for himself, Garcia is looking forward to the camaraderie that SXSW promotes.
“There are all these different musicians that all have this common goal,” says Garcia. “It’s just such a good place to meet people and find a new audience. I’ve never been to the U.S., so just going there is very exciting. I’m very excited to play in front of an American audience and see what they think.”
Alien Tango will play three shows at SXSW: Wednesday, March 15 at 10 p.m. at Hotel Vegas, Volstead, March 18 at 12:10 a.m. at Higher Ground and 6 p.m. at International Day Stage. To learn more about Alien Tango and his music, follow him on Instagram @alien_tango.
