The Evolution of the Musicianship of Omar Torrez

by Ramon Shiloh

On September 3, 1995, Seattle native Omar Torrez sealed his fate as the “Latin Hendrix” when he became a finalist in the National Jimi Hendrix guitar competition during the annual Bumbershoot Festival. Revealing an awesome display of technical talent and delivering an infectious blend of exotic rhythms, an unknown Torrez brought a crowd of thousands to its feet.
The subsequent praise from the media, including being named Best Band in the region by Seattle Weekly readers for three consecutive years, helped Torrez capture the attention of the music industry. When Fender guitars signed him to an exclusive endorsement contract, the legendary label called him “the company’s most exciting rising star.”
When asked how it feels to be linked to Hendrix, Torrez points to three things that made the eccentric rocker an American idol. “[He had] masculine technical commands, with an occasional feminine touch and a lot of sexuality. That’s what I bring on stage, as well,” Torrez laughs. “I have students who want me to teach them to play guitar with their teeth and I just want to say, ‘That’s not what he was doing!’”
A virtuoso performer, Torrez’s commanding presence is a force to be reckoned with. His biological heritage ranges from Spanish and Basque bloods, via Mexico, to Norwegian, Native American and Russian. In a never-ending quest to find authentic rhythms that fuel his soul, his fusion of funk, rock and blues, mixed with a dollop of Latin beats, offers a pulsating rhythm that can whip any audience into a frenzy.



Redefining His Music

Torrez’s father, who was born in Puebla, Mexico, met his mother as an exchange student at the University of Washington, where he studied under Jacob Lawrence. His mother also earned a Fine Arts degree. Torrez says his fondest memory as a child was when his parents would set up an easel for him in one of the art departments so he could sketch a nude life drawing.
He also recalls performing for his parents’ friends whenever they would drop by. “My father would entice me with ice cream. I guess I would go off on these monologues, tell them about the history of the Sasquatch, or I would sing a song about being a rock and roll star, something like that,” he says. “For me, growing up in an artistic environment was the norm. I faced the simple pleasures of my childhood, but when I would go to someone’s house that didn’t have an instrument or paintings with art supplies, I would think it was strange.”
Although Torrez had a nurturing environment at home, he says that he never really felt like he belonged anywhere. “It’s strange. I always felt connected to older people than my peers. So, there was a little insecurity at certain levels. But, I knew that in time, there would be things that people would respond to that would give me the leverage to hone my creative flow.”
Still, when Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, composer and actor Tom Waits personally called Torrez to ask him to perform as the lead guitarist for the Glitter and Doom Tour this past summer, he almost hung up the phone. When he realized the call wasn’t a practical joke, old uncertainties threatened to hold Torrez back from pursuing his dreams.
“It made me a little self-conscious when he asked me to go on tour with him ‘cause in reality, I would watch Angus Young [of AC/DC] and think to myself, ‘Why can’t I just do one thing and kick ass at that?’ In a way, it’s so refreshing and simple. But, I realized it’s just not me,” Torrez says.
Eventually, Torrez says the nod from the legendary performer was enough encouragement to join the tour. Jamming with Vincent Henry on woodwinds, Casey Waits on drums, Patrick Warren on keyboard, Seth Ford-Young on bass and Sullivan Waits on clarinet, Torrez says he went through a major transition emotionally and spiritually. He admits his decision forever altered the course of his music, showing him how he was to transition his musicianship into a more gritty style of play.

AUDIO: Hear a stunning two-hour performance by the iconic singer, Tom Waits, backed by Omar Torrez and the rest of the band, during the Atlanta, Georgia, stop on the 2008 Gloom and Doom Tour (Courtesy of NPR.org):


Although industry insiders have dubbed his June 2008 release of The Beat Outside an instant classic, Torrez says he regrets making the album before joining the tour. “Not because it was bad, but because Tom changed my whole outlook on my style. On my last record, I tried to slice off all the things I do best. It is almost like Tom was sent to show me some things,” Torrez says humbly. “I mean, he’s the Stephen Hawkins of music. He takes any style he wants and makes it his own.”
Torrez says he spent much of his time observing Waits, studying his approach to the psychological, theatrical and technical aspects of being eclectic. “I have a lot more fun now being eclectic, instead of worrying about putting one song next to another and judging the segues in between. What I learned from Tom was that you can’t throw things together. It needs to come from a place that makes sense artistically.”
The last performance on the tour was Torrez’s first time in Dublin, Ireland. “The last night was heavy. Dublin is such a wonderful place. It’s vibrating with music and soul,” he recalls. “We didn’t need to save ourselves for the next night, so we threw down hard and heavy. When I played the last song with Tom Waits and the band, it was like saying goodbye to old friends. It was a deeply emotional experience.”
In the following months, Torrez says, he began to feel that he had made a mark on history. “[The tour] was an incredible opportunity and a real learning experience. It wasn’t like I was with Christina Aguilera, where I was just making a paycheck. This was a chance to play with an immortal figure and witness another world and a piece of history. In some capacity, I feel like I was accepted into the University of Geniuses. For four months, my life was blessed by the best.”

There’s Freedom in Expression

On January 24, Torrez returned with his band to Seattle to play the stage at the Triple Door. The four-piece band, which formed in L.A. in 2007, consists of John Wakefield on percussion, Tige DeCoster on bass and Emiliano Almeida on drums. The Omar Torrez Band can be found playing a number of diverse venues, including the beloved Temple Bar in Los Angeles and the annual Bumbershoot celebration in Seattle.
Last year, the Omar Torrez Band opened for Jethro Tull at the Island of Light Festival in Moscow, Russia, where the guys played for a crowd of 8,000 screaming fans. Torrez has also shared the stage with such musical giants as The Buena Vista Social Club, Pancho Sanchez, Susana Baca and Francisco Aguabella, as well as such underground favorites as Indigenous, B-side Players and Sidestepper.
The band is currently working on a new album, Corazon de Perro (The Heart of the Dog), which promises to be grittier and riskier than his other albums. After his experiences this past summer, Torrez realizes that he must strip down the layers of his music. “I see where my path is going,” he explains.
“I’m thinking about my art form more conceptually now,” he continues. “I like to think of my future works as ‘narrative driven music.’ I try to treat each piece of music as a miniature film, each instrument like a character in that film. This album will be like fiction pieces. The novel is designed to understand the fragility of life. Fiction is connected to reality. I want to create a little world through these songs. With the other albums, they were basically testimonials of my life. That’s not as interesting, because when you place the lens inward so much like that, you can get lazy. I found that if you build narratives, or characters of stories, it’s easier to touch on truths since you’re not looking at yourself. When you write through the lens of someone other than yourself, you’re free to express yourself. This is a new step for me.”


Learn more about Omar Torrez at http://www.omartorrez.com/.


© 2/2/2009