Carlitos Way

Carlos Villalobos is a man with many talents.  Born in Chicago, Carlos, a multi instrumentalist, sought out a career in both the film and music industry later in life. As a film composer, songwriter, artist and producer, Carlos is mostly recognized for his highly acclaimed Grammy nominated flamenco project, ESPERANZA.  Most people don't know he is also the man behind the theme song and original music for the TV series, Baywatch Hawaii, as well as several other TV shows and full feature films. Carlos also founded his rock bands ANGRY CHIWAWAH, STARTING FROM ZERO and his electronica infused side project, INNERFACE.  He is the sole member of each of these groups and writes, plays all the instruments, sings, produces and mixes all his material.

Splitting time between LA and Chicago, Revolution caught up with him to get the scoop on whats happening in the world of Carlitos....

R. What are you working on now?

CV. Well, at the moment I'm working on quite a few things at the same time.  2011 has been busy.  I just finished producing and mixing some songs for Logan's Heroes new cd, 2 songs for 2 artists in Hawaii, and am currently mixing an album for DYNA, an amazing female singer and wife of Kelly Hansen, lead singer of Foreigner.  I also finished scoring 2 movies and finishing another music library of rock and orchestral trailer music.  On my own artist side, I started my own record label, Alistair Records, to put out my own projects.  I am working on Esperanza III and the debut of STARTING FROM ZERO.  For SFZ I'm doing 3 albums at the same time - the original rock Cd, a remix Cd and an acoustic Cd of all the songs.  So it's a pretty big undertaking.  I hope to be finished with everything by April.

R. You've seen a lot of changes occur in both the film and music industry, what are your thoughts on where the industry is heading?

CV. Wow, that's a tough question since it's both good and bad.  The traditional methods are pretty much dead.  But it's a great time to be an independent artist/composer if you are entrepreneurial.  With outlets like Tune Core, Reverberation and Amazon, to name a few, you can get a lot done on your own.  If you can spend each and every day networking, building a fan base, writing and creating great music you can do alright.  But you must explore all avenues and be a jack of all trades.  You must write great songs and also read up on the music business and the laws regarding copyrights and payment changes, which the U.S. government changes quite often.  And always remember you are a product!

R. Favorite guitar?

CV. Ooh, hard to pick one, but fave guitar would be 1977 Les Paul Gold Top Deluxe that my dad gave me as a graduation present when I was a kid.  I also have a Fender Strat that I bought at a pawn shop years ago for $150 that I use all the time.  And, of course, my Takamine and Cortez flamenco guitars.  Oh, and my Babicz Guitar is THE BEST acoustic guitar I have ever had!

R. After years of living LA LA land you decided to go back home to Chicago, Is there still a pulse for live music in the windy city?

CV. Well, I split time between LA and Chicago but, yeah, there's a lot.  There is so much live music out here that it's hard to see all of my friends shows.  But I can also see that there are a lot more bands out there now, therefore, venues and clubs are paying less.  Again, the bands that are most professional can get gigs all the time.

R. What are you listening to now?

CV. At the moment I'm listening to my own music. ;)  Seriously, I have hardly had any time to listen to anything new since I'm in the studio everyday but I really dig Alter Bridge's new track, "Isolation".

R. For up and coming artist how would you suggest they promote themselves?

CV. Take advantage of any and all new social marketing techniques.  Hire your friends to help you.  Work with your fans, be available as much as possible and connect with everyone you're around.  That goes a long way.

Last but not Least...

R.You've been invited to the playboy mansion, Hugh Hefner announces he is retiring and your appointed the new man of the house, Whats the first thing you do?

CV. Haha!  I've been there.  First thing I'd do is clean out that Grotto!!! ;)

Carlos Villalobos

Grammy nominated musician, film composer, songwriter, producer.

www.carlosvillalobos.com
www.esperanzamusic.com 

www.reverbnation.com/label/alistarrecords