Punk in Translation: Latinx roots of punk rock explored in new podcast 

Ceci Bastida was born and raised in Tijuana, Mexico in the shadow of the U.S. border. She watched the border fence become a wall and observed the militarization of the area. In the ’90s Bastida played keyboards and sang with punk rock band Tijuana No! about immigration, displacement, the drug war and political corruption. The band incorporated Latino rhythms with ska and punk and released six albums including Contra Revolución Avenue in 1998.

Bastida now lives in Los Angeles and she recently narrated the eight-part podcast Punk in Translation, available in English and Spanish on Audible. The series explores the world of Latinx punk rock and bands that pre-dated mid-70s punk including Los Seicos from Peru (1966). Other episodes celebrate Los Angeles bands like The Bags, Los Illegals and The Plugz and feature interviews with musicians like Kid Congo Powers, John Doe and Joan Jett. The Sentinel recently spoke with Ceci Bastida about the revolutionary potential of punk rock.

Militarized border

Q: “Tell me about growing up in the shadow of the Mexico-USA border wall and how that inspired you to sing about political issues with Tijuana No!”

A: “There’s definitely something that makes people that live next to the border, different from people who live in the rest of Mexico. Growing up in Tijuana, you see the border constantly. It marks you in some way. As you’re driving through one of the main roads from where I grew up near the beach, to the downtown area, you’re basically driving next to the border wall,” recalls Bastida.

“Over the years, we noticed as the border wall was more militarized. When I was growing up it was a flimsy chain link fence. It changed, especially with Bill Clinton’s Operation Gatekeeper (1994). It forced migrants to go to areas that are way more dangerous, like the desert. The people that did cross, a lot of them ended up dying. The border is something that is in you, because you can’t look away.

“So, if you’re curious you’d want to know; why is this fence here and why do people want to cross the border to the US? You realize that we live in a country – Mexico – that has a very big wealth gap and the population that’s wealthy is small in comparison with the amount of poverty. So, you understand why people need to leave. It’s something I couldn’t not think about. That’s what made me want to keep talking about it throughout the years.”

Q: “Why did you choose punk rock as a way to voice your concerns about the drug war, anti-immigration politics and gun violence?”

A: “In punk I would hear political conversations more than in pop music. I listened to a lot of new wave and all kinds of different music,” Bastida says. “But I did notice that punk music seemed to be more direct, in talking about these issues in the most powerful way.”

Zapatista Revolution

Q: “How important is it for you that bands sing about social and political issues?”

A: “As a teenager, I used to think that people in bands should talk about socio-political issues in their music. If they didn’t, I’d wonder, ‘Why aren’t you talking about poverty in Mexico and corruption?’ But people express art in their own way, and it doesn’t have to be political. That’s what is great about art and music. It provides other ways of being involved with these social issues. I know many people that make music that isn’t political, but they’re active in their own personal lives to benefit certain groups or by volunteering with organizations that are doing great work.

“When I was playing with my band Tijuana No! back in the early ’90s, there was this movement to support the Ejército Zapatista de Liberación Nacional (EZLN),” Bastida continued. “In English they were called the Zapatista Liberation Army, down in the south of Mexico. A lot of bands got very inspired by them to start playing and to be super active. Sometimes activism goes in waves; there are moments where people are really passionate, and then it dies down. And then something else happens that makes people really want to fight for something. In Mexico now there’s this feminist movement because so many women are killed every day; at least 10 women. I see some artists talking about these things now, where five years ago it wasn’t the case.”

Q: “The Zapatista movement was powerful. I was part of a group of journalists and international observers who joined the Zapatista caravan to Mexico City in 2001. We thought revolutionary changes would democratize Mexico and ripple out to other places.”

A: “I thought there was definitely this huge change coming. And it didn’t. But I like that people don’t give up. The movement is still doing their thing. Yeah, I thought Mexico was going to be in a very different place. And when I look at it right now – I’m not going to say we’re dealing with the same problems – but we’re definitely dealing with a lot of cartel problems, extreme poverty and crazy corruption,” Bastida told the Sentinel. “This new president (Obrador) sells himself as some sort of liberal leftist and there’s nothing leftist about him! The opposite I would say; he’s Trump-like, in my eyes. 1994 is when the Zapatista movement came to light, and we’re now in 2022. A lot of things are still the same.”

Punk began in Peru

Q: “You point out that white European culture tends to view things from its own point of view and say, ‘We invented everything. Including punk rock!’ A lot of punk developed in New York and London but you point to Latin roots of punk including the Cuban cha cha chá rhythm that was used for the punk anthem, ‘Louie, Louie.’ I learned of the Peruvian punk band Los Seicos from your podcast. Their song ‘Demolición’ was recorded in 1966 and the raw energy and distorted, angry vocals do sound like punk to come.”

A: “Los Seicos were talking about issues of immigration, racism and things we still hear bands talking about now. Even though Los Seicos recorded ‘Demolición’ in 1966 it sounds contemporary. It’s super raw. Los Seicos were creating music that must have sounded crazy to a lot of people at the time! It’s definitely powerful and it makes you feel what they’re feeling,” Bastida offered.

“A lot of the music in the U.S. has had influences from Latin America for a very long time. It’s good for people to know that punk is not something that was necessarily just created here by a bunch of – not white people – but, just on their own. Punk is definitely a mix of things. And that’s the way the world is; we’re more connected than we’d like to think sometimes. I was surprised to learn of this connection between the Ramones and this Mexican guy – Arturo Vega – who left Mexico because the radical social movement was being attacked. He left Mexico and came to New York and became buddies with the Ramones. He was super creative and designed the Ramones logo, partly basing it on the Mexican flag.”

Everything will be taken away

Q: “What are you doing now musically?”

A: “I stopped playing with Tijuana No! in the mid ’90s. They’re all still good friends of mine. But musically, I wanted to do something different. I have a few albums out and my latest one will hopefully release in the Fall. The working title is Everything Will be Taken Away, which is based on an exhibit I saw by an artist called Adrian Piper. The music is very rhythmic and melodic with a lot of electronic elements. It’s mainly inspired by issues of displacement, immigration and migration,” said Bastida.

“I also became a child advocate for immigrant children in the U.S. with the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. They connect me to a young girl or boy and I’m with them once a week drawing, talking and telling them if their case is moving forward or not. I make sure their needs are met. Ideally, I would go with them to court. I’ve been doing that since 2019.

That work has been really important to me because sometimes a lot of our socio-political issues seem so gigantic that it’s overwhelming, and people end up not doing anything. I realized you can make change even when it seems small. If I’m talking to a girl for a year, every week, I know there’s an impact and I’m helping one person. It seems very small, but in the end it’s very satisfying. I feel I’m actually doing something.”

The Clash