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Thursday, September 11, 2008
17 Hippies makes stop in New Mexico
By David Steinberg
Journal Staff Writer
The band 17 Hippies — yes, that's its real name — has a confession to make. The musicians are neither hippies nor are there 17 of them. At last count, the band had 13 members.
A musician came up with the name on a lark. But what's important is the music.
“We mix up many styles,” Christopher Blenkinsop said in a phone interview from Berlin.
Its musical styles include rock, hip-hop and various shades of Balkan and Gypsy rhythms.
“Picture it this way,” Blenkinsop said. “We're from Berlin so we're in the geographical middle of Europe. From here to Moscow is the same distance from here to Norway or to the northern tip of Sicily.”
The band will perform at 8 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 18, at the New Mexico State University Music Recital Hall in Las Cruces and at 7:20 p.m. Sept. 19 in the Plaza Mayor of the National Hispanic Cultural Center, 1701 Fourth SW, Albuquerque.
This is 17 Hippies' third official tour of the United States.
“We went to Texas about 10, 12 years ago. We played at SXSW (South by Southwest music festival), but it was more like a family outing,” Blenkinsop said.
Tickets for the NMSU concert are $12.50 online at www.ticketmaster.com or at the door.
The Albuquerque concert is part of the 2008 ¡Globalquerque! world music festival. One-day and two-day passes for adults and children are available at the NHCC box office, online at www.ticketmaster.com, at Ticketmaster outlets or by calling 883-7800.