Arath Herce is in his studio in Mexico City, wearing an unbuttoned black shirt, jeans, and a silver chain with a single charm. He touches his face repeatedly, trying to hide his genuine shyness and saying things like, “I guess death haunts us all. It’s the only thing that makes life meaningful.
” Talking about life and death might not sit well with everyone, but it works for Herce. To some, his music can be pretty rock-oriented. However, his ability to intertwine poetic lines like, “I’d like to buy the rain / At whatever cost” with arpeggiated guitars and delirious piano keys produces a sound that recalls the Argentinian sounds of the late Seventies.
Latin American artists are starting to name him as an influence when it comes to writing songs in Spanish. He’s the kind of artist who isn’t interested in pandering to the recording establishment, and he’s certainly not begging for attention from luxury labels. He seems more interested in telling stories to find answers through them.
Although his parents were not professional musicians, his father used to play the guitar, and his mother was deep in literature and poetry. “I guess it all comes from those two worlds; my mom was more poetic, and my dad was more rock & roll,” he says. His father introduced him to the world of videos and songs by Elvis Presley , the Rolling Stones, and the Beatles .
Meanwhile, he analyzed song lyrics with his mother; she taught him how to break down and interpret the meaning of ea.
