About
Carlitos Way is a Latin band for hire in Melbourne, VIC.
Timbales, congas, trumpet, saxophone, keys, bass and two lead voices: Carlitos Way put a full eight piece Cuban salsa band on Melbourne stages. Carlito, lead singer and percussionist, comes from Cuba and trained at a conservatory there; co-lead Alessia is an Italian born singer and salsa dancer. The core repertoire is Cuban timba, but they'll also rework familiar English and Italian songs into salsa arrangements, which tends to pull even the shy dancers up. Weddings, parties and dance school showcases all suit. Wherever they play, the aim is a dance floor that doesn't empty.
The show
Eight musicians, and you feel the percussion before you work out what's happening. Timbales, congas, trumpet, sax, keys, bass and two lead voices playing Cuban timba, plus familiar English and Italian songs rebuilt as salsa arrangements. That last trick is what gets the reluctant people up, because they recognise the song before they realise they're dancing to it. Weddings, birthdays and dance school nights are the usual bookings. Expect the floor to stay busy.
On the day
This is a full band, so the sound requirements are real. Piano and backing vocal go through a DI plus one mic. Drums want one or two condensers and three SM57s for the campana and timbales. Congas take two 57s. Trumpet and saxophone need a mic each, bass runs a DI with a mic on the amp and one for backing vocal, and each lead singer needs their own mic. Send this to your venue or sound company early.
Performance options
The band comes as an eight piece, and the one variable worth settling early is sound. Carlitos Way can bring the full system themselves, or work with whatever the venue already has in place. Sort that out when you enquire and everything else falls into line around it.
Song list
Cuban Timba
