It took the snow to slow things down enough for me to get caught up to where I can actually write a blog for the PCS site. I know I’ve been absent, basically since the sites inception, and the blog page has been looking like the shelf of a Cuban bodega, EMPTY, but I’ve finally made it and I will be here on a regular basis from now on, I promise!! “Más vale tarde que nunca” as they say! It’s not like there has been lack of blog content around here, which is why I’ve been absent I guess.

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Since the sites inception, we put out The Yumatics debut CD, 90 Miles to Yuma (available here) which I will be blogging about quite a bit in the coming weeks and month.

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We formed Machete Men, whose debut concert at The Sellwood Waterfront Park had over 2,000 in attendance (July 29th 2013); we put on Machete Men’s epic Día de La Raza show at The Goodfoot with our buddies 1000 Fuegos (October 12th 2013)

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The summer of 2013 saw the resurgence of our labels initiators, Caña Son, who performed the final concert of the season at the Washington Park Amphitheater to a record crowd of over 4,500 rabid fans of Cuban beats (August 10th 2013)

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As the fall of 2013 settled in we began writing and producing the preproduction demo of Machete Men’s debut CD and in late December 2013 nearly the entire line-up of macheteros (band members of Machete Men) invaded Havana to record said debut album with veteran record producer Nicolas Sirgado (Soneros de Verdad, Orquesta Thermidor, Conexcion Salsera); which brings us pretty much up to date because we’ve literally just returned from Havana 2 weeks ago. Man, I’m exhausted just writing all that shit!! It has taken me these past 2 weeks to recuperate from the trip. It was one of those journeys that require a vacation to recuperate. The undertaking included 95 hours in 12 days of tracking, 20 musicians and about as many genres, all on little sleep or nourishment and augmented with heavy doses of beer, rum, tobacco, carbon monoxide, malt liquor, chicken blood and “other substances”.

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When I got off the plane in Mexico City, I went straight to the pharmacy and got a shot of meds in each butt cheek and a 5-day dose of antibiotics. I continued coughing up Lucky Charms for the rest of January and am only now able to walk a straight line and pass a Breathalyzer. It was pretty amazing!! We saw around 8 shows, went to a few house parties, bathed in the Caribbean and even got to go to church!! Cuba fucking rules!! Sorry, I just blurted it out so I had to write it!! Some of the memories are still so vivid… and some are a little blurry, but we’ll get to all that soon enough.

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Again, I would like to welcome you all to this first of what will be a regular and on going Pure Cuban Sugar blog, if you like, follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and let other know about what’s going on!! Hasta pronto mi gente!

-JUANITO