Mexican singer Reik performs at the 10th annual Latin Grammy awards in Las Vegas, Nevada November 5, 2009.
Credit: Reuters/Mario AnzuoniBy Justino AguilaFri Jun 17, 2011 7:34pm EDT
NEW YORK (Billboard) - The members of Reik were in their mid-teens when they launched their pop music careers in 2004. It was an exciting time, but they concede that they were young and inexperienced.
Now the three Mexican-born friends-lead vocalist Jesus Alberto Navarro, acoustic guitarist Julio Ramirez Eguia and electric guitarist Giberto "Bibi" Marin-are preparing to release their fifth album, "Peligro," a project that shows how much they've matured musically in intervening years.
"When we first started out, the label wanted us to be the boys next door," said Navarro, now 24. "That idea was never big on us."
As youths, they had little control of their music, but still managed an impressive debut album: "Reik" has sold 138,000 copies since its 2005 release, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and peaked at No. 13 on Billboard's Latin Pop Albums chart. In August 2006, "Sesion Metropolitanta" also peaked at No. 13.
The band followed up with albums "Secuencia," which reached No. 12, at the end of 2006, and "Un Dia Mas," which hit No. 3 in October 2008. Between late 2005 and this month, the band has landed eight top 10s on the Latin Pop Airplay chart, including the 2009 No. 2 hit "Inolvidable" and the current "Peligro," which is No. 8 this week. The Sony Music Latin album is due July 5.
Reik's members hail from Mexicali, a city in Baja California, where they grew up bilingual, bicultural and straddling two cultures.
"Duality plays a big role in their music," their manager Miguel Trujillo said. "But I don't think they're trying to imitate other bands."
For "Peligro," Trujillo assembled several producers, including Kiko Cibrian, Ettore Grenci and Chachorro Lopez, who have worked with some of Latin music's biggest names, including, respectively, Luis Miguel, Reyli and Julieta Venegas.
"Our egos were locked up," Cibrian said of the album's collaborative effort. "It doesn't always work that way, especially when you're trying to be creative."
Sony U.S. Latin president Ruben Leyva is so enthusiastic about Reik's new album that the label is scheduled to release two songs in English: "Play With Fire" and "It's Over," which will translate as "No Te Quiero Olividar" and "A Ciegas." Eventually, the band would like to take its music beyond Mexico and the United States.
"There's more edge to Reik now," Leyva said. "There are new elements to their sound, but they are still Reik. Their songs are very strong." The current album introduces electronic elements and an orchestra, as means toward a more sophisticated sound.
For lead singer Navarro, who co-wrote many of the album's songs, the idea that the band is taking a new direction without losing its signature sound is satisfying.
"I'm in a good place," Navarro said. "Now it's time for the fans to decide."
(Editing by Zorianna Kit)
