By Jordan Melnick | November 4th, 2010 | 2 Comments

At Churchill’s last night, Arboles Libres did me two good turns. First guitarist Eddie Moreno tracked me down to give me my phone, which I’d left on the bar out back and didn’t even know I was missing. Then, Moreno and his two band mates — guitarist/vocalist/harmonica player Juan “Nacho” Londono and drummer Anthony Genovese — roused the folk rocker who slumbers in my soul with their brand of sincere, crescendoing, simple music.

Like another great rock trio, the Violent Femmes, Arboles Libres combine the raw energy of rock-n-roll with the sonic clarity of a jazz combo. Their music passes freely from slow and soothing to jumpy to raucous as their lyrics flow from Spanish to English and back again. Within a song or two of their roughly 30-minute set last night, they had breathed oxygen into the small crowd (as arboles, or trees, are wont to do) and moved two chicks, drunk on alcohol and tight tunes, to dance on the stage. (It resembled dancing.) Playing between Jesse Jackson and Rachel Goodrich, Arboles Libres injected several doses of adrenaline into the lineup of top-notch Miami talent and more than held their own. Here are some photos from their set and a video of Arboles Libres — one of the few gems on the Miami Music Festival roster — playing “Comienzos.”



Arboles Libres singer Juan “Nacho” Londono, with dancers at his back



Guitarist and cell-phone savior Eddie Moreno



Drummer Anthony Genovese, getting a lot out of a snare and a bass drum

All photos by Robby Campbell. See more photos HERE.