Santé Les Amis were one of 2014’s indie latino breakthrough acts with special help from an appeareance of FIFA‘s soundtrack. Their tropical charm has opened a huge path for them to explore outside little Uruguay. So before having them back in the US for a show in Santa Fe with Little Jesus and Bomba Estéreo on June 6th, we talked their very own Diego Traverso, who gave us a tour through South America’s indie scene. Check it out below.

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LifeBoxset: How did 2014 treated you?

Santé Les Amis: “We had an overall great reception. That always surprises us. Last year we had the chance to play on the East Coast in the US and then go down to Mexico. We went to LAMC and there we played a bunch of really cool showcases. We’re glad to be back this year.

Uruguay is pretty far so every time we travel we try to make the most out of it. Having a song on FIFA’s soundtrack gave the band a lot of exposure. Our album Sudamericana came out on the US thanks to Nacional Records and that helped us reach a bigger audience. We’re currently working on a new album and we’re really excited about our trip to Los Angeles.”

L: What can you tell us about the indie scene in Uruguay? How would you describe it?

SLA: “Fortunately right now it is a very efervescent scene. We have some years down the road, but there are a lot of doors opening for new bands. There’ve been some success stories with some rock bands like No Te Va Gustar. This guys just went to Argentina and sold out 2 stadiums with more than 80,000 people. Cuarteto de Nos are also very succesful, they tour a lot in Colombia and Mexico. La Vela Puerca is another band with great success.

Nowadays, there are a lot of new bands with a more modern sound coming up. Up until the mid 90’s Uruguay was almost only influenced by classic rock.

There’s a new project called Campo, which just played in Mexico, and we really like it. Hablan Por La Espalda, some hip-hop projects… there’s a lot going on. It used to be really hard for a band from our country to tour in other places, but doors are opening.

This also has a lot to do with how our country has socially changed through the last 10 years. Regulating abortions, equal marriage rights, and legalizing marihuana all have affected us socially and of course, artistically.”

L: What are some venues we must go to if visiting Uruguay?

SLA: “La Trastienda is a pretty big venue that always has national and international talent on the bill. Locally there’s a place called Bluzz Live that always has good shows. There’s also a boliche where we play often called Paullier y Guaná. It’s really cool because it offers a lot of different genres in the same place.”

L: And how about Argentina? Do you have friends there?

SLA: We do. There’s a band called Onda Vaga who are great pals. After recording Sudarmericana we did a free remix and cover album you can get on our website and they did their own version of “Brasil”, our greatest hit there. We’re also friends with Mompox a really cool band that has played Vive Latino.

L: Let’s talk about Brasil… the country, not your song. What does it mean for you?

SLA: “Brasil” was named that way because of the drums groove that our drummer Esteban created for it. But at the same time the title fitted just right because for us Brasil is a reminder of our summer vacations being young. When I talk about that country I remeber my childhood, my father… I have a very special connection with it.”

L: What are you missing as a band?

SLA: “To play Vive Latino. All of the bands from Latin American indie scene play there and we’d love to be a part of that.

L: What can you tell us about the new album?

SLA: “We’re preproducing the new record. In about a month or so we’ll hit the studio and see how it goes. We expect to have something ready by this year’s end for a spring release.”