Carlos Nino: Follows Through
Oct 15th, 2006 by Chris
Carlos Nino is a man of two very different natures. On one hand, he is very much the kind of guy who talks about vibrations, cooperatives, and describes music that touches him as magical. But whereas many of the idealists he shares a vocabulary with fall short when it comes to execution, there is another side to Carlos that makes him an exception. Carlos Nino doesn’t just talk in ideas, he makes them happen.
“If he wants to do something, he’ll get it done,” says Fabian Ammon Alston, Carlos’ long-time friend and partner in the group Ammoncontact. “When we were in high school and he thought about getting a radio gig, he started moving in that direction. Next thing you know he’s got a successful show that he’s been doing for close to ten years. When we were first making beats and I bought my first ASR-10. At that point, I was like, ‘Ok, we’ll make a couple beats and laugh at them and whatever.’ But he was already talking about making an album, and it happened… When he puts his mind to something, he gets it done, no matter what.”
The radio show is Spaceways on KPFK (90.7fm) in Los Angeles. For more than a decade, Carlos has brought his vision of music to his listeners. He says, “I play music that I feel is soulful. I play music that I feel is worthwhile. I’m not really into music that sounds good on a certain level, but then has no content. I really try to support music that is about being courageous on all the levels because I feel like it’s all connected.” But beyond providing him with an outlet to express his musical ideals, his radio program has served as a foundation for Nino’s varied excursions into the world of music. “All my relationships started there,” Nino says of his show. The radio show allowed him to network with like-minded artists. At a very early point in his radio career, Spaceways also provided an introduction that would yield one of Carlos’ most important relationships both musically and otherwise.
Carlos Nino met Dwight Trible backstage after one of Trible’s shows with the Pan-African People’s Orchestra almost ten years ago. That much both say. But their recollections of the events are a bit off. “I approached him after I first heard him,” Carlos remembers. “I got my way backstage at a concert and asked him to come on my radio show… When I heard [him] and we first started to connect, it was evident that we would be working together for a long time.”
On Trible’s side of things, the initial connection took a little longer. “We were doing a concert over at the Vision Theatre,” Dwight recalls, “and Carlos came up to me and was talking to me about how much he loved and appreciated what we just did and he asked me could I come on his radio program. Of course, ten years ago Carlos was very very young and so I figured he had a radio program in his school or something. So I told him, ‘Hey man, if I can get the guys in the group to come then we’ll do it.’ But I figured that when I called all the guys in the group, that if it wasn’t about a paying gig, then most likely they would tell me no and that would be my way of letting Carlos off easy. So I called all the guys in the group and asked them what they were doing on that night and I told them about a radio program and they all said they was free. So I said, ‘Ah shit, now I got to go.’”
The difference can be chalked up to their perspective. Nino was, and to some extent remains, an unfettered idealist. He believes in the power of music, and cooperation between the people who create it. Trible on the other hand is a veteran of the ‘70s era music scene, where people weren’t always what they claimed and the artist all-too-often came out on the bottom of virtually every deal. But this young kid taught him something almost right away.
“So I told Carlos that we could do it,” Dwight says. “I still didn’t have any idea what type of radio he was talking about. To my surprise Carlos, this young kid, had a radio program on one of the biggest public radio stations in Los Angeles. And I’m like, ‘Ain’t this a bitch.’ This guy’s running this radio program and I was just astounded. Then I started getting nervous like, ‘Oh shit, we’re getting ready to go do a live concert on the radio and everybody in L.A. is going to hear it.’ That was one of the times that really let me know that you have to give everybody their due respect.”
The relationship that began with a wide-eyed kid and a cynical music veteran has become a fundamental one for both men. “Our relationship has been part father-son, partially collaborative, partially producer-artist,” Carlos says. “But in general, we’re friends and he’s been a major part of my life.” Trible is even more effusive about the younger man saying, “He’s my angel… just an amazing amazing amazing man.”
Musically, the pair have seldom worked completely separately since their introduction. Dwight has either been featured or guested on virtually every project Carlos has been involved in. From Ammoncontact, to Life Force Trio (which sees Carlos partnered with Trible’s long-time drummer, Dexter Story), to Build an Ark, and Hu Vibrational. Yes, I just listed four different acts that Nino plays a leading role in. That’s not to mention the work he does producing for other artists. The man keeps a lot of plates spinning. Or as Trible says, “The guy is never not busy.”
From a musical standpoint, Nino’s work can best be summed up as “substantial.” The music he creates means something. Both to him and he hopes to the listener. From the hip-hop dominated Ammoncontact, to the soulful jazz of Life Force Trio, to the more spiritually tinted Hu Vibrational and Build an Ark, Nino wants to touch people. “I’m trying to be an example,” he says, “of what I would consider a very conscious and open and loving vibration that I feel like we all need to experience and allow to come through us as much as possible. All the stuff we write about like ‘Love is the answer’ and ‘Peace with every step’, all these themes are the themes we’re living by in our lives and that’s why we do the music that we do… I’m very interested in trying to make music that’s coming from my heart.”
Is it idealistic? Of course it is, but when he says it the cynic in you melts away and really believes him. When Carlos tells you, “It’s not about money, or fame, or worldly ambitions,” it is not only incredibly refreshing to hear, but also absolutely in earnest. He believes with all his heart that he is on Earth to create meaningful music. The stuff he calls “the most powerful healing force.” If that means riches then great. If it means poverty, that’s fine too. At one point, Alston makes a point that illustrates Carlos’ commitment to his course. “Just to show you his dedication,” Alston says, “he had a great gig here as far as running the Temple Bar circuit [Temple Bar, Little Temple, and Zanzibar] and that was a great paying gig for him. But he left that because he wanted to dedicate himself to what he wanted to do in producing music.”
Apparently, what Nino wanted to do was work with everyone all at once. Asked about his hectic work schedule, he downplays it. “When you work with a bunch of different groups and things all work well,” he explains, “you kind of think to yourself like ‘I really want to go in this direction and fully develop this and travel all over the world and make a bunch of records’, but then you realize that there’s time to do it all.”
What you have to remember when thinking of Carlos’ prolific musical portfolio is that this is not work to him. It is literally the only thing he’s ever wanted to do. And in doing what he feels called to do, he is empowered. “I’ve always known what I was here to do,” he says. “I’ve felt a very strong calling to do exactly what it is I’m doing in my life since I was able to remember anything or had any kind of real consciousness. I always knew it was going to be in this field, in this kind of way. So I find a lot of strength in the faith I have that I’ve been right in listening to that call.” Music is his continuity. It is the defining thread of a man rapidly approaching his 30th birthday. Music is what connects the 6th grader that started collecting records to the young man who teamed up with his best friend to make music to the full-fledged grown-up who is dedicated to infusing everything he does with a conscience.
Trible sums Nino up neatly, saying “He’s not from the school that I come from. After you’ve been through as much as I’ve been through with the business, you don’t expect very much and you have a tendency to think that nothing’s going to materialize. But Carlos, he does not understand the word ‘can’t.’ That’s not in his thought process at all. I’ve never seen him have an idea that he’s not able to pull off. It’s amazing really.”
Alston adds, “You might think something’s a little too grand, but give him just a little bit of time and he’s there. It’s done.”
His dual nature is unlikely. Progressive idealism is not often paired with blue collar work-ethic, much less in a musician. But as in so many other areas of life, it is the rare nature that facilitates the success. Carlos Nino works hard without getting worn down. He thinks large without becoming an unproductive dreamer. But most of all, he loves music and he makes music for other people who love it as much as he does. It means something to him and that’s what makes it so special.
