Preview: Ximena Sarinana at The Basement
Had Feist continued on her trajectory toward bubbly musical BFF after the breakout success of "1,2,3,4," she might have ended up in the same territory Mexican singer-songwriter Ximena Sarinana traverses in "Different," the whistling positivity bomb that introduces her self-titled sophomore album (her first in English).
Sarinana, a telenovela and movie actress-turned-critical darling musician, is impossibly cute and camera-ready, but her album is not some superficial star vehicle. It frequently bridges the gap between sleek, sexy club music and jazz-pop of the Norah Jones variety, usually with aplomb, always under a radio-ready umbrella.
She brings strange universes together; not many people rub elbows with both Diplo and Jason Mraz. She dates The Mars Volta's Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and co-wrote "Different" with Rancid's Tim Armstrong. Lily Allen producer Greg Kurstin and TV on the Radio's Dave Sitek applied the shine.
Sounds like the kind of artist you'd be wise to see in a tiny room like The Basement, where she'll play Tuesday with Graffiti 6 and Jackie & The Stabbs. -Chris DeVille
The Basement
7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 20
391 Neil Ave., Arena District