R
oberto Carlos Lange’s music, performed under the moniker Helado Negro, celebrates his Latin heritage in ways both obvious — he often sings in Spanish and there’s a breezily funky vibe to his textured electronic soundscapes — and subverting — his lyrics tend toward personal ambiguities and his song structures frequently jump off in unexpected directions.
The child of Ecuadorian immigrants, Lange grew up immersed in the culture clash that was South Florida in the 1980s. He’s been writing and producing music
under various guises since the late ’90s, but it wasn’t until he began recording as Helado
Negro that Lange became more widely
known, releasing four increasingly nuanced
full-length albums since 2009. His most recent record, 2014’s Double Youth, was
another satisfying refinement in his ability to create computer-generated music that is simultaneously intimate and otherworldly. Read CityBeat's interview with Lange here.
Helado Negro performs Friday at the Contemporary Arts Center. Tickets/more info: contemporaryartscenter.org.
