Profile MWA- The Marías- A Beacon of Songwriting

Asael Leyva-Guaderrama

Valdez Engl 1120

While single artists have predominately held influence over societal norms and cultures,

an Indie band out of L.A. seems to be out to change not only the way in which music is

experienced but the entire songwriting process held by production studios. The Marias, lead by

lead singer María Zardoya, have a unique sound and feel not found among other artists, one

which aims to shake the music industry’s established norms.

The Marías, established in Los Angeles, CA in 2016, is primarily composed of lead

singer María Zardoya and drummer Josh Conway. The band initially formed with an offered

entrance into the business of Television music arrangements but chose to pursue an artistic path

after the Television career was unable to materialize. With their focus geared towards producing

musical arrangements, they sought out close friends to join the band and recruited Jesse Perlman

(Lead Guitarist), Carter Lee (Bassist), and Edwards James (Keys). In “How I Play: The Marías

on Collaboration and the Power of Writing Songs”, an interview with Fender’s Mike Duffy, their

music is described as being geared towards portraying "a smooth rendezvous of jazz percussion,

hypnotic guitar riffs, and smoke velvet vocals", with their first album 'Superclass Vol.I' being

described as having "hints of psychedelic dream pop, sultry bossa nova, smooth R&B, bouncy

funk, and mellow jazz, providing the perfect bed for frontwoman María's hypnotic vocals (both

in Spanish and English)."

The Marías first Album 'SuperClean Vol.I' dropped in 2017 consisting of 6 songs (I Don't

Know You, Basta Ya, I Like It, Only in My Dreams, Superclean, and Déjate Llevar). Their
Second album 'SuperClean Vol.II' released in 2018 following their US Tour. The inspiration

behind the music in their first album, as described by María, was her relationship with Josh. In

“Why the bilingual Marías are ‘the perfect indie band for L.A. kids’”, an interview with Micheal

Wood of LA Times, María stated that "We’ve had ups and downs, but at the end of the day, we

love each other and love creating together. And I think that it shows in what we write." She says

collaboration and relating to real experience is a major driver for the band. Allowing everyone in

the band to provide their perspective on the music their writing allows them to "(make) it

different than what you could've come up with on your own” (Fender 2018).

This unique take on songwriting is drawn from experiences and emotions they may have

encountered during the songwriting process. From films, cultural heritage, and other songs, The

Marías have an open-minded policy when compiling inspiration for new music. Their sound and

genre came "very early on and naturally" as stated in onestowatch’s “Q&A: The Marías Craft

Sensual & Timeless Music That Will Make You Fall in Love (or Lust)”, which The Marías think

comes from the special chemistry they share with one another. They love to pay heritage to

certain personal things, as seen through their song 'Cariño' which pays tribute to the 60s New

Wave Cinema. Their fusion of physical and emotional inspiration from their life experiences lead

to a fusion of Spanish and English music, with multiple Spanish exclusive tracks being published

The decision to make a track in Spanish comes "naturally" and is never planned, María noted and

hopes the inclusion of Spanish tracks provides an insight into Latin culture and serves as a

passage through which they can unify more people culturally.

This interest and focus on the emotional experiences of their members are what sets apart

the band from the rest of the contemporary artists and bands. In Music and Society, Ellie

Seigmeister argues that “Music is Spiritual not Material”. Ellie notes that while many often refer
to music as being a difficult aspect of society to define, it is often “essentially a spiritual thing”

(2). This approach to music as being an experience driven by emotional arousal is used by The

Marías to allow their audience to experience their music and the emotions held behind the

socially constructed barriers of music. According to Thomson and Jean Cook in their article

“Artist Revenue Streams: A Multi-Method Research Project Examining Changes in Musicians’

Sources of Income”, our society is thriving in an “era of unparalleled opportunity enabled by

technology, where an individual musician can easily record a song, upload it to a server,

distribute it across many platforms”(100). The Marías identify the access to platforms like

Spotify and Soundcloud as major stepping stones in the right direction for the music industry

while noting that the creation of music must not be solely focused on the economics of it all, but

rather on the entertainment and creation of memory for their listener.

For the future of the band, they plan to continue and produce their third album without a

record label. Although they aren't opposed to the idea of teaming with a label, Maria stated in an

interview with LA Times "I don’t think there are many bands that have a female Latin singer

with a bunch of white Jewish guy" (LA Times 2019) and hopes her band serves as an inspiration

for newer generations who share diverse backgrounds. They aim to stir the ‘mixing pot’ of the

music industry and hope for a future where music can serve as a way for people to heal and share

memories. Through their music, The Marías has been able to build an intimate community with

people across the world of varying backgrounds, “What we’ve seen and experienced — I want

the music to show that” (LA Times 2019).

Cited Work

Cook, Jean, Thomson, Kristin. “Artist Revenue Streams: A Multi-Method Research Project

Examining Changes in Musicians’ Sources of Income”. RETHINKING MUSIC,

Cambridge, MA: Harvard University, 2011. Web.

Duffy, Mike. “How I Play: The Marías on Collaboration and the Power of Writing Songs”.

Fender, 2018. Web.

Ochoa, John. "There's Something About The Marías " Vice, 2018. Web.

Polo, Maxamillion. “Q&A: The Marías Craft Sensual & Timeless Music That Will Make You

Fall in Love (or Lust) / Ones To Watch.” Ones To Watch,2018. Web.

Siegmeister, Ellie. “Music and Society”, 1938. Web.

Wood, Mikael. “Why the Bilingual Marías Are 'the Perfect Indie Band for L.A. Kids'”. Los

Angeles Times, 2019. Web