It was a music masterclass with Aleks Syntek on Sunday night at the Aztec Theater in San Antonio. The now iconic 53 year-old Mexican pop-rock star is celebrating his 30 year career with a greatest hits trek across the United States. While this was the fourth consecutive day of shows on tour this weekend, he still delivered an energetic set that had people singing and dancing all night long.
Syntek kicked things off with ‘El Camino’ from his 1993 album Mas Fuerte De Lo Que Pensaba before going into fan-favorite ‘Duele El Amor’ – his backing vocalist Vale Cox joining in to cover Ana Torroja’s parts. His band is composed mostly of female muscians with the exception of musical director and guitarist Javier Calderon. Their chemistry on stage was evident throughout the 90-minute show; they put the music at the forefront of it all and seemingly enjoyed playing it as if it was the first time.
Fehr Rivas, a young singer from Michoacan, Mexico, opened the show. His tenacity for getting some name recognition, engaging the audience with his unknown songs by teaching them lyrics, and having a great deal of charisma was well-received by the crowd. It was someone really using the opportunity in front of them to take full advantage of it. He then joined Syntek on stage during the latter’s set to perform their new collab ‘Inmortal’ as well as Syntek’s 2001 hit ‘Por Volverte A Ver.’
Taking fans down memory lane and splashing them with some nostalgia, Syntek even included in an acoustic bit of the show his song ‘Yo Soy Tu Amigo Fiel,’ the translated version of ‘You’ve Got A Friend In Me’ from Toy Story, and the theme song to the TV show La Familia P. Luche. He took time during this moment in the show to address his infamous comments from 2018 about disliking Reggaeton saying “My comments were miscontrued by the press and they started publishing stories that were false. I simply don’t like that kind of music.”
He then did a brilliant three-punch of his biggest hits ‘Sexo, Pudor, y Lagrimas,’ ‘Tu Necesitas,’ and ‘De Noche En La Ciudad.’ The disco-infused ‘Tu Necesito’ included bits of English-language oldies such as ‘Good Times,’ ‘Get Down On It,’ and ‘Stayin’ Alive.’ While these songs definitely brought the energy up in a significant way, the highlight of the night was when he closed his main set on the keyboard with his 2007 hit ‘Intocable’ which prompted the loudest sing-a-long of the night. He would later return for a covers encore of ‘El Ataque De Las Chicas Cocodrilo’ by Hombres G and ‘Viviendo De Noche’ by Veni Vidi Vici.
A true musician at heart, Syntek showcased his multi-talented gifts as he celebrated his long standing career. The 3D Ecadas Tour is an ode to doing what you love. With music being his one true love, there was no need for any bells and whistles. The lack of production simply put an emphasis on the music – and that is what it is all about.
The tour continues with dates in Las Vegas, San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
