Pistolera

Somewhere between Lila Downs and Julieta Venegas lies Pistolera, a New York-based band with a hand in the downtown scene but its heart caught up by the cumbias and rancheras of lead singer Sandra Velazquez's Mexican heritage. The group's neither as convincingly overwrought as Downs nor as effortlessly tuneful as Venegas, but we bet they put on a hell of a show, and En Este Camino has brought their alt-folklorico sound increasing media attention. Now somebody just needs to light a fire under Pistolera's behind -- or ply them with a massive amount of tequila -- to get the party started.