This is the story of NOKA.Begoña, Andrea, and Cathy Petrissans are members of the group NOKA. They have recorded three albums and are currently working on their fourth. While their music is rooted in Basque tradition, going back hundreds of years, their sound is also influenced by the Basque American culture of California.  


Photo:NOKA singers Cathy Petrissans, Andrea Bidart, and Begoña Echeverría were accompanied by Basque guitar player Mikel Markez at the 2016 Folklife Festival. Photo by Josh Weilepp, Ralph Rinzler Folklife Archives

NOKA will perform throughout the 2016 Folklife Festival as part of both the Basque: Innovation by Culture and Sounds of California programs. On July 1, they will headline the evening concert on the Ralph Rinzler Concert Stage.

This audio essay was produced by Betto Arcos, and edited and mixed by Eric Pearse-Chavez (Nico Tolza). Arcos is a music journalist based in Los Angeles and a regular contributor to NPR and PRI-BBC’s The World. His weekly podcast, The Cosmic Barrio with Betto Arcos, features music from all over the world.

The Story of Noka

Julian Porte's piece is part of the "Everydaze Series."

This second chapter will capture the life of Julian Porte; he is also a first generation American. Julian’s father is Austrian and his mother is from Mexico.   He has been playing his music on the streets of Los Angeles making a living and sometimes struggling with homelessness. He founded Everydaze Music a year and a half ago opening a much need platform for local bands to play their music. This chapter will cover the musical diversity that has organically developed in Everydaze and what will happen if this unique platform would disappear.

On Everydaze:
Everydaze Music is the first thrift store and artist cooperative in East LA. It was opened just over a year and half ago and at this point in time it’s on the verge of closing down because of lack of funds and outside pressure from big commercial stores. 

The store is located in the historic Whittier Blvd. where during the 20’s and 30’s it was known as theatre Blvd. and you can still see many art deco facades today. The neighborhood also saw the birth of low-riders, cruising, Chicano activism, it was known as the "Mexican Ellis Island” of the west coast, and has had a long history of gang violence.

The store is comprised of four rooms; the storefront, the center which transforms into an artist space and in the back there are two recording studios. 
There are eight kids taking turns to run the shop, the studios are rented out to bands for practice and once or twice a month an event is organized with local bands to promote the store and make some extra cash. 

Everydaze Music has become a platform to launch music careers outside the thriving silver lake/echo park rock community that has long been a staple within the Los Angeles music scene.

There we would follow the lives of three musicians that live and work at Everydaze Music. The majority of them are first generation kids of immigrant parents that are trying to make a living in the cooperative. Day in and day out they push their luck running a hipster style thrift store in the heart of East LA, a very unusual business for the area. They are making psychedelic 60's stile music while at the same time discovering what it takes to be a 21st century artist in LA. Many of these artists have been homeless and struggled with various forms of addiction. Previous traumas, whether returning from war, unemployment, broken families, are all essential aspects of the creative process that fuel their art but is it enough to make a living. The three chapters in the series will have the titles of the names of each musician: Chris, Adrian and Julian.

Everydaze Series - Julian Porte

Chris Mercado's piece is part of the "Everydaze Series."

This first chapter would cover the life of Christopher Mercado who is a first generation American both his parents emigrated from Mexico. He was born with a very rare condition called situs inversus totalis, which means his internal organs developed on the opposite side of his body from their normal positions. He is a young musician who is trying to survive working in the store while making music with his band The Madwalls. This first chapter would introduce the store and the precarious financial situation its in. 

On Everydaze:
Everydaze Music is the first thrift store and artist cooperative in East LA. It was opened just over a year and half ago and at this point in time it’s on the verge of closing down because of lack of funds and outside pressure from big commercial stores. 

The store is located in the historic Whittier Blvd. where during the 20’s and 30’s it was known as theatre Blvd. and you can still see many art deco facades today. The neighborhood also saw the birth of low-riders, cruising, Chicano activism, it was known as the "Mexican Ellis Island” of the west coast, and has had a long history of gang violence.

The store is comprised of four rooms; the storefront, the center which transforms into an artist space and in the back there are two recording studios. 
There are eight kids taking turns to run the shop, the studios are rented out to bands for practice and once or twice a month an event is organized with local bands to promote the store and make some extra cash. 

Everydaze Music has become a platform to launch music careers outside the thriving silver lake/echo park rock community that has long been a staple within the Los Angeles music scene.

There we would follow the lives of three musicians that live and work at Everdaze Music. The majority of them are first generation kids of immigrant parents that are trying to make a living in the cooperative. Day in and day out they push their luck running a hipster style thrift store in the heart of East LA, a very unusual business for the area. They are making psychedelic 60's stile music while at the same time discovering what it takes to be a 21st century artist in LA. Many of these artists have been homeless and struggled with various forms of addiction. Previous traumas, whether returning from war, unemployment, broken families, are all essential aspects of the creative process that fuel their art but is it enough to make a living. The three chapters in the series will have the titles of the names of each musician: Chris, Adrian and Julian.

Everydaze Series - Chris Mercado

Adrian Aguilar's piece is part of the "Everydaze Series."

The third chapter would record the life of Adrian; he is a third generation American native to East LA. He loves to draw and currently makes a living as a tattoo artist in the store. He is the lead guitarist in one of the local bands. Adrian was part of the first army units that entered Bagdad after Sadam Hussein was toppled from power in 2003. This chapter will capture the significance of East Los Angeles and present path of gentrification with all the good and all the bad.   



On Everydaze:
Everydaze Music was the first thrift store and artist cooperative in East LA. It was opened in 2014 and is now closed due to lack of funds and outside pressure from big commercial stores. 

The store is located in the historic Whittier Blvd. During the 20’s and 30’s it was known as "Theatre Blvd. and you can still see many remaining art deco facades today. The neighborhood also saw the birth of low-riders, cruising, Chicano activism, it was known as the "Mexican Ellis Island” of the west coast, and has had a long history of gang violence.

The store is comprised of four rooms; the storefront, the center which transforms into an artist space and in the back there are two recording studios. 
There are eight kids taking turns to run the shop, the studios are rented out to bands for practice and once or twice a month an event is organized with local bands to promote the store and make some extra cash. 

Everydaze Music became a platform to launch music careers outside the thriving Silver Lake/Echo Park rock community that has long been a staple within the Los Angeles music scene.

There, we followed the lives of three musicians that live and work at Everydaze Music. The majority of them are first generation kids of immigrant parents that are trying to make a living in the cooperative. Day in and day out they push their luck running a hipster style thrift store in the heart of East LA, a very unusual business for the area. They are making psychedelic 60's stile music while at the same time discovering what it takes to be a 21st century artist in LA. Many of these artists have been homeless and struggled with various forms of addiction. Previous traumas, whether returning from war, unemployment, broken families, are all essential aspects of the creative process that fuel their art but is it enough to make a living. The three chapters in the series will have the titles of the names of each musician: Chris, Adrian and Julian.

Everydaze Series - Adrian Aguilar

The story of a man who crossed the Mexico/United States border to find a  better future for his family and encountered terrible barriers...

La Burrada

Episode 1 of 2

Maya Ghazal, a Mexican musician tells history about playing Chopin at an early age to completing his new album "Venado Alterado." Maya talks about Mexican society, living in Palestine and the struggle of pursuing his art. 

Work in process June 2018, edited on Ableton Live.

Find his album here: 
https://mayaghazal.com/art/music/venado/

Maya Ghazal Episode 1

Episode 2 of 2

Maya Ghazal, a Mexican musician tells history about playing Chopin at an early age to completing his new album "Venado Alterado." Maya talks about Mexican society, living in Palestine and the struggle of pursuing his art.

Work in process June 2018, edited on Ableton Live.

Find his album here:
mayaghazal.com/art/music/venado/

Maya Ghazal Episode 2

Bay Side Stories - Capitulo 1

Independent radio producer, journalist, and photographer with a background in KCRW, NPR, The Smithsonian, PRI's "The World," and Radio Ambulante.

Eric Pearse Chavez

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