Talent buyer and sound engineer Matt Cahur, already well-known in the area for his long-standing tenure as guitarist in Jupiter rock band Boxelder, has booked high-profile performers including reggae icons Pato Banton and Julian Marley; regional stars in blues guitarist Jeff Prine and jazz guitarist Bobby Lee Rodgers, and pop stars Less Than Jake and Rob Thomas (of Matchbox 20).
The waterside venue is often particularly crowded for weekend happy hour and evening sets, with audiences spanning a variety of ages and ethnic groups. But on certain nights during the past 10 months, the participants have been even more varied, both on stage and off.
Last October, Cahur teamed with Miami-based musician and publicist Michael Mut to create a Latin music night called Noche Latina, with artists from Miami-Dade County to Cuba to Chile appearing one to three times per month at Guanabanas. And if the shoulder-to-shoulder crowd there on June 24 for renowned veteran Chilean reggae band Gondwana was any indication, Cahur and Mut have started a growing movement.
“We already had a strong Latin contingent coming to the restaurant,” Cahur says, “and I knew there was so much great music coming out of Miami that doesn’t really get showcased up this way. We’re always trying to keep things fresh and offer something different; to not just keep booking the same bands over and over at Guanabanas, Michael’s a friend, and I knew he was very well-connected down there, so we decided to work together on this.”
Mut is the bassist and vocalist for the band Electric Piquete, which will return to Guanabanas in October to open for Miami icons the Spam Allstars as part of Noche Latina’s one-year anniversary party. His group last played there during a 4 p.m. happy hour performance on July 3.
“The band and I are excited to not only be part of the one-year anniversary,” he says, “but to be part of the continued growth and interest in Latin music in Jupiter. Unlike some venues, the people at Guanabanas seem to really listen to and appreciate what we do, and that’s a very good feeling.”
Noche Latina’s popularity has grown as Jupiter’s burgeoning Latin population, and beyond, caught wind of the special monthly shows. Other Miami-based participants have recently included Lanzallamas on June 11, and Jupiter’s own Moska Project torched the open-air venue on June 3. Next up is the Guanabanas debut of Nag Champayons, the self-described “Afrogalactic Tropidelic” band from the Little Haiti section of Miami, on Aug. 19.
“They’re super unique,” says Cahur, “and we look forward to having them and expect a good audience for their sound, which is kind of a jungle Latin vibe. Other Miami bands, like Suenalo and the Spam Allstars, are well established and have helped to define the night for us. It’s become a popular series.”
Cahur also speaks excitedly of international bookings like Gondwana (which has mixed influences like Bob Marley and The Police for nearly 30 years in Chile) and popular Cuban vocalist Danay Suarez, who returns from the island nation in September.
“Gondwana hadn’t toured the United States for close to 10 years, and Danay may be my favorite show of the entire series so far,” Cahur says. “She appeared on April 9, and people came out of the woodwork for her. Some even brought her flowers. Danay doesn’t appear in Florida very often, so her return to Guanabanas qualifies as a special treat. For a lot of people, I’m anticipating after her first time through.”
See Nag Champayons at 9 p.m. on Aug. 19, Danay Suarez at 9 p.m. on Sept. 17, and Electric Piquete at 4 p.m. and the Spam Allstars at 9 p.m. on Oct. 22 for the one-year Noche Latina bash at Guanabanas, 960 N. Highway A1A, Jupiter (561-747-8878).