Nocando deserves your attention. Even if it’s just for this one song, he’s got a message that needs to be heard. To say “El Camino” is just about the famous Chevy is like saying The Godfather is just about gangster sh*t. In fact, the two have a lot in common. Both detail the American Dream, the promises of a country, and the steps taken to compensate when that dream wasn’t quite as advertised.
“El Camino” starts at a whisper, crescendos to a yell, and then ends in a roar. Like Vito Corleone, the Los Angeles representative finds himself a tad disillusioned with his country. Whether its economic disparity, racism, or just the sacrifices he’s had to make living in the City of Angels, homie is mad as hell and he’s not going to take it anymore.
“All I ever wanted was a Chevy El Camino
I became an alcoholic unemployed it crushed my ego
Had a good job but they sent it overseas so
To make ends meet I did a lot of things, some illegal“
It’s a righteous anger, eerily similar to the fire that pushed a young Eminem. In fact, the cadence and way of building toward an outburst are directly out of the Eminem playbook. But it’s not a bite because it feels extremely honest and genuine. This has the feel of a cat who could only do this song one way as it probably bubbled inside him for days, months, or possibly years.
It’s a great song that no doubt reflects how many are feeling as we’re more than halfway through 2016. Some people want to change the world and some want to watch it burn. But there are those who want it to burn in order for something better to rise from the ashes. Nocando counts himself among that group.
And he still doesn’t have his El Camino.
