tag:sgtremo.com,2005:/blogs/king-remo-sound-system-first-of-its-kind-in-san-antonio-texasKing Remo Sound System, First Of Its Kind In San Antonio, Texas2022-12-12T08:29:33-12:00Sgt. Remo Musicfalsetag:sgtremo.com,2005:Post/71217432022-12-12T08:29:33-12:002023-10-16T02:58:28-12:00San Antonio reggae DJ Sgt. Remo’s towering sound system brings island vibrations to the Alamo City<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/1a084f3e770a1da76d31bad46873d05a327ced32/original/1200x0.jpg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p>Sergio Ortiz is a soft-spoken teacher in San Antonio College’s music business program. But as the reggae artist Sgt. Remo, he makes some serious noise with a wall of speakers that looks like Godzilla’s boom box. </p>
<p>For the past four years, Ortiz has delivered a sonic blast to the senses with his King Remo Sound System, a boxy tower of speakers he made from scratch to give San Antonio and other Texas cities a teeth-rattling taste of Jamaican sound system culture, where DJs rock the island streets with stacks of portable speakers.</p>
<p>Ortiz’s custom creation is the first of its kind in San Antonio, a 9-foot-tall behemoth that packs up to 110 decibels and 15,000 watts of big audio dynamite. Its presence can turn any spot into a reggae dance hall with bone-shaking heavy bass and staccato beats.</p>
<p>But Ortiz says the giant sound system is less about volume and more about good vibes, allowing audiophiles and everyday music lovers alike to feel a deeper connection to what’s playing and the culture behind it.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/59e9f5db7d5fa9b264de22e8cc263efd6df3493e/original/1200x0-1.jpg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p>“The whole point of it is to hear music without it hurting you,” said Ortiz, who added that he tries to keep the decibel levels in the 90s, about the equivalent of a roaring motorcycle. </p>
<p>“I mean, it could be pretty nasty and loud, it could do some damage if we wanted to. But the experience is just to be like, ‘Whoa, this sounds heavy’ or ‘listen to the bass line strings,’ stuff you really can’t hear sometimes.</p>
<p>“It’s just about the music, enjoying ourselves and having an experience with the sound system. Because the sound system brings people together.”</p>
<p>Ortiz’s King Remo setup consists of six 18-inch folded horn subwoofers, six 15-inch upper bass cabinets or kick bins, four 12-inch mid-range speakers with horn tweeters and two rows of bullet horn super tweeters, all encased in birch and pine wood. Heavy duty ratchet straps hold everything in place so the sound vibrations don’t shake anything off. </p>
<p>Of course, there’s still plenty of rattling going on with nearby windows — and chest cavities. Ortiz and other reggae artists who use his sound system consider that downright therapeutic.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/2fdf7e904de3345810d33ea08c02ee932af7b655/original/1200x0-2.jpg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p>“The way it hits your ears, mind and body, it sort of gives off these healing vibes,” said Edica Tello, a dub and reggae artist from Brooklyn who used just half of Ortiz’s sound system for a recent gig at Caribbean Mix, a Jamaican bar and grill off Broadway just outside Loop 410. “It’s sort of like medicine, the way these frequencies are coming into your body.” </p>
<p>Tello said reggae music emphasizes low-end and sub-bass frequencies, not high frequencies that can be painful or dangerous to ears. Reggae fans often stand next to a sound system such as Ortiz’s setup so they can feel that thumping rhythm at the heart of reggae like it’s beating in their own chests, she said. </p>
<p>“It’s kind of like it’s breathing, breathing into your face and into your skin,” she said. </p>
<p>Of course, just the sight of Ortiz’s sound system can be overwhelming. </p>
<p>“I’ve never seen a pyramid in Egypt, but I would say that’s about the closest thing to it for me,” said Emmanuel Piñeiro, a San Antonio DJ who plays jungle and reggae music as Mighty Monkz. “It was definitely an eye-opening, earth-shattering experience.” </p>
<p>Most venues have their own speaker systems, Piñeiro said, but what Ortiz brings to the party is an audio experience that gives listeners goosebumps.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/7d4b2da052bfeefd2d3cafbeb398e82dc5524962/original/1200x0-3.jpg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p>“The biggest thing he brings to it? I would say the feel of actually feeling the music, versus going to a bar and you just hear the music,” he said.</p>
<p>Born in Juarez, Mexico, Ortiz first fell in love with reggae music and culture in 1989 while attending high school in El Paso. He immersed himself in the sounds of reggae greats such as Buju Banton, Shabba Ranks and, of course, Bob Marley. </p>
<p>Then in the early 2000s, Ortiz started performing his own reggae music while in the Navy. In 2012, He self-released an EP, “Life is for Living,” before moving to San Antonio in 2014. </p>
<p>Frequent visits to the Jamaican parish of St. Thomas inspired him to take his music to the next level with a true reggae sound system. While on the island, Ortiz heard, saw and felt how the music took on a life of its own through small stacks of handmade speakers. </p>
<p>Ortiz taught himself speaker building and design and discovered that, when it comes to reggae sound systems, bigger really can be better. So he started building his own in late 2017 and rolled out his first iteration, with several speakers, in March 2018. He’s traveled with his current setup for the past two years. </p>
<p>Ortiz is understandably protective of his creation. He hauls his giant system in a small trailer packed with Tetris-like precision. A club owner or DJ using the setup may help him load and unload equipment, but Ortiz does the bulk of the assembling, a slight figure with dreadlocks popping out from behind each stacked component. </p>
<p>He won’t say how much he’s spent on his sound system beyond estimating it’s in the five figures.</p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/a79c1df0e15bf37e7ec83875dc49a987ede5c3cc/original/1200x0-4.jpg/!!/meta:eyJzcmNCdWNrZXQiOiJiemdsZmlsZXMifQ==/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p>“It’s not cheap,” he said with a laugh.</p>
<p>Ortiz’s passion for speaker design landed him an adjunct professor job at SAC teaching how to run sound . Ruben Rodriguez, the music business program director, said there’s much more to making a quality sound system than just making it loud. </p>
<p>“You have to know the theory behind it. You have to know about acoustics. And you got to know how to design and build these speakers in such a way to where they sound good,” Rodriguez said. “And that’s something that he teaches very well in his class.” </p>
<p>Ortiz’s next King Remo gig will be May 28 at Peacock Alley, the downtown San Antonio corridor that showcases live music, art and other creative means of self-expression. His setup is sure to touch the senses on several levels. </p>
<p>“It’s like energy,” he said. “And when the people feel it, it’s like, ‘I never really thought you could experience sound like this.’ It’s sonic energy.” </p>
<p>rguzman@express-news.net | Twitter: @reneguz</p>
<p>Published on <a contents="San Antonio Express News" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://www.expressnews.com/entertainment/music-stage/article/San-Antonio-reggae-DJ-Sgt-Remo-17169711.php" target="_blank">San Antonio Express News</a> on May 12,2022</p>
<p> </p>Sgt. Remo Musictag:sgtremo.com,2005:Post/63884272020-07-21T08:44:17-12:002020-07-21T08:44:17-12:00Reggae Souljahs Compilation CD<p style="text-align: center;"><span class="font_large"><strong>Reggae Souljahs Compilation CD </strong></span></p>
<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/a0436ad3a28198bc427631e87d35d39049bf184c/original/vol-1-200.png/!!/b:W10=.png" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p><a contents="Posted on&nbsp;July 20, 2011. Maria Jackson Magazine" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="https://mjmagazine.org/2011/07/20/reggae-souljahs-compilation-cd/" target="_blank"><span class="font_large"><strong>Posted on July 20, 2011. Maria Jackson Magazine</strong></span></a></p>
<p>GREETINGS TO ALL THE REGGAE SOULJAHS EVERYWHERE! We are glad to present to you the “Reggae SoulJahs Worldwide Vol. 1″ compilation album. </p>
<p>In total there are 16 tracks. All Killer-No Filler! We hope that everyone will enjoy listening to the album as much as we have enjoyed the entire process of putting this compilation album together. At times the deadlines and the stress of putting this project together were overwhelming, but in the end we are all excited to share this with YOU! The album features three songs from each of the Reggae SoulJahs. <br>Who are the Reggae SoulJahs? </p>
<p>Reggae SoulJahs Worldwide is the creative collaboration between several of todays best reggae artist. The SoulJahs include legendary Jamaican artist General Smiley, veteran Jamaican artist Ken Serious, New Mexico’s premier reggae dancehall artist Mister Kali, Mexican born singjay Sgt. Remo, and one of Denver CO’s best reggae/dancehall/dub/dubstep DJ’s Yahru El Guru (YEG.DJ). </p>
<p>Reggae SoulJahs began working together in 2008 and have continued performing and collaborating since. They have brought the old and the new schools of reggae together as one captivating audiences all over the U.S. </p>
<p>Album Information: <br>This album is the culmination of several years of work and features the members of the Reggae SoulJahs not only as artists but on the production side of the house as well. There are several featured riddims on this album. The first is the Chanting Riddim produced by General Smiley’s Ruff Company Records. It features Ken Serious’ hit song”Chanting” and Sgt. Remo’s “Third World Anthem”. The second featured riddim is the More Than Gold Riddim produced Mister Kali’s Dread I Arts and Ceremony Studios. Featured on this riddim are Mister Kali and AeZ Rock’s “More Than Gold”, General Smiley’s “Let It Go”, and Sgt. Remo’s “Jah SoulJah”. The third featured riddim is the Brighter Smile Riddim also produced by Dread I Arts and Ceremony Studios. On this riddim you will find Mister Kali’s top new tune “Samson & Delilah” and Sgt. Remo’s smash hit song “How Long”. </p>
<p>Other riddims on the album include Ken Serious’ production of “Lively”, as well as guest production by Albuquerque, NM’s top reggae producers Full Grown Studios. Full Grown Studios provided the riddims for Sgt. Remo’s “Thunder & Lightning” and Ken Serious’ “Defend Mi Right”. </p>
<p>The album is rounded off by dub/dubstep remixes by Yahru El Guru and Tony “Nighta” Garcia. Together they add a new dimension to the Reggae SoulJahs’ music reaching out to a new audience while maintaining the message and vibration of their music. </p>
<p>About the music: <br>We hope that you can listen to this album from beginning to end without having to skip any tracks. Every song on the album is a hit. Each song was carefully selected to be part of this unique project. If you listen to the lyrics you will find the message of unity and hope prominent in every song. This is what has made reggae music popular across the world. We realize the power of music and the resposibility and opportunity that comes with it. We take great pride in our music and we hope that you “the listener” will FULLJOY our album.</p>Sgt. Remo Musictag:sgtremo.com,2005:Post/63884212020-07-21T08:30:05-12:002020-07-21T08:44:36-12:00King Remo Sound System, First Of Its Kind In San Antonio, Texas<p><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/c24b5706b7eb03ee88efff6747ffc9b103540bd8/original/sgt-small.jpg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></p>
<p><span class="font_large"><a contents="Published Sunday, September 29, 2019. Kimberly Small - Staff Reporter - The Gleaner (Jamaica, WI)" data-link-label="" data-link-type="url" href="http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/entertainment/20190929/king-remo-sound-system-first-its-kind-san-antonio-texas" target="_blank">Published Sunday, September 29, 2019. Kimberly Small - Staff Reporter - The Gleaner (Jamaica, WI)</a></span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">At just about two years old, King Remo Sound System is saddled with the responsibility of being San Antonio, Texas’ first point of reference for reggae and dancehall culture. Built from scratch by Mexican-American reggae artist, Sgt Remo, the irie entertainer has found himself in a pioneering position - introducing sound system culture to a space that previously had none. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">Sgt. Remo was born in Juarez, Mexico, before migrating to the United States where he entered high school. That’s when he had his first rodeo with island culture. “One of my good friends introduced me to reggae music. At that time, it was early dancehall. 1989 was the first year I heard reggae music and I just fell in love with it. To me, it’s the golden era of dancehall,” he told The Sunday Gleaner. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">Barrington Levy, Shabba Ranks, Supercat and Buju Banton are a some of Sgt. Remo choice references to the ‘golden era’. “It just changed my life. I used to listen to a lot of hip-hop music and a few other things, but from that time on, it was just reggae. I stopped listening to everything else,” he confessed. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">He kept searching, learning about more artistes – and keeping up with the new music coming out at the time. Later on, he joined the military, where he made friends — a Jamaican and a Guyanese with similar interests. “So they grew up in that. And me, just being a lover of the music, it was a natural fit. When we started doing music at that time, we were kind of messing around. But we would record,” he said. That was the beginning of Sgt. Remo as an artiste. He has been recording and performing reggae music for over 10 years. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular"><strong>FIRST EP </strong></span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">In 2012, Sgt. Remo released his first EP, Life Is For Living. “Surprisingly to me, it was well-received. Of course, I’m Mexican. I didn’t grow up in Jamaica. So it was odd to people to see me perform. Maybe it was me being different kind of attracted some people. They’ve inspired me to keep going with the music, and it’s grown. I’ve gotten better, I’ve matured as an artiste and performer.” </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">Sgt. Remo’s connection to Jamaican culture is so deep, he married into it. “My wife is from St Thomas. She has all her family there,” he shared. And it was that link that would inspire the artiste’s evolution into a sound system owner and operator. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">A visit to the island ended up exposing Sgt. Remo to much more than his wife’s family. He learned how the music was played. “Of course, the sound systems were playing all over in the community almost every night. I’d go and check out the dance,” he said. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">Most of the systems he saw were small, but research taught him that the real deal could be stacked much higher. So, Sgt Remo made the move to build his own. “I built it myself from scratch. I designed everything. I did a bunch of research for some time.” </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular"><img src="//d10j3mvrs1suex.cloudfront.net/u/394241/36f85a93ef9fe2d196fcaba1b2a160229573fdd5/original/dsc-0080-square.jpg/!!/b:W10=.jpg" class="size_l justify_center border_" /></span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">Now, King Remo Sound system is the only one of its kind in San Antonio, Texas. As a result, when Sgt. Remo finally got around to searching for venues, proprietors were confounded. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">“A lot of people didn’t really understand the concept. It was like, ‘We have speakers already. We don’t need you to bring speakers.’ And I’m like ‘Nah, it’s part of the whole thing. It’s part of the scene.’ I’m not the deejay who just come select some tunes. It’s a different movement, and you have to experience it.” </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">With support from the diaspora, the system eventually found a home. Sgt Remo started working at a place called Caribbean Mix, owned by a Jamaican from Port Antonio. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">“He opened the doors to his venue, and we bring the sound over there. We’ve just been working, trying to bring it out to as many people as we can and expose the people here in San Antonio to what sound-system culture really is,” he explained. </span></p>
<p><span class="font_regular">kimberley.small@gleanerjm.com</span></p>Sgt. Remo Music