With her sultry Latino looks and rock ‘n roll threads, Patricia Vonne looks like she might have stepped straight from the set of Once Upon A Time In Mexico.
Funnily enough, that perception isn’t all that far from the truth – her brother Robert Rodriguez directed the movie and one of her songs, ‘Traeme Paz’ was featured on the closing credits.
She even appeared in the flesh in his noir thriller follow-up, Sin City playing the part of Dallas. But music is where her heart lies and Vonne has been making waves on both sides of the Atlantic with her fiery blend of Tex-Mex, pop and rock and roll.
One recent description of her got it about right when it likened her to Chrissie Hynde fronting The Mavericks with a little help from Calexico.
Her latest album Guitars & Castanets showcases this clash of styles with songs as varied as the straight country song ‘Joe’s Gone Riding’ (a tribute to Joe Ely), mariachi flavoured ‘Fiesta Sangria’ and rocking guitar pop of ‘Texas Burning’.
One of 10 children, Vonne grew up in the border town of San Antonio steeped in the hybrid culture of the region.
“I consider myself to be Mexican-American,” she says. “My father and mother were both born in Texas. My grandparents had walked across the border with nothing but the clothes on their back. But my mother’s ancestry is Spanish. One of my sisters lives there and is engaged to a Spaniard. San Antonio has both of those cultures still very well preserved with places like the Spanish Missions and you hear Mexican mariachi folk songs all the time. I’m a blend of both of those cultures, plus I’m a Texan. I grew up listening to my mother singing Mexican songs and my brothers’ rock and roll collection and later getting into the East LA band, Cruzados.”
Vonne spent 10 years living in New York while pursuing an acting and music career honing her musical chops while playing bass and singing backing vocals with a power-pop outfit, Mick & The Maelstroms.
“I answered an ad in the Village Voice,” she explains. “I had an interview and I said I was a fan of Tom Petty and Buddy Holly and I was hired on the spot. It was a great grounding and it gave me an understanding of the workings of a band. I got to see Texas bands coming to places like the Lone Star Café and I met my guitar player husband [Robert LaRoche] who is now in my band.”
Returning to Texas in 2001 she headed for the Lone Star State’s music capital, Austin where she soon became part of the city’s rich cultural life.
“I really like Austin,” she enthuses. “It’s a liberal pocket in a conservative state and it has the most musicians per capita of anywhere in America. People like Joe Ely, Alejandro Escovedo, Charlie Sexton, Billy Joe Shaver all live there and I’ve worked with most of them. It’s competitive but if you can find your niche you can make it work for you. When I was in New York we only played once a month but in Texas I play all the time and can make a good living.”
She scored a record deal for Europe and the UK at the city’s South By Southwest showcase and has since toured over here several times, something she sees as important to establishing her career.
“If I had the choice to tour America or Europe it’d be Europe hands down,” she reveals. “Audiences here are listeners and they have a reverence for songwriters who write their own music.”
What about her movie career? Does she see herself on the silver screen again in the near future?
“I can’t say I don’t want to do a movie again ever. If it’s the right project I’ll jump at the chance. And I’ve earned my Screen Actors’ Guild card which is important – you get health insurance which musicians normally don’t have (laughs). But to be a successful actress you have to have more contacts than a famous brother. I got in the door but you have to stay in the room and you’re only as good as your last movie or commercial. I get more out of music because I write my own songs. With the acting you have to either live in New York or LA and there's a lot of rejection involved. With music you can always get a gig.”