Thrasher Magazine

If you name your band Cardiel, you better bring it—and this Venezuelan two-piece sure as hell does. Their shows are so intense that even if you’re not slamming up front you’ll be left exhausted. They’ve been touring the US non-stop for the past year or so and put out Skaterock México in ’23—a killer 7" dedicated to Hubbard, P-Stone and Jake about the Mexican Skate Rock tour of 2017. If you get the chance to check them out, don’t sleep on it. Sam Ambrosio (drums/vocals) and Miguel Fraino (guitar/vocals) parked the tour van long enough to answer some questions via email recently. As seen in our July, '24 issue. All hail… —Wez Lundry

Photos by Machado, Lundry


So you guys are originally from Venezuela, but then moved to Mexico City, correct? It seems like you’ve been in the USA for the better part of this year.
Yeah, we were both born and raised in Valencia, Venezuela but then in 2006 we moved to Mexico City. In 2022, we got the opportunity to start working with an SF-based booking agency and that’s why we’ve been touring the USA a lot lately.

How did the band form?
The band was formed in Mexico City in 2010. We started jamming and writing music for a good friend from Valencia who started a skateboard company and was making a video back then. I’m pretty sure the video never came out. So, we ended up having a bunch of songs that we liked to play and we decided to look for some gigs in Mexico City. In the first two years of the band, before we even started playing in venues and bars, we were playing only in skateparks and house shows with the help of our good friend Nito who was putting a lot of shit together during those years. México skateboarding family was the pillar of this band.


And how did you decide on the name Cardiel?
Well, John is one of those humans that makes you wanna go out and make things happen, you know? He’s a big inspiration and motivation. Before and after the accident he is stoked on life, for life. That’s heavy. Watching his video parts is such a trip—some Bad Brains in Cash Money Vagrant, or Black Sabbath in Yellow and then some Sizzla reggae in Sight Unseen. He’s always 100-percent committed and going as fast as possible. Keeping that level of destruction in different genres is a thing that we look up to—an inspiration to do better and try harder, every day. For us, it’s kinda a tribute of love and respect.


Your band doesn’t fit into genres like metal, stoner rock, punk. Your shows are raging but then all of a sudden it’s a dub breakdown, then back to pummeling the crowd. So what do you call it?
Man, we don’t know what to call it either. But we like the fact that we keep playing in different music scenes and somehow we seem to fit in. Chameleon style, you know? Keep them confused! We like to play fast and heavy and then slow and heavier but also some chill psychedelic dub. It’s all on the same page.


Tell me a little about Skate Rock Mexico 2017, the inspiration for the 7" that came out last year.
From our perspective, being part of a Skate Rock tour is one of the most epic things a band can do. Now, when you add the fact that this all happened in México and with a heavyweight crew like that. It was so crazy and we were lucky to have been on the road with Phelps, Mark Hubbard and P-Stone. Touring with Bad Shit and Arctic is an energy level that’s actually hard to beat. Getting to watch skating like that every day for two weeks, being with people like Figgy, Grant, Rowan, TNT, Raven, Monk, Nuge and Provost; hitting the sketchiest spots ever and the hype and motivation from the locals is just priceless. To party every night with this crew plus our closest friends was kinda surreal for us, so we decided to do a short fuzzy song about it and put it on wax to honor those unforgettable nights that we barely remember.



What kind of stuff do you guys like to skate?
At this point, whatever you can get to skate is good. We do appreciate the bank to curb that is down the street from our house and the mini ramp we had at the studio. While on tour, we’d like to skate as much as we want, but when you are doing 28 shows in 30 days, plus the driving, taking care of the merch, loading in and out and partying, it’s a tight energy budget that we try to keep up. In the end, it’s just the two of us on the road.

Miguel pulls from Cards' bag of tricks. Frontside grind

What is your van life routine in the US?
Keeping the gadgets in good condition is so important for us—car water heater for coffee and noodles, blender for smoothies, lots of ice and a good cooler to keep the food fresh. We cook our own food as much as we can on the road. Eat your greens, ginger and sea moss every day. We like rest areas and state parks in the US to get some sleep but we really appreciate when friends let us crash at their homes.




Who did John Cardiel turn pro for?
Miguel: Antihero? He also rode for Powell, right?
Sam: Was he a pro snowboarder first?

Incorrect! It was Dogtown. And he never rode for Powell! What is his DJ name?
M: Juan Love. We played a party with him and Dustin Dollin in Mexico.

What year did he win Skater of the Year?
M: I think it was the second one. 1991?

Incorrect, but close! It was 1992. Who did he name as his top skateboarding influence?
M: Mark Gonzales! Or maybe Christian Hosoi?

Gonz is correct! And Hosoi was an influence, too, so bonus point! Who drew the graphic on the board he is riding on the SOTY cover?
S: This one is really hard. We just watched his Epicly Later’d again a few days ago, after we watched the Nuge one.
M: He’s jumping through the fire. Is it Sleazer? I can’t remember.

Incorrect! It was also Mark Gonzales!
S: We need to change the name of the band now—facing reality.




Tell me about the time you met Cardiel the band in México City.
John Cardiel: They were super rad, playing music at this crazy party promoting tequila. Everyone was fucked up and faded. There were broken tequila shot glasses all over the floor, in the bathroom, everywhere. Dudes were raging. I still find blood and chunks of glass in my record bag from that show. It makes me feel so good. There’s those vibes in it.

Just for clarification: you turned pro for Dogtown, right?
J: Yeah, after a contest in Seal Beach. They gave me some money and Red Dog gave us some weed. Then I went on a little tour driving around with Karma and Wade doing demos. We showed up at a shop and there was no demo. They were like, No, we never got the call. We never heard nothing. We talked to somebody back home and they were like, No, Dogtown’s done. Shit hit the fan. My board never came out.

Did you turn pro skating or snowboarding first?
J: Shit, that’s a good question. I think it was skating first. I don’t really know, though. It was a weird time. I was doing snowboard contests and it just kind of switched over, I think because of the skateboarding thing.

Lea la entrevista en español a continuación

Entonces ustedes son originarios de Venezuela, y luego se mudaron a la Ciudad de México, ¿correcto? y ahora han pasado la mayor parte de este año en Estados Unidos... ¿Qué me pueden decir de eso?
Así es, ambos nacimos en Valencia, Venezuela. Nos mudamos a México alrededor del 2006. En 2022 se nos presentó la oportunidad de trabajar con un booking agency de San Francisco CA, y por esta razón hemos estado toureando bastante en Los Estados Unidos últimamente.

¿Cómo se formó la banda? 
La banda se formó en la Ciudad de México en el 2010. Empezamos jameando y escribiendo música para el video de un amigo de Valencia que estaba empezando su compañía de patineta. Creo que ese video nunca salió. Entonces teníamos varias canciones que nos gustaban tocar y decidimos salir a buscar shows en la ciudad. En los primeros 2 años de la banda, antes de tocar en venues o bares, solo tocábamos en skateparks y fiestas en casas con la ayuda de nuestro gran amigo Nito que andaba bien activo haciendo eventos relacionados con el skateboarding durante esos años. La familia del skate Mexicano es pilar en la creación de esta banda sin duda alguna.

¿Y cómo decidieron el nombre de Cardiel?
Bueno, John es uno de esos humanos que te hacen querer salir y hacer que las cosas ocurran, ¿ sabes? Gran inspiración y motivación. Antes y después del accidente él es un entusiasta de la vida de por vida, y eso es algo muy grande. Ver sus video partes es un viaje, música de Bad Brains en Cash Money Vagrant o Black Sabbath en Yellow y luego un reggae de Sizzla en Sight Unseen, comprometido al 100% y patinando lo más veloz posible, manteniendo ese nivel de destrucción entre diferentes géneros musicales es algo que nos inspira a hacer música. Una inspiración de hacer mejor y esforzarse más cada día. Es para nosotros, una especie de tributo de amor y respeto. 

Les he comentado sobre como encajan (o no encajan realmente) en los géneros de: metal, stoner rock, punk. Sus shows van de ser muy furiosos y de repente hay un bajon en el dub... y luego vuelven a dar el golpe a la multitud.  ¿Cómo llaman a esto?
La verdad que no sabemos cómo llamarlo, pero nos gusta el hecho que seguimos tocando en diferentes escenas y de alguna manera funciona. Estilo Camaleon sabes como? mantenlos confundidos! Nos gusta tocar rápido y pesado y luego lento y más pesado aún, pero también dub psicodélico. Todo está en la misma página.

Cuéntenme acerca del Skate Rock México 2017, la inspiración para el 7" que salió el año pasado (este se publicará en 2024).
Desde nuestra perspectiva, el hecho de haber sido parte de un Skaterock Tour es una de las cosas más épicas que una banda puede hacer. Ahora agrégale que fué por la República Mexicana y con un crew pesado como ese. Muy loco y afortunado de haber compartido la carretera con Phelps, Mark Hubbard y P Stone. Tourear con Bad Shit y Arctic es un nivel de energía difícil de igualar. Y tener la oportunidad de ver patinar a diario durante 2 semanas a personas como Figgy, Grant, Rowan, TNT, Raven, Monk, Nuge y Provost, los spots más sketchy del área y la felicidad y motivación de los locales en cada spot que llegábamos no tiene precio. Festejar todas las noches con este crew + nuestros amigos cercanos fue surreal. Entonces decidimos hacer una corta y fuzzy canción acerca de todo esto y ponerla en acetato para honrar esas inolvidables noches que recordamos borrosamente.

¿Qué tipo de cosas les gusta patinar?
En este momento lo que aparezca en la vía es bueno. Apreciamos el bank/curb que está bajando por la calle vía a la panadería desde nuestra casa y el miniramp que teníamos en el estudio. Nos gustaría poder patinar tanto como quisiéramos estando de tour pero cuando tienes 28 shows en 30 días y tienes que manejar diario, encargarte de la merch, load in/out y pegar fiesta, es un budget energético apretado que hay que mantener. Al final solo somos nosotros 2 en la carretera.

¿Cuál es su rutina de "van life" en su gira por los Estados Unidos?
Mantener los gadgets en buena condición es muy importante para nosotros. El boiler de agua para el café y los noodles, la licuadora para los jugos y la hielera siempre full de hielo para mantener la comida fresca. Cocinamos lo más que podemos en el tour. Come tus verdes, jengibre y sea moss a diario. Nos gustan los rest areas o parques estatales de USA para dormir un poco, pero siempre agradecemos mucho cuando nuestros amigos nos invitan a dormir en su casas.