quote Myspace

DE FACTO hailed from El Paso, TX by way of Long Beach, California. Bassist Omar Rodriguez and drummer Cedric Bixler are well known as members of the acclaimed, and now defunct band, AT THE DRIVE-IN, as well as powerhouse THE MARS VOLTA. In those other groups, however, Rodriguez plays guitar and Bixler sings. DE FACTO was not and never will be about keeping up with peoples' expectations, though... that much is certain.

Having relocated to California from El Paso around 2000, Bixler and Rodriguez teamed up with keyboardist Ikey Owens (formerly of the LONG BEACH DUB ALL STARS) and fellow-Texan Jeremy Ward and re-launched their longtime 'side project', DE FACTO, alongside AT THE DRIVE-IN. DE FACTO mined an eclectic and constantly-evolving composite of sounds, hinging squarely on tripped-out, instrumental dub. Rooted within the realm of Dub reggae pioneers like Lee Perry and the Dr. Alimantado, DE FACTO the group also tampered in electronica, Latin/"salsa", and jazz which gave their sound a distinct, timeless quality. They've utilized the surprisingly-effective melodica (a relatively cheap plastic 'keyboard' played by blowing through one end like a trumpet) made famous by AUGUSTUS PABLO with great skill and the results are stunning: their music transcends genres and ages, and suffers none from the decision to leave the songs instrumental and let them speak for themselves.