La Casa de Maná: The Mexican Crew's Drama y Luz World Tour Rules Latin Pop-Rock

Photo by Sayre Berman

Check out the ten-photo recap from Maná's last concert in Miami.

Win free tickets to Maná's concert at the AAA on May 11.

In 2006, Latin pop-rock powerhouse Maná had been recording and touring non-stop for more than 20 years. And it was time for a break. So the band took a five-year hiatus to prepare 2011's Drama y Luz (Drama and Light) before finally returning to the touring grind.

But back on the road for nearly two years now, the Mexican crew hasn't slowed a bit. Frontman Fher Olvera, drummer Alex González, and the rest continue to circle the globe and climb the charts to a steady, soft-rock beat. And this week, Maná concludes its Drama y Luz world tour at the American Airlines Arena, following sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden and the Staples Center in Los Angeles.

To commemorate the occasion, here's a look back at the last few years in the life of Maná.



The Production
On its website, Maná boasts about spending "1000 days" and "1001 nights" recording Drama y Luz. The studio work began in June 2008 as the band traveled to Los Angeles, Brazil, and Miami's own Hit Factory, laboring over the album's 12 tracks. And in addition to the usual mix of drum, bass, and guitars, Maná employed a 32-piece string and horn section to bring lush theatrical grandeur to songs like "El Espejo" ("The Mirror"), a rocking ballad about the forbidden love affair between a nun and a priest during the Spanish Inquisition. Yes, these tunes are the sonic equivalent of a big-budget telenovela on steroids.



The Drama
Halfway through the production of the album, Fher's mother succumbed to cancer. Soon after, the notoriously private star wrote the lovely ballad "Vuela Libre la Paloma" ("The Dove Flies Free"), thanking his "angel de la guarda" ("guardian angel") and promising to never forget her. In recent interviews, Fher has explained that the loss of his mother changed the direction of the project. Originally titled Los Arboles Mueren al Pie (The Trees Die Where They Stand), it was envisioned as a concept album focusing on the environment. But instead, the record became Drama y Luz, a pop-rock meditation on human struggles and feelings of loss in these hard economic times.