Mexican pop star Venegas has fans falling for her sweet sound
More than a phenomenal voice and a clutch of hit songs, nothing flatters a pop star quite like grace and understatement.
Julieta Venegas is such an artist. She made her Boston debut Thursday night at the Roxy, and from her simple greeting - "Hola. Buenas noches, Boston" - you'd never know she's one of the most celebrated musicians in Latin pop today, an ambassador of good will who's beloved by her peers far outside her native Mexico.
All bashful smiles and rosy cheeks, Venegas looked and sounded very much the accidental pop star, a young singer-songwriter with a big heart and an even bigger audience.
If her stage presence was demure, her entourage was not. To mark her first show in Boston, she brought a 15-piece band that added unexpected little flourishes to songs the audience already knew by heart: a tuba solo on "Algo Está Cambiando," a swell of violins and cello on "Cómo Sé," Venegas on acoustic guitar for "Amores Perros" (from the film soundtrack).
And, of course, she played her signature accordion on several numbers ("Sería Feliz") and got behind the keyboards for "Mírame Bien" and "Ilusión." She's no doubt the only pop star who can prompt a zealous fan to exclaim, "Oh, good! I see the accordion coming out!" moments before it materialized.
The lush setting was an extension of Venegas's new "MTV Unplugged" album, which captured her live and carefree last year with cameos from mutual admirers (Spanish rapper La Mala Rodríguez and uber-producer Gustavo Santaolalla, among them).
It wasn't quite Venegas gone acoustic, but she stripped several of her songs to their cores, revealing emotions you didn't detect the first time around. "Lento" became just that: slow. Originally a buoyant pop tune from 2003's "Sí," the song became a contemplative ballad that made complete sense, especially when Venegas got to the soaring sing-along chorus: "Dame tiempo para darte todo lo que tengo" ("Give me time to give you everything I have"). Forget flicking a Bic: It moved the young woman in front of me, wobbling in 4-inch heels, to wave a Mexican flag.
Venegas's recent hits, the inescapable "Me Voy" and "Eres Para Mí," both from 2006's "Limón y Sal," recaptured the unlikely juxtaposition of joy and heartbreak that made them so catchy in the first place.
For a final encore, Venegas launched into "Andar Conmigo," wandering away from the microphone, playing her accordion, and engaging the audience. It was time to go, but no one wanted her to. So she mouthed the lyrics, needlessly: The audience, louder each refrain, sang the song for - and to - her.
James Reed can be reached at jreed@globe.com. 