Ian Juarez EDINBURG – Miqueas “Mickey” Alvarez is a mass communications senior at UTRGV who balances being a full-time student while being a member in two bands, Citrus Dream and Orpheus Bloom.
In Citrus Dream, Alvarez is a guitarist and frontman, along with his band mates: Daniel Morales on bass, Chris Razo on drums, and Zaf Garcia on guitar. Orpheus Bloom has the same members but with the addition of Paolo Santiago as a vocalist and guitarist.
As a full-time college student, Alvarez said that having a balanced schedule is a “big problem.”
“I try to section off my days into work time, music time and just like me time,” Alvarez said. “Usually, we have certain days where we get together, and then other days I’ll use to catch up on homework and do my assignments. So, it’s really all about planning and making sure you’re ahead of the, knowing what you need to do.”
Alvarez started playing music when he was just 7 years old with a ukulele before moving onto the drums and bass to help his dad out at church.
In his freshman year of high school, Alvarez said he wanted to “learn something more” so he could make his own music.
That same year, he learned the guitar and has been playing music for 8 years.
Alvarez said bands such as, Wallows, The Strokes and Radiohead inspire his sound.
However, Alvarez remarks the Gorillaz as being his biggest inspiration.
“I would hear their music and, the guy, the band is just one guy making all the music, so I thought, ‘Oh, I [want to] try something, I want to do something like that.’ And so, eventually I started learning my craft and making my own music.”
Living on the UTRGV Edinburg campus provides Alvarez and some of his band mates a unique environment to get inspiration for their music.
That’s the premise of the band’s new album, Dorm Room Daze, according to Alvarez.
“[…] It’s really inspired by our experiences living in the dorms and living on campus,” said Alvarez. “Having school and other affairs like love and school, and work and putting that all [kind of] together. That’s kind of our vision right now.”
Both Citrus Dream and Orpheus Bloom are available to stream on Spotify, YouTube and Apple Music.
“If I had to recommend any advice, I would say get a planner,” said Alvarez.
