HOUSTON-The reigning "ídolos de América" and two-time Grammy Award-winning supergroup La Mafia persues new musical terrain with the launch of yet another huge record. Aptly titled Euforia, the new CD features the work of some of today's more popular songwriters among them Roberto Morales, Victor Daniel, Chein García Alonso and Jorge Luis Piloto, author of numerous La Mafia hits, such as "Estás Tocando Fuego" y "Enamorada".

Produced by Mando Lichtenberger Jr., the album will be introduced with "Pido," a beautiful bolero written by Piloto. "We just finished shooting a video for the song," said Lichtenberger, a founding member of the band.

For Lichtenberger, the video represents his debut as a director. "It's the first time I direct," explained Lichtenberger from the La Mafia offices in Houston. "We've wanted to film in Houston for a while. I hired Maverick Video out of San Antonio. We're happy with the result."

"Since Mando always takes care of things like image and artistic concepts, we encouraged him to go for it. We trusted him as a director, and I think it helps towards creating a complete team while maintaining our own creative vision," added Oscar De La Rosa, La Mafia lead vocalist.

The single, a bolero-styled ballad, is already being compared favorably to monster romantic La Mafia hits like "Me Estoy Enamorando (I'm Falling in Love)," "Vida (Life)," and "Para Siempre Contigo (Forever with You)," revealing the essential La Mafia, with a style that is traditional and contemporary at the same time.

Filmed entirely in the Houston area, La Mafia's hometown, the video also stars Monica Mesones, an actress and model who has appeared in several La Mafia music videos. A former Houstonian since relocated to Los Angeles, Mesones was a Playboy Magazine "Playmate" centerfold, gracing the magazine's Latin American spanish-language edition last year.

"Pido," which ships to radio on August 3rd, will be the first of several singles to be released from Euforia, the full-length CD scheduled to hit record stores September 1st. For more information, call Abel Salas at 713-224-3203.