Six years ago, Jonas Ceballos left his family and his home in Mexico City to pursue a music career in the United States.

“I wanted to come [to the U.S.] to make contacts in the music business and to be given the chance to play live,” says Ceballos, who hasn’t been back to Mexico City since he left.

Ceballos has played drums in several Los Angeles bands and been making ends meet as an assistant in downtown L.A.’s fashion district. It was only recently, though, that he found his true calling: playing keyboard and singing lead vocals with Soy Disco.

Ceballos may soon be able to quit his day job. In less than a year, Soy Disco has become one of the hottest indie-Latin bands in Los Angeles. They mesh perfectly with a current music scene that yearns for the irony of ’80s-style pop, synthesizers and songs about love. The trio is a spunky burst of vividly colored gear and electro-pop music, like MGMT meets Lady Gaga.

“We always dress in bright colors and wear skinny jeans,” Ceballos says.

Ceballos’ getup choice usually includes lemon-colored skinny jeans with a prominent keyboard belt buckle and a vintage Beatles T-shirt with a striped scarf draped around his neck.

Aside from their saucy, disco-inspired wardrobe, Soy Disco delivers tight music that’s becoming increasingly well-received: Last spring, they won a large-scale Latin music battle-of-the-bands in L.A. called Tu Ciudad, Tu Música at La Fiesta Broadway. They collected $2,500, a collector’s edition guitar from Burger King sponsors and, most importantly, international media coverage that included a trip to Miami to play a series of live shows and an appearance on “Escandalo TV.”

“It was amazing to win,” Ceballos says. “All the bands who played were so good.”

It was a big feat for a band that had only been together for a few months. It was an even bigger feat for a band whose English remains rough; guitarist Alex Mayaute is from Peru and drummer Sergio Alvarez grew up in a Spanish-speaking household in L.A. Taking the first place prize at Tu Ciudad, Tu Música has opened up many doors for Soy Disco; they have been getting opportunities to play renowned Angelino venues like the Troubadour and House of Blues.

“We are so happy to be playing at such famous places,” Ceballos says.

And the venues keep getting better; on Aug. 4, Soy Disco played the Universal City Walk for several hundred people who sang along to “Silueta,” one of their most popular songs.

Soy Disco’s stop at Giovane’s this Saturday in Salinas is the second to last show of their tour. In October, the band will head into the studio to record their first full-length album.

Bye Sami and Save Stavi open.

SOY DISCO plays 8pm Saturday, Sept. 19, at Giovane’s, 348 San Juan Grade Road, Salinas. $8 in advance; $10 at the door. 444-6717.