Attaque 77 – Presentación de “Triángulo de Fuerza” en Montevideo Music Box

(Fotografía: Damián Cejas Delgue)

Luciendo una remera de “Arrancacorazones”, Mariano Martínez salió a escena acompañado por el baterista Leonardo De Cecco y el bajista Luciano Scaglione en el entorno de las 21:30 horas, luego de que la banda uruguaya Subliminal dejara un clima emocional perfecto para el público que supo colmar la capacidad de Montevideo Music Box anoche.

Si bien la presentación se realizaba en el marco de la gira promocional de “Triángulo de Fuerza”, lo que realmente motivaba el encuentro era festejar los 32 años de actividad ininterrumpida de la banda. El propio Mariano lo subrayó en una de sus primeras intervenciones, al acotar que éste era un show “para los verdaderos seguidores” del grupo – aquellos que comulgan con Attaque desde sus primeras presentaciones en La Factoría, mítico escenario montevideano de la década de los 90s.

La banda comenzó del modo más contundente posible con “Espadas y Serpientes”, y (como es costumbre) culminó con “Donde Las Águilas Se Atreven”, luego de más de dos horas de música. Pero la euforia del público fue tal que ofrecieron una canción más, para (en palabras de Mariano) terminar “con un buen pogo”: el cover de “No Me Arrepiento de Este Amor”, una de sus versiones más mentadas junto a “Por Qué Te Vas” y “Dame Fuego”, la cuales ésta vez lamentablemente no fueron parte del set. Pero la que sí incluyeron (y significó otro punto álgido) fue “Amigo”, de Roberto Carlos.

El espectáculo se distinguió por la alternancia de temas nuevos y viejos, como subrayando que la banda no tiene un antes y un después, sino que vive la experiencia que inició en 1987 como un continuo, indistintamente de los miembros que se desvincularon con el devenir del tiempo  (que incluyen no solo a Ciro Pertusi sino también a su hermano Federico, quien era el vocalista original del grupo, y músicos como el bajista Adrián Vera).

En total, la banda interpretó más de 25 canciones, incluyendo “América”, “Western”, “Suerte”… también incluyeron su genial cover de “El Jorobadito”, canción de Los Auténticos Decadentes que hacía mucho no escuchaba en vivo, y eché un poco de menos los vientos (el soporte en vivo era brindado por una segunda guitarra, y un teclado). “Beatle” llegó cerca del final, junto a “Hacelo Por Mí” y “Arrancacorazones” – dos hits radiales de épocas distintas, pero que encarnan las dos facetas más instantáneas del grupo, y que señalan los dos momentos de mayor masividad de su carrera.

Las canciones de “Triángulo de Fuerza” funcionaron bien en el escenario, y la secuencia aportó a su efectividad – por ejemplo, “Como Salvajes” estaba inserta entre “Chicos y Perros” y “Antihumano”, mientras que “María” estaba contextualizada entre “Amigo” y un fragmento de minuto y medio de “Setentista”. Y “Lobotomizado” obró como la contracara de “El Cielo Puede Esperar”. En ese sentido, el grupo da cuenta de un muy certero entendimiento de cómo construir y mantener una experiencia estética que en ningún punto aliene a sus seguidores más tradicionales. Y me parece valioso destacar que supieron mantener esa dinámica intacta aún cuando el público cobró un rol integral, como cuando coreó efusivamente las primeras estrofas de “Hay Una Bomba En El Colegio”, llevando a la banda a revisitar su disco debut.

Algo que sin dudas tuvo injerencia sobre la intensidad con que se vivieron hasta los momentos más comedidos fue la fuerte presencia argentina en el público, posibilitada por el fin de semana largo en la vecina orilla. A los efectos, eso dotó al concierto de un carisma que no es inherente a una audiencia esencialmente local – imaginen solamente lo que fueron los cánticos motivados por la dedicatoria de “Chicos y Perros” a “todos los políticos corruptos”…

Mención especial para un tramo en medio del concierto anunciado por Mariano como “un regalo para los verdaderos seguidores”, y que consistió en “Frente Al Espejo”, “El Camino” y “Suerte” – dos canciones del último disco de Ciro con la banda (“Karmaggedon”, 2007) y una del fantástico “Radio Insomnio” de 2000, interpretadas con una emoción sostenida que resultó en la clase de comunión musical que uno asocia con la música punk en su expresión más vital y originaria.  

He tenido la fortuna de ver a Attaque en contextos muy disímiles, incluyendo la gira conmemorativa de “El Cielo Puede Esperar” en ésta misma sala en 2015, brindando un set soñado para cualquiera que tuvo al grupo como la banda sonora de su juventud. Pero el concierto de anoche tuvo una emotividad y (sobre todo) una relevancia muy especial, que no hizo más que subrayar la vigencia del grupo, y renovar el deseo latente en el corazón de todos sus fans de que siempre habrá “un lugar para estar/con vos una vez más”.

Natalie Pryce Releases Its First Single: “Janine” & “Bisclavaret” (Videos)

Natalie Pryce

A band that operates in Glasgow, Natalie Pryce has just issued its first single. It’s a double A-sided release, made up of the songs “Janine” and “Bisclavaret” – two cuts that fittingly convey the band’s blend of jazz, blues and punk.

The dual essence of this release serves a specific purpose, namely exhibiting the band’s keenness on dichotomy, and establishing a ground where symmetry can be analyzed without compromises or apologies.

The tandem works as intended, as affection and abjection and are explored back and forth between these two compositions, resulting in the blackest of whites and vice versa.

For a limited time only, you can download both songs on the band’s website at no cost. And you can stay posted on their latest releases on Facebook and Soundcloud. Continue reading

“My Place” by Contraste (Video)

Tapa Contraste

Uruguayan punk rockers Contraste have just released their first official music video. It’s set to the music of “My Place”, their new promotional cut.

Contraste is made up of Bruno Espino (Vocals), Adrián Fontaiña (guitars), Koki (bass) and Germán Bonet (drums). A slightly different lineup of the band had released an eponymous demo on 2010 (free download), and “My Place” signals a change of pace, as it’s only suitable – the song is entirely in English. Continue reading

“Infinity” by The Bear Season gets a Symphonic Treatment

The Bear Season

Man, pause your porn and check this out, it’s worth it.
Somebody came up with a symphonic version of The Bear Season’s “Infinity”, and uploaded it to SoundCloud.
The Bear Season! My friends! My precious! They were first covered here, and I have made a point of staying on top of all their latest releases. And (as you probably don’t remember, because not even their groupies read that particular post) my favorite song of theirs is “Infinity”.

This new symphonic version of “Infinity”, now, is the one to harbor in your heart, and rediscover time and again.
If I ever walk away from an exploding building in slow motion, then I want this to be playing in the background.

Check it out, dude, it’s a sweet sweet deal. Like angels’ pay. I can only think of a couple of things that are sweeter.

One is Rocket:

The other is, obviously, Gregorian! They should have been huge! What a shame Enigma took the cake instead!

And then, there’s this version of The Police’s “Fallout”, which is memorable if only because you can’t listen to Sting’s vocals!!

Ha! Ha! Take it, your ego douche!! See what happens for having confiscated half of Stu’s kit away for the recording of “Every Breath You Take”?? Karma has no deadline, my high-pitched friend…
Seriously, what a version from the deepest abyss of hell. Stu has been miked like crap, Andy sounds like he’s making the song up as he goes along (which is highly likely, if you ask me and my monkey), and that solo is the pits! And then, Sting ends up this “stellar performance” by doing a “splenetic jump”. Dude, Pete Townshend is pushing 72, and he bounces around with more flamboyance! Do us a favor, and keep dreaming of blue turtles, will you?

Noche De Rock by Trotsky Vengaran (Video)

The fifth (and final) nominees for a Graffiti Award are Uruguayan punk rockers Trotsky Vengarán (MySpace profile), with their “Noche de Rock” [Night of Rock]. The song’s taken from the album “Todo Para Ser Feliz” [Everything To Be Happy], and the music video features cameos from celebrated musicians like Dani Umpi and Rubén Rada.

A to-the-point music video that tells the aftermath of a night of debacle with wry humor, “Noche de Rock” is a good alternative to all the other nominees – they all more or less rely on special effects and fancy editing to get their stories told.

We’ll see what happens this Friday, when the Graffiti Awards ceremony is held.

Just to do a quick recap, the other four nominated music videos are:

“A Donde Van Los Pájaros” by Luciano Supervielle
“Antes del Fin”  by Walter Bordoni
“Cadáver” by ReyToro
“Invierno” by Socio

Free Uruguayan Music For Download: “Amigos Imaginarios” By Picnic

"Amigos Imaginarios" By Picnic

"Amigos Imaginarios" By Picnic

Picnic is a Uruguayan punk band whose debut EP has just become available for download. It is named “Amigos Imaginarios”, it has four punchy cuts (mainly dealing with vices, personality and emotions too torrid to mention) and you can get it for free here.

It also has a cover that would make Frank Zappa, The Mothers of Invention and the whole cast from “200 Motels” proud. I have discovered that if you stare at it for a couple of minutes and then look at the wall, you’re seeing a hybrid of Guernica, the movie poster for “The Lovely Bones” and the face of Doc Brown. Well, I did at least. I suppose that’s what happens when you have been fixedly watching nothing but Placebo videos the whole week.

Boy, “The Bitter End” is badass. And what about “This Picture”? Atomic. If Picnic ever shoots one like these, then I’m creating a category on the blog solely for them.

Picnic Playing Live. Left To Right: Mato, So and Germán.

Picnic Playing Live. Left To Right: Mato, So and Germán.

Anyway, “Amigos Imaginarios” is a greatly-enjoyable EP. Sassy references to The Ramones abound, with songs like “Él Es Punk” [He Is A Punk] paying a direct homage to compositions such as “Sheena Is A Punk Rocker” and “Judy Is A Punk”. The ensemble playing is good, and the way the voice of singer Sofía is juxtaposed with that of her cohorts (guitarist Mato and drummer Germán) is really ear-catching (specially on the title track). Continue reading

Horses (Patti Smith) – Album Review

A Classic Of Classics, The Photograph Gracing The Cover Of Horses Was Taken By Robert Mapplethorpe At Greenwich Village.

A Classic Of Classics, The Photograph Gracing The Cover Of "Horses" Was Taken By Robert Mapplethorpe At Greenwich Village.

Jesus died for somebody’s sins but not mine.

What an unrepentant way to start an album and to announce a whole career. Patti Smith’s debut came in 1975, and it was the first piece of vinyl whose surges bristled with the unsurpassed fire that was growing within the walls of the mythic CBGB, and which would gloriously run rife before a year had elapsed.

Patti (who was slightly older than members of most other acts associated with the famed venue) was certainly one of its most articulate participants, in no small part owing to her early explorations of different branches of visual and performance arts. She brought some of the most literate considerations to a scene that was also nurtured by the contributions of artists like Tom Verlaine (with whom she was briefly involved, and who actually added a typical all-or-nothing solo to the song “Break It Up”) and the Talking Heads (a band that I have never been that keen on – and I couldn’t love XTC more. Go figure.) And her actual romantic interest at the time “Horses” was released was photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, whom she had met at Pratt Institute (Brooklyn) and who would make a vital contribution to the album: its actual cover shot.

This androgynous photograph has deservedly gone down in the history of music as an absolute visual achievement. It captured the willingness of punks to transcend the blandness of conventional categorizations as much as the music included on the actual record, which Smith herself defined as “Three chord rock merged with the power of the word”.

You can’t call “Horses” a punk record, mind you. You can (and should) term it a record that set the scene for the arrival of a more vibrant and violent force of expression than what was available before.

In many places, “Horses” is an album that asserts the role of women in rock, what with male characters who are sodomized as in the first segment of “Land” and songs about female characters that defy conventionalisms such as “Kimberly” (a song which Patti wrote to deal with the lingering feelings of the baby she had to give for adoption when she was much younger).

You can’t call really call a record with songs like “Gloria” or “Birdland” a punk album.  “Gloria” references the Them song by the same name, and it was a clear nod to fellow CBGB pioneers Blondie. And “Birdland” is a piece of jazz that might even mar the flow of the disc, but which was actually an important piece for Patti if only because it acted as a symbolization of her mother. Continue reading

Patti Smith – General Introduction

Patti Smith (AKA "The Godmother of Punk") Performing Live

Patti Smith (AKA "The Godmother of Punk") Performing Live

Patti Smith must be one of the clearest examples of evergreen artistry in the history of rock and roll, and I dare say in the whole of the 20th Century. After actively chasing what she termed herself a “career of evil” and releasing some albums that exemplified how music could be noise as organized or disorganized as one wanted and still be music, she settled down into a life of domesticity. And when she surfaced as a performer again, it was no longer as the rampant provocateur of yore. It was as a softer performer with excellent interpretative timing, able to take songs like “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and sing them from a maturity that only emphasized how being tamed by others and resolving to tempter yourself down are entirely different things.

Patti Smith was born on December 30, 1946 in Chicago. She would find a creative outlet in music after having tried mostly everything else: poetry, playwriting, acting, painting…

Her first successes as a musician came well before “Horses” (her epochal debut, released in 1975). Before that, she worked as a lyricist for Blue Oyster Cult, and those collaborations were to result in the sole gold and platinum records of her career. More importantly, they gave her the resolution to carry her own tunes in public. The Patti Smith Group was then born, and this ensemble would become the first punk band associated with the mythical CBGB club to issue an album (well ahead of The Ramones). “Horses” came out in 1975 (preceded by the excellent non-album single “Hey Joe/Piss Factory”), and it fused the sensibilities of French poets like Baudelaire with some of the very first punk mannerisms ever put to tape. The merits of the album are appreciated even better when we realize that her writing style had already reached this maturity by 1972, the year in which she released “Seventh Heaven”, an accomplished collection of poems that blended symbolism and American beat aesthetics in a defiantly convincing way.

“Radio Ethiopia” was the PSG’s sophomore effort, and it was a mostly dissipated album that made the band reconsider what they were doing and come up with the triumphant “Easter” in 1978. Featuring the Bruce Springsteen-penned hit “Because The Night” and the ferocious “Rock & Roll Nigger”, it was to be their most ordered and cohesive collection of songs. Of course, an incident in which Smith fell offstage and fractured her neck vertebrae when touring the preceding album was also a life-changing experience. For a time, it wasn’t clear if she was ever going to even get up and walk again. Continue reading

Adventure (Television) – Album Review

"Adventure" Was Released In 1978, Little Less Than A Year After Television's Debut "Marquee Moon" Had Been Released

"Adventure" Was Issued In 1978, Little Less Than A Year After Television's Debut "Marquee Moon" Had Been Released

A “Marquee Moon petit”. That is the best way to describe Television’s second LP. It was issued in 1978, and it was to be their final release for almost two decades as they disbanded some time after the record had hit the shelves.

Obviously, Marquee Moon was a hard act to follow. You must remember that the songs which were recorded for the debut had germinated over three years of live performances, and that alone gave them a crisper edge when placed against the songs on Adventure. Those were written in a very limited lapse, but at least the band exploited the bigger budget they had the second time around.

In many cases, they slowed down the tempos and came up with songs that ended sounding a little trippy. The most obvious examples are the cuts “Carried Away” and “The Fire”. The former has a sort of lulling melody that mirrors the marine themes and motifs of the lyrics in a manner not really dissimilar to that in which Yeats’ “The Lake Isle Of Innisfree” lulls you over with its vocal rhythm.

On the other hand, “The Fire” has Verlaine playing a slide part in which he uses a knife instead of a bottleneck to quite good effect. The song also has the best set of lyrics on the whole album – it must have helped that Tom picked the standout verses from over twenty he claimed he had penned. Continue reading

Sandinista! (The Clash) – Album Review

Sandinista! (1980) Set The Scene For The World Music Genre That Was To Become Common Currency In The 80s

Sandinista! (1980) Set The Scene For The World Music Genre That Was To Become Common Currency In That Decade

Do you measure how good an album is by looking at how much filler it has, or by looking at the actual number of cuts that are extraordinary? That is the key question many ask themselves when they have to analyze this triple album, issued by The Clash in 1980. The previous release (London Calling, 1979) already had found them pushing boundaries by being a two-record set that included far, far more than the punk offerings that many had already associated with them.

Strummer & Co. were always the kind to stick to the “nothing ventured, nothing gained” ethos, and it was only natural they would continue taking steps forward. This particular step forward is what John Alroy calls an “anything goes” mentality. I think it is best to term it an “anything that speaks to us goes” mentality. Just listen to the single “Hitsville UK”, about a band that does not necessarily succeed but makes people happy for doing what it does (IE, playing music), and the terms of the gamble The Clash had taken this time around become all the more understandable.

The range of styles across the 6 sides of Sandinista! is as encompassing as you can imagine. Note that there are few rock songs around, and the ones available do not necessarily deliver. The one exception is their cover of Eddie Grant’s “Police On My Back”. I do like “Up In Heaven (Not Only Here)” if only because it showcases the band’s ability to tackle important issues (in this case, the tower blocks that blighted England and the living conditions therein), and I can say the same about “Somebody Got Murdered”. But the latter song highlights how far gone Topper was on heroin. He was to take a permanent leave after the next album – in hindsight, the other members of The Clash have equaled his departure with the beginning of the end for them all. Continue reading