Courtesy of Azafata FB

Azafata stepped up to the Argentine music scene as a quartet that combines rock, pop and electronica with an outrageous fashion sense.

Made up of lead vocalist and guitarist Ariel Flores, Fernando Del Gener on synths, Ludovica Morell on drums and Juan Florido on bass, the group formed in 2003 while Ariel, Fernando and Ludovica were studying musical composition at the Catholic University of Argentina (UCA).

Quickly realising that music wasn’t about being told what they could and could not do, but rather about spontaneity, originality and freedom, they sought a new ethos. And when they first met Juan, a women’s clothing designer at the time, he seemed an instant fit.

Emerging as part of the pop explosion of the early 2000s, they distinguished themselves from the crowd not only with their catchy, powerful songs and an eclectic mix of instruments, but also with the onus they placed on their quirky image.

For Azafata, creating recognisable, intelligent pop music, meant developing a sound that was very much their own, whilst at the same time appealing to the public.

Their first album, ‘Rockbit’, saw collaborations with Héctor ‘Zeta’ Bosio from ‘Soda Stereo’, one of Latin America’s most influential rock bands, as well as Ale Sergi from ‘Miranda!’

Drawing on a cocktail of influences, from Guns’n’Roses to Fischerspooner, it’s a showcase of the band’s unique vision and underlying musicality.

Its initial success on indie label ‘Alerta!’ meant that it was soon picked up by EMI, who re-edited and re-released it in 2006. By this time the band were expanding internationally, picking up a fan base in Chile, Columbia and Mexico. Their meteoric rise to fame was confirmed when, later that year, they were voted winners of Rolling Stone magazine’s ‘Rock Revelation’ category by its readers.

2007 brought further success, with Azafata taking the stage at Rock in the Park Festival in Bogotá, the MTV Music Awards in Mexico, and opening for the Pet Shop Boys at Luna Park in Buenos Aires.

Their second album, ‘Sexy’, followed in 2008, this time produced by Mexican musician Jay de la Cueva, from the group ‘Moderatto’. Again, the band’s individuality shone through, as they strove to carve a unique path through the pop genre.

Recognising that, in music as in fashion, they could be here today and gone tomorrow, Azafata have always sought to be the carrot that leads the donkey, and not the other way around. Their constant evolution in both sound and image has kept them in pole position as pioneers of Argentine pop.

Whilst last couple of years have been quiet in terms of touring and playing live, the band have been busy recording a highly anticipated third album, due out this coming year. This week’s Music for the Weekend is a favourite from their most recent album.

Genre: Indie pop / rock

Dates Active: 2003 – present

In their own words: “We’re fulfilling our fantasy of being rockstars, and we’re doing it with style.”

Most Famous Song: ’Discoteca’

Best lyrics: “You went running to a bar, And to the men’s room you went to play, What a dirty bitch!”

Famous for: Combining 80s fashion with up-beat 00s pop

Best to listen to: At an outdoor party with friends

The brainchild of iconic singer Miguel Paralta, the Argentine group Los Abuelos de la Nada (The grandfathers of nothing’) have become synonymous with the reinvention of Argentine rock.

Formed in 1968, and spanning a 20-year period of band reformations, they might equally hold claim to being the most protean of Argentina’s musical acts.

Los abuelos de la nada

Peralta might have emerged from humble beginnings, but his eccentric persona and creative vision would secure him a loyal following. Frequenting the bohemian haunts of Barrio Norte in the late 60s, he caught wind of newly launched music label Mandioca. Having won over its director, Ben Molar, he sealed a record deal for the Abuelos before they had even been founded, and set out to recruit his band members from the cult hippy hang-out of Plaza Francia.

Peralta, along with guitarrist Claudio Gabis, bassist Alberto Lara, drummer Héctor Lorenzo, and pianist Eduardo Fanacoa comprised the first quintet to go by the name ‘Los Abuelos de la nada’.

With their distinctive medley of Argentine folk-rock and psychedelia – the Abuelos carved out a new aesthetic for Argentine music. Committed to social protest and freedom of expression, their experimental music made them a key player in the regnant countercultural imagination.

But the Abuelos were much more than mere dissenters. Peralta was a fervent reader of  poetry, most notably the writing of Arthur Rimbaud, Friedrich Hölderin and Leopoldo Marechal, and his finely-tuned poetic ear is manifest in the band’s sophisticated, irreverent and erotic lyrics.

The Abuelos made significant inroads in the Argentine music scene when they released their first single, ‘Diana Davaga’, in 1968. The simple, sonorous lyrics and folkloric resonances of ‘Oye niño’ and ‘Mariposas de madera’ are characteristic of the early period.

As a new decade beckoned, the Abuelos adopted a bluesy outfit with the single ‘En la estación’. It was the first song to feature Norberto “Pappo” Napolitano as lead singer, and the percussion instrumentals and ballad-like lyrics gave it a sultry flavour. Napolitano left the group shortly thereafter to form his own number, ‘Pappo’s Blues’.

Unimpressed by the turn the band had taken, Peralta abdicated his lead role and moved to Europe, a climate more conducive to his eccentric lifestyle. In his absence, Los Abuelos de la Nada was put on hold for the most part of a decade.

Summoned by guitarist Geraldo Lopéz, he returned to Argentina in 1980 and, far from capitalising on earlier successes, the band underwent a dramatic reinvention, heralding a golden era for Argentine rock.

New members assembled with Andrés Calamaro on keyboard, saxophonist Daniel Melingo, drummer Polo Corbella and guitarist Gustavo Bazterrica.

Los Abuelos de la Nada swiftly reclaimed their fan base and became the golden child of independent producers. Fusing rock with funk, salsa and reggae, their musical hybrid was emblematic of the cultural renovation of the time.

The singles released in 1982, including ‘Guindilla ardiente’, are testimony to their lead singer’s poetic inventiveness. The album ‘Vasos y besos’ was released the following year. Featuring their iconic protest song, ‘Mil horas’, it marked the apogee of the Abuelos success, and secured a following that packed out Luna Park stadium on three occasions.

But it was not all smooth sailing. As the group expanded, internal disputes became commonplace, especially between Peralta and the band’s producer Charly García. Biographer Juanjo Carmona cited “too much glamour and success” as the cause of the problems.

Courted by the music scene, the group slowly dispersed to pursue their own individual projects. Calamaro set out to produce a solo album and Melingo put his energies into a new group named Los Twist.

Whilst the Abuelos following might have diminished, it opened up a door for Peralta to pursue a solo career once again. His 1984 album, ‘Buen día, día’, was the fruit of a decade of musical experimentation. A hymn to the bountiful nature of experience it cast him as a kind of South American Walt Whitman.

The band, later renamed ‘Miguel Abuelo en Banda’, finally separated in 1988 following Peralta’s early death from AIDS. “Miguel was the poet, in capital letters,” Calamaro later quipped, “popular, sophisticated, streetwise, irreverent, and intimate.”

It is testimony to the enduring power of his lyrics that the legendary folk singer Mercedes Sosa performed his song, ‘Himno de mi Corazón’, at the presidential inauguration of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in 2007.

Genre: New Wave Rock

Dates Active: 1967-1988

Famous for: Reviving the Argentine rock scene, and inflecting it with psychedelic, folkloric and reggae beats.

Most Famous Song: Costumbres Argentinas

Best Lyrics: “Te anden en tropel por todo el cuerpo / y se junten en tu corazón” (They walk in droves over you’re body / and come together in your heart)

In their own words: “Make no mistake, when you knew Miguel well, you’ll realise that he was life itself.” (Calamaro)

Best to listen to: When you’re on a road trip out to the pampas.

The gravelly tones of Peter Lopez drift softly over a melodic guitar riff while a swishing drum rhythm pats out the beat. This is the distinctive sound of Los Alamos, a band famous for creating ‘narcocountry’ and now the stars of a new documentary, ‘The Lost Alamo’.

Peter Lopez of Los Alamos playing in Niceto Club in 2008 (Photo: Mazzi)

The band was born in Buenos Aires in 2004 and have been a solid part of the Porteño and Latin American music scene ever since. They are well known and loved for their unique brand of music, which mixes blues, punk, rock, folk and pop into a new style known as ‘narcocountry’.

The band became famous for their innovative, gritty sound and played gigs across the world before taking a three year break following their 2008 European tour and the birth of lead singer Peter’s first child. They reunited in 2012, however, to celebrate their staring role in Francisco Forbes’ documentary, playing a packed out Niceto gig in early 2012.

Their first album, ‘No Se Menciona la Soga en Casa del Ahorcado’, was released in 2005, just a year after they formed in 2004. It was an instant hit due to its experimental take on folk music and soon after, the band were chosen as ‘best new band’ in the Latin American edition of Rolling Stone.

Taking inspiration from artists ranging from Johnny Cash and  Bob Dylan to the Velvet Underground, Tindersticks and the Cramps, Los Alamos became increasingly popular for their combination of gentle melodies with edgier instruments and vocals to create an intoxicating blend of musical styles. In 2007, Rolling Stone wrote “this band synthesises American folk, the sounds of the coast of the Río Bravo and that distinctive sound we once called stoner rock.”

“The thing that makes the band work is that we don’t pay attention to things that don’t really matter to the music like being part of a scene of being best friends with certain famous bands” said Peter Lopez in an April interview with ‘Rocktails’.

“We’ve never succumbed to pressure to open for certain bands or play certain festivals just because people think we should.”

The group is an unlikely mix of characters, led by guitarist and vocalist, Peter Jopez, a vegetarian and vegan chef with five other members from diverse musical styles and backgrounds playing guitar, vocals, drums, mandolin, bass, electric guitar as well as the trumpet and accordian.

In 2006 the band released their second EP, “Emboscada” and toured around South America, playing Chile twice as well as Uruguy and Brazil, where they shared a stage with Lee “Scratch” Perry. The band’s third album, “El fino arte de la venganza” was released in 2008 and saw them playing to crowds of more than 5000 people in Brazil and Argentina. In August of the same year they commenced their European tour, playing in theatres, pubs and clubs across Germany, France and Switzerland.

A day before the European tour, lead singer and guitarist, Peter Lopez, married his fiancé in France. When the tour was completed, and with the band still riding high in the charts and public adoration, Peter decided to take a break from the band to spend more time with his new family in France, signaling the end of the road for Los Alamos.

The band remained apart until earlier this year, when the release of ‘The Last Alamo’ prompted a reunion in Buenos Aires.

“We were all really keen for a reunion” said Jonah in an interview with Pagina 12 this year. “It was very unanimous, the six of us were all thinking and feeling the same thing.”

2012 will see the band playing several shows as part of a comeback tour which started with their much anticipated gig on the 12^th April 2012.

Beatniks in the 1960's

Amidst the whispered threats of nuclear war, a speech about a man’s dream for the people of his race, and “a giant step for all mankind,” the Argentine band Los Beatniks rose to fame, and then fell just as quickly.

The 60s were a turbulent time not only for the rock band but most countries across the entire world. The political battles, that fortunately remained mainly fought with ink and microphones, dramatically rocked relationships between countries, continents and even cities; the Berlin Wall was built in 1961.

Argentina was no exception to the time of national instability. In the thick of numerous political coups and worker revolutions Los Beatniks were born, and despite having only a few minutes of fame the band helped lay the foundations for the genre that would become known as Argentine rock.

Formed in the early 1960s the band got their start in the town of Villa Gesell in the province of Buenos Aires. Los Beatniks was formed by Moris (Mauricio Birabent) on lead guitar and lead vocals, Antonio Perez Estévez on bass guitar, Javier Martínez on drums, Pajarito Zaguri on guitar and vocals, and Jorge Navarro on keyboard. They first became known by playing at the Juan Sebastián, a local bar in the small seaside town.

On the 2nd June, 1966 they recorded their first single Rebelde, “Rebel,” which is still considered today to be their most well-known song.

The upbeat rhythm of the drums along with the familiar twang of a 60s guitar rift accompanies a fairly simple and repetitive vocal line. Written in the middle of the counterculture movement, the peace and love message from the young hippy generation is obvious in the lyrics. It also has a very Beatles feel to it, no coincidence, given the popularity of the “Fab Four” in Argentina.

The song is certainly catchy and something one easily finds whistling a few hours after having listened to it.

However, the song wasn’t as catchy as the band had hoped and only 200 copies were sold. In an attempt to stay in the spotlight, which was quickly shifting to a different area, the musicians of Los Beatniks intentionally created two public scandals.

The first involved the musicians playing nude in a public fountain for a photo shoot. The photos were published the next day in the tabloid magazine Así. The then military government of Juan Carlos Onganía was not impressed and quickly censored the magazine. As a result the musicians were detained for three days.

Despite the scandal, their sales did not increase and so they tried again. This time the band drove through town in a truck with the musicians playing “Rebelde” in the back while speakers blasted the music throughout the streets. Many people stopped to listen but afterwards the band still did not see any spikes in their profit charts.

Shortly afterwards the band broke up because of their lack of popularity. Moris, the lead guitarist and vocalist, went on to start his solo career while drummer Javier Martínez joined Alejandro Medina and Claudio Gabis to form the band Manal.

The only other song the band recorded before dislodging was No Finjas Mas, “Pretend No More.”

Although the band lasted little more than a few years their impact was profound. To this day they are considered one of the founding fathers of Argentine rock.

Argentine rock is music composed or made by Argentine bands or artists that is sung only in the Spanish language. For nearly half a century it has been a major popular genre, and it is considered part of the popular music tradition of Argentina alongside tango and folk music.

Before the national genre, rock and roll was sung predominantly in English and very closely mirrored the popular English tunes of the time. Then several garage groups started composing songs and lyrics that related to local social and musical themes. The defining quality is their uncompromising stance to sing rock only in the Spanish.

Soon an entirely new and unique to Argentina genre was born, and despite their quick rise and fall, Los Beatniks can say they were one of the first of its kind.

Genre: Rock Nacional

Dates: 1966-1968

Most Well-Known Song: Rebelde

Best lyric: ¿Por qué el hombre quiere luchar / aproximando la guerra nuclear? / ¡Cambien las armas por el amor / y haremos un mundo mejor!
“Why does man want to fight / and bring us closer to nuclear war? / Change weapons for love / and we will make a better world!”

Best to listen to: Driving through the streets of Buenos Aires, in true Beatniks style.

In his prime he looked like current heartthrob Harry Connick, Jr. – but with gyrating hips and sultry eyes that women found sexier than even those of Elvis Presley.

Heartthrob Sandro in 1969. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Whilst his romantic ballads and classic 60s-style rock and roll drew frequent comparisons with his North American counterpart, for his Latino fans, Sandro was an original.

Born Roberto Sánchez on 19th April 1945 in Buenos Aires, Sandro demonstrated obvious talent from an early age. After being expelled from his first year of high school, he joined a band called the ‘Trio Azul’, which, over the next few years, lost members, gained members, changed names and eventually evolved into a new group called ‘Los de Fuego’.

Sandro, also known as “El Gitano” (“the Gypsy”), was originally a guitar player. But one night, when the lead singer lost his voice mid-performance, Sandro took over the microphone and let loose. The crowd went crazy, and within a short time he’d become the band’s front man, adopted the name “Sandro”, and begun attracting fans in a way that Argentina had never seen before.

The band found a unique way to give well-known English songs a Latin twist so that Spanish-speakers could sing along to versions of songs by the Beatles, the Animals, Chuck Berry, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Ray Charles, Little Richard and Tom Jones.

‘Los de Fuego’ recorded several albums and Sandro began appearing in a popular television series called ‘Los Sábados de Nicolás Pipo Mancera’. His wild gyrations on camera almost caused the show to be censored, but young people adored him for his onstage antics and tango performers of the era looked on in horror.

In 1966 Sandro turned solo and took on a more melodic and romantic repertory. It was from this point onwards that he found true stardom, releasing dozens of records, acting in 16 films, and in 1970, becoming the first Latin American singer to perform in New York City, playing to an audience of 250,000 fans at Madison Square Garden.

“What attracted people the most about Sandro, was his enigmatic personality, his raised eyebrow, his trembling lips, and above all, the mysteriousness that surrounded him”, said Argentine blues, rock and soul singer Patricia Sosa in 1993.

Sandro in concert at La Rural in 1970. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

The album ‘La Magia de Sandro’, which came out in 1968, was Sandro’s eighth release and probably his most successful. A year later he starred in his first movie, ‘Quiero Llenarme de Ti’, named after one of his hit songs ‘I want to fill myself with you’.

In 1972 Sandro became the first singer to perform in Buenos Aires’ Luna Park venue. Almost ten years later he travelled to Venezuela, where his famous song ‘Cuando te Amo’ was being used as the theme song of a popular soap opera ‘De Su Misma Sangre’. The show grew to be hugely successful in Latin America and among Latin communities in the United States, and his fame was boosted further when in 1990, the channel 13 show ‘Querido Sandro’ won the Martín Fierro award for the best music program on television.

In the mid-90s rumours began circulating about his health. Having started smoking at the age of 10 and eventually smoking up to 60 cigarettes a day, his habit had caused him to develop chronic lung disease, and by 2001 he was forced to play shows with the assistance of a tube attached to a microphone.

Despite undergoing a heart and lung transplant in Mendoza in 2009, Sandro passed away several months later, on 4th January 2010, at the age of 64.

His magnetic style and romantic legacy make sure his name will not soon be forgotten.

Genre:  Rock, romantic ballad, Latin pop

Dates active: 1960 to 2007

In their own words: “I may lose my life, but I won’t lose living it.”

Most famous song: ’Rosa Rosa’

Best lyric: “I want to float in every kiss in the clouds, and think about you in your lovely youth. Then I want to paint you in the light of a rainbow, and make a painting of love and gratitude.”

Famous for:  Being Latin America’s answer to Elvis Presley

Best to listen to: When you’re open to seduction by a charismatic Latin lover.

Fito Páez (Photo: Javier Velazque)

Named after his father, and changed first from Rodolfo to Rodolfito and later shortened to Fito, Fito Páez is the musical genius behind the highest selling rock album in Argentina’s history. But this rock star didn’t get his start in the big city as you might expect. The city of Rosario, in the province of Santa Fe, is where Páez calls home.

After starting his first band, ‘Staff’, at the tender age of 13, Páez began touring with several bands straight out of high school.  A chance encounter with contemporary rocker Charly García lead to an artistic push.

His first album, ‘Del ’63′, was released in 1984. With Páez as songwriter, vocalist and pianist, it was an impressive first effort.  The disc won him critical acclaim as a musician and led to back-to-back album releases in 1985 and 1986.

Despite all of his success however, it seems even the famous can’t avoid tragedy. Páez’s life was changed forever when former classmate and musician Walter De Giusti, broke into Páez’s family home and, crazed with jealousy and suffering from mental illness, brutally murdered his aunt and grandmother.

Páez poured all of the pain and anger he felt into his 1987 recording, ‘Ciudad de Pobres Corazones’. The album marks a clear change in his work but showed greater songwriting depth than his earlier recordings. With a more rhythmic sound and profound lyrics, the entire feel of the album is dark and skeptic.

Fast forward to 1990 when his style changed once again. In his album ‘Tercer Mundo’, Páez explored Latin American roots and cultural influences, showing the harsh world of poverty and exploitation through notes and words. This album provided the launch pad for his best-known record, ‘El Amor Después del Amor’. The pinnacle of his commercial success; the album sold more than 750,000 copies.

Today he can be credited with having written all and personally produced several of his 21 albums. A Latin GRAMMY winner, Páez has left an indelible mark on the Argentine rock scene, and has even tried his hand at filmmaking. ‘Vidas Privadas’, which was both written and directed by Páez, is a controversial film about incest, set in the time of Argentina’s military dictatorship. His latest contribution to the music scene, ‘Confiá’, was released in 2010 and is yet to be followed up.

Not one to drop out of the spotlight, Páez’s recent comments in local newspaper ‘Página 12’ inspired something of a backlash. Following the July reelection of incumbent city mayor Mauricio Macri, Páez offended porteños by declaring, “half of Buenos Aires disgusts me.” By ‘half’ he was referring to those he considers to be the wealthy and aloof.

As he says in his most famous album, “no one can and no one should live without love.” To keep the love coming his way, perhaps Páez should stick to expressing himself in songwriting or scriptwriting, or something that will help maintain his success and not hurt it…

Genre: Rock and roll

Dates active: 1979 – present

In his own words: “The fear of death is what keeps me alive.”

Most famous song: El amor después del amor

Best lyric: “I will have to do what is and not proper, I will have to do good, I will have to do damage, don’t forget that forgiveness is divine, and to err is something human.”

Famous for: Selling over 750,000 copies of a single album earning it the title of the highest selling rock record to date in Argentina

Best to listen to: When you are feeling poetic