Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Rock & Pop
Argentine rock started in the late 1960s with a trio of groups - Almendra (great melodies
and poetic lyrics), Manal (urban blues) and Los Gatos (pop) - leading the pack. Evolution
was slow, however; the 1966 and 1976 military regimes didn't take a shine to the liberalism
and freedom that rock represented. It didn't help that anarchy-loving, beat-music rocker
Billy Bond induced destructive mayhem at a 1972 Luna Park concert, re-enforcing the
theme of rock music as a social threat.
Underground groups and occasional concerts managed to keep the genre alive, and after
the Falklands War in 1982 (when English lyrics were not actually allowed on the air) radio
stations founded
rock nacional
and helped the movement's momentum gain ground. Ar-
gentine rock produced national icons like Charly Garciá (formerly a member of the pion-
eering group Sui Generis) and Fito Páez (a socially conscious pop-hippie). Sensitive poet-
songwriter Alberto Luis Spinetta of Almendra fame also had an early influence on the Ar-
gentine rock movement, later incorporating jazz into his LPs. Another mythical figure is
Andrés Calamaro, frontman of the popular 1970s band Los Abuelos de la Nada. He later
emigrated to Spain, where he formed the acclaimed Los Rodríguez; he's been performing
solo since the late 1990s.
More recent Argentine groups that have played
rock nacional
include Soda Stereo (ex-
member Gustavo Cerati's
Fuerza Natural
won the 2010 Latin Grammy for best rock al-
bum); cultlike Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota (its legendary leader Indio Solari
now has a solo career); versatile Los Piojos (mixing rock, blues, ska and the Uruguayan
music styles
murga
and
candombe
); and Los Ratones Paranóicos, who in 1995 opened for
the Rolling Stones' spectacularly successful five-night stand in Buenos Aires.
Los Fabulosos Cadillacs (who were the winners of a Grammy award in 1998 for best al-
ternative Latin rock group) have popularized ska and reggae, along with groups such as
Los Auténticos Decadentes, Los Pericos and Los Cafres. Almafuerte, descended from the
earlier Hermética, is Buenos Aires' leading heavy-metal band. The bands Dos Minutos and
Expulsados seek to emulate punk-rock legends the Ramones, who are popular in Argentina.
Other classic bands include hippyish Los Divididos (descendants of the famous group
Sumo), Mendozan trio Los Enanitos Verdes and the wildly unconventional Babasónicos.
The band Les Luthiers satirizes the middle class or the military using irreverent songs
played with unusual instruments, many of which have been built by the band members
themselves. Another quirky character is the late Sandro - known as the Argentine Elvis -
whose death in January 2010 saw tens of thousands of
porteños
gather in the streets of
Buenos Aires to mourn his demise.
