I can still remember the exact moment my obsession with Argentine psyche took hold…
I was interviewing Anla Courtis from the Buenos Aires band Reynols (a group whose name was chosen by their pet Chihuahua!) when he mentioned they had just recorded with Daddy Antogna, the drummer from 70s B.A. groups Ave Rock and Orion’s Beethoven. Orion’s Beethovan: even the name sent a shiver down my spine. I immediately knew that I had to find out more. And that, amigos, was the beginning of my fall from grace.
According to local legend, Argentine psych was born in a basement hang-out on Pueyrredon Ave. in Buenos Aires called La Cueva (‘The Cave’), which was home to an odd assortment of beatniks, poets and old jazz musicians. In the mid-60s, young musicians inspired by British Beat groups hung out there, swapping licks and lyrics with the veteran heads. Then they would all head off to La Perla del Once, a nearby pizza parlour, where they would drink and talk and dream, dream, dream.
Inspired by ‘La Balsa’ – the first hit Spanish-language rock record, whose lyrics were co-written in the loo at La Cueva – this close-knit gang of rock ‘n’ roll gauchos formed garage-rock and proto-psych groups like La Barra de Chocolate and Los Abuelos de la Nada. By the late-60s they were joined by bands from other neighborhoods, including Vox Dei and the now-legendary Almendra, whose main-man Luis Alberto Spinetta became a major figure in the evolution of Rock Nacional.
In the 70s Argentine groups up-sized from clubs to stadiums. The music became heavier, more spaced-out and bluesy, spawning power-rock and hard psych bands like Billy Bond, Pescado Rabioso and Pappo’s Blues – groups whose sludgy, wah-wah powered songs are now finding favour with folks raised on OM and SunnO))).
In 72, rocker Juliano Canterini aka Billy Bond yelled the immortal words "Chicos, rompan todo!" ("Break it all, kids!") and kicked off the riot that wrecked Luna Park stadium. But not everyone was impressed by their rockist antics and the scene split into the ‘Heavies’ and the Acusticazo (‘Acoustics’), acid-folk purists who mixed politics with pastoral mysticism.
The party, however, was soon over: in the mid-70s Argentina slid into political chaos and a far-right military-led coalition took control. At the height of the so-called ‘Dirty War’ thousands of trade unionists, liberal intellectuals and long-hairs "disappeared" and rock lyrics came under the repressed scrutiny of government censors.
The restoration of democracy brought a new wave and post-punk groups, but psychedelia was considered old-hat. It wasn’t until the 90s that Reynolds (led by arch-conceptualist Miguel Tomasin) honoured the anarchic spirit of Argentina’s original astral-travellers by releasing symphonies of whistling kettles and zen-like "dematerialized albums" in empty covers.
More recently, Vlubä have delighted psych fanatics with a remarkable run of mind-bending LPs packaged in leaves or silver sand-paper. Vlubä are mentioned by veteran 70s space-rocker Carlos Alonso, while Anla Courtis is currently recording as a prog-psych album as part of Daddy Antogna y los de Helio. All of which means that Argentine psych isn’t just a historical legacy, but a living, breathing thing that will continue to delight and surprise us for years to come.
01. ALMENDRA
ALMENDRA
(RCA, 1969)
Formed by guitarist/lyricist Luis Alberto Spinetta in the late 60s, B.A.-based band Almendra revolutionised Argentine Rock music, elevating it above the pedestrian UK-influenced Beat-Pop that was popular in the mid-60s. Although the group split after a ‘difficult’ second album, their first self-titled LP is a masterpiece, switching effortlessly between mellow accoustic pieces, fuzz-drenched guitar solos and Beatles-esque chamber-psych. And check out ‘Color Humano,’ the 9-minute tune that guitarist Edelmiro Molinari used to name his next project.
02. LA BARRA DE CHOCOLATE
LA BARRA DE CHOCOLATE
(MUSIC HALL, 1970)
Buenos Aires’ answer to The Chocolate Watch Band! Formed around ’69-ish, this bunch of La Cueva club scenesters helped straddle the shift from Brit-influenced Beat to full-on Psych. Their 2nd single ‘Alza la Voz’ has pumping horns and a fuzz-gtr that sounds like a neurotic bee, while ‘El Divagante’ ups the Freak-Beat quotient, with the band setting their fuzz-guns and phasers on stun. They only made this one album, but it’s rarer than a coherent Roky Erikson interview.
03. VOX DEI
LA BIBLIA
(DISK JOCKEY, 1971)
Vox Dei started out in the late 1960s playing a fairly conventional blend of Blues, Rock and, er, Percy Sledge covers. But in ‘71, they adopted a heavier, more overtly psychedelic style on their masterpiece ‘La Biblia’, a soulful and melodic concept-album based on The Bible. ‘Procecias’ is particularly lovely, sounding like a mellow, folky version of Amon Duul 2, circa ‘Carnival in Babylon,’ while ‘Las Guerras’ rocks like the proverbial mother. Their follow-up LP was called “Heavy Feet Jeremy,” bless ‘em.
04. PAPPO’S BLUE
TRIANGULO: VOLUMEN 5′
(MUSIC HALL, 1974)
This bunch were formed in ’71-ish by legendary rocker Norberto "Pappo" Napolitano who paid his dues in Los Gatos, a pioneering 60s Beat group that helped spawn the Spanish-language Rock Nacional movement. PB specialised in a hair-shakingly ‘Eavy fusion of Hard Rock and Blues reminiscent of Humble Pie or Ten Years After. Trust me: this brand of hard-rockin’ psychedelic boogie is teetering on the edge of being huge again. Unfortunately, Pappo suffered a decidedly un-Rock n Roll death when his Harley hit a Renault Clio.
05. SUI GENERIS
VIDA
(MICROFON, 1972)
This popular Acid-Folk band formed in ’69 around the core-duo of "Charly" García Moreno and "Nito" Mestre. Early material was often performed on piano and flute, but there’s something oddly poetic, touching and sincere about their songs which quickly attracted a young fan-base. Charly used amphetamines to fake a heart-attack, then took a corpse for a ride in a wheelchair to bunk off military service. Later albums used synthesisers and a mellotron, but the heartfelt simplicity of those early songs still shines through.
06. V/A
ROCK HASTA QUE SE PONGA EL SOL (ROCK UNTIL SUNSET)
Not an album, but a film of the 1972 Buenos Aires Rock Festival (though a soundtrack LP was also briefly available). BARock was Argentina’s answer to Woodstock and its line-up was a virtual Who’s Who of the early 70’s B.A. Rock scene, including Billy Bond, Orion’s Beethoven, Pappo, Pescado Rabioso, Color Humano, Sui Generis and Vox Dei. It’s a must-see for anyone interested in South American Psych. I snagged a DVD boot off an Argentine contact, but copies occasionally surface on eBay.
07. BILLY BOND Y LA PESADA DEL ROCK
TONTOS (OPERITA)
(MUSIC HALL, 1972)
“Billy Bond and The Heavy Boys of Rock!” Reynol’s Anla Courtis first turned me on to this double-album (also known as ‘Volúmen 3’), which is as ridiculous as it is magnificent. “Tontos” means “fools” or “jerks,” and is a mangled mess of Musique Concrete tape-edits, sound-fx and monged-out Blues jams. Somewhere in the middle of this undoubtedly drug-induced carnage lurks the album’s only real conventional rocker: the amazing ‘Tontos.’ You really do need to own a copy of this.
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08. TANGO
TANGO
(TALENT, 1973)
José Iglesias (aka Tango or Tanguito) started out as a Bossa style café troubadour in the mid-60s. Later, he switched to the newly emergent “Hippie” sound, co-writing ‘La Balsa’ and other Spanish-language hits under the pseudonym "Ramses VII." But as his fame rocketed, his personal life collapsed under the weight of amphetamine abuse. In May, 1972, he was hit by a train after escaping from a mental hospital and this posthumous release helped put the headstone on his legend.
09. ORION’S BEETHOVEN
SUPERANGEL
(POLYDOR, 1973)
Formed in the late 60s, but their first LP didn’t appear ‘til ’73. OB could be super-heavy and sometimes even a little sludgy, as if they’d been raiding mum’s medicine cabinet for downers (Argentine Ur-Doom, anyone?). But then, all of a sudden, they seem to shake off their lethargy and break into a double-speed wah-wah gallop with clattering bongos and saxophones ablaze! What I dig about them is that any Proto-Prog tendencies are auto-sabotaged by a street-punk snarl.
10. AVE ROCK
AVE ROCK
(PROMUSICA, 1974)
More messed-up early 70’s psychedelic Prog-outs from a band whose later line-up included Daddy Antogna of Orion’s Beethoven infamy. Ave Rock sometimes opted for tricky rhythmic changes and (eek!) jazzy interludes, but this one’s worth persevering with: the music’s spacey and richly melodic, but poor equipment and low-budget production prevented them from fully embracing the symphonic pomp that blighted their second album. ’Viva Bélgica’ is a cool extended jam, while ‘Gritos’ is a full-on organ n geetar work-out.
11. COLOR HUMANO
SELF-TITLED SECOND AND THIRD ALBUMS
(TALENT, 1973)
Formed after the implosion of Almendra, Color Humano was an Argentine power-psych trio in the tradition of Cream or Blue Cheer. An awesome 10-minute live version of their track ‘Larga Vida al Sol’ opens the film ‘Rock Hasta que se Pongo el Sol’, with the song ping-ponging between blissed-out balladry and heads-down, balls-out Acid Rock. Sessions in ’73 spawned enough material for a double-album, but it was split into two self-titled sets full of wah-wah powered wig-outs and lysergic Latin American vibes.
12. LUIS ALBERTO SPINETTA
SPINATTALANDIA Y SUS AMIGOS
(ORIGINALLY RELEASED AS ALMENDRA, RCA, 1972)
Spinetta had intended Almendra’s second album to be a (ulp!) Rock Opera, but his plans were thwarted as the band was torn apart by the usual ‘creative differences’, so he split for Europe to get his head together. On 71’s ‘Spinettaland and his Friends,’ he drafted in Pappo and other assorted B.A. buddies to record this hugely underrated solo album of improvised acid jams, urban Blues and pastoral Hippy-Folk interludes.
13. PESCADO RABIOSO
PESCADO 2
(MICROFON, 1973)
After the commercial failure of Spinetta’s first solo album, he quickly bounced back with a new group called Pescado Rabioso (“Rabid Fish”). Their second album Pescado 2 was originally conceived as two distinct LPs: one’s called Pescado, and the other’s called, er, 2. The two covers were joined together, but up-side down, and the album included a 48-page booklet of drawings and poems. Wow – far-out concept, man! Still, this monstrous double LP is justly considered an Alt.Arg psychedelic classic.
14. AQUELARRE
AQUELARRE
(TROVA, 1972)
After Pescado Rabioso and Color Humano, Aquelarre were the third band to rise from the ashes of Almendra. Their first album debuted in ’72 and is def. worth checking: ‘Movimiento’ is full of stompy, crunching guitars and clavinet, while ‘Cantemos tu Nombre’ is languid, lysergic and Bluesy, floating along on a raft of dreamy slide-guitars and a Hammond organ. Meanwhile, ‘Aventura en el árbol’ is totally out there: a Zappa-ish Acid-Blues wah-wah solo. Fantástico!
15. MIGUEL ABUELO
MIGUEL ABULO ET NADA
(MOSHE NAIM, 1978)
In ’68, Miguel Peralta formed Los Abuelos de la Nada (“The Grandfathers of Nothingness”) and cut a gorgeous psych-pop single called ‘Diana Divaga’ that featured a cello, reverb-soaked vocals and loud explosions! When the band split, he went solo and recorded this corker of an album in ’74. The track ‘Recala Sabido Forastero’ is breathtaking: acoustic guitars and soulful Spanish vocals are joined by a string-section, a Moog and sweet vocal harmonies that’ll make your heart melt.
16. PESCADO RABIOSO
ARTAUD
Although credited to Rabid Fish, this 1973 album is effectively a Spinetta solo album based around the life and works of the French surrealist writer (and peyote-gobbling loony) Antonin Artaud. The incredible intimacy of the accoustic pieces have earned comparisons to Nick Drake, though I’m not entirely convinced: Spinetta’s performances hint instead at dark neuroses and strange obsessive urges lurking just beneath the deceptively calm surface of the songs.
17. BUBU
ANABELAS
(EMI, 1978)
This sprawling eight-piece mini-orchestra is considered to be the greatest Argentine progressive band by aficionados of such things. Bubu only recorded one album, but it’s a humdinger: a three-act concept-piece full of brittle-sounding Jazz-Rock inflections, full-tilt electric boogie and more time-signature changes than the first 5 King Crimson albums put together. No, wait – come back! Bubu’s music is also playfully anarchic, spacey and free-spirited: a bonkers Latin American version of early Gong.
18. REYNOLS
10, 000 CHICKENS SYMPHONY
(DRONE RECORDS, 2000)
According to legend, Reynols were formed in the mythical city of Minecxio by Miguel Tomasin either in 191000 or in 1967, when he was three and the other members hadn’t even been born yet. But he may have made that up. In the decade they played together the band released over a 100 records of “conceptual psychedelia,” Drone and Outsider Rock. This ‘symphony’ for 10,000 ghostly, multi-tracked chickens might be their greatest record, but then again, it might not.
VLUBA
THE GREEN LION TAPES VOL. 4
(IKUISUUS, 2007)
With a sleeve parodying Sabbaff’s own ‘Vol. 4’ you might guess this is some uber-heavy sub-species of Satanic Psych and you’d be partially right. But instead of clichéd Crowleyisms and post-Stooges riffage, my #1 favourite B.A. nutjobs opt for caveman drumming, malfunctioning flangers and a power-drill as they travel back in time to the Neolithic Era in search of a lost stash-bag. Warning: this contains some of the most terrifying (yet ridiculous) vocals ever committed to tape.
20. VLUBA
THE PYRAMID ALBUM
(TANZPROCESZ, 2006)
Vluba releases are always a total joy to behold, arriving bedecked in leaves or glued to squares of carpet, but they really topped themselves here when they released a CD sealed, pharaoh-like, inside a sinister black pyramid. And the music’s pretty darn good too: mutant Post-Kraut Psych that swirls, hums and glows like an eerie black-light ziggurat hidden deep in the Andes.
Kek-w