BY: ELI BRAVO ILLUSTRATION BY: MONICA HERNANDEZ
The objective of all revolutions is to reach power. in that sense, it can be said that latin-american rock triumphed, although not how it was expected. when MTv latino launched its signal in 1993, with the song we are south american Rockers performed by los Prisioneros, everything seemed ready for bands that rocked santiago, Mexico city, buenos aires, bogotá and caracas to achieve new heights in the world, making them part of the big leagues in entertainment.
in those times, Rock was a universal echo and singing it in spanish was an id card. all that was missing to conquer the world was a screen. like cosme, the singer of café Tacuba, said, “if you’re in MTv, you exist.” Thirteen years later the channel exists but Rock is no longer king. Those who reached the top did it by playing pop, latin rhythms and reggaeton.
like all revolutions, Rock En Español had its golden years and heroes. after the age of innocence with bands like Teen Tops in Mexico or Palito Ortega in argentina, the irreverence ending the 70’s plus the long hair days, brought us Tri and charly Garcia. during the middle of the 80’s each person in their country spoke about “national Rock” and when the 90’s arrived, there were two musi- cal worlds that collided: in one side we could find the commercial and romantic side that harmonized soap operas and variety shows, and on the other side, there was the contra cultural energy that shook up bars and night clubs. Those who went for the money adapted their sounds to the market; such is the case of Maná, while the ones interested in their underground status preferred to be like los Ratones Paranóicos.
when the 90’s set in, there seemed to be an alterlatina community that man- aged common codes, but likely to happen in this side of the planet, illusions were stronger than the street. The creed of Rock began to lose momentum while the musical panorama turned more mestizo; with the arrival of hiphop and electronica that chimera of a Rock nation was more a promotional tag than a real street spirit. at the end of the game, shakira, Juanes and la ley achieved to fly first class throughout the continent, and better yet, by singing in their native language in front of an audience that mainly spoke English. The crossover was meant for those that knew how to drive the market and the in- dustry. The rest were left for nostalgic moments and history books.
by no means is this an epitaph for Rock en Español. I don’t believe i have enough calibers in the ink of this pen to commit that crime. but it is a requiem with delay for that musical revolt that during years promised to unite latin america with an original sound, at least alternative. This is mostly a celebration of diversity, which is nurtured by the musical roots of the continent, able to make the deputies of the European Union dance in brussels, like Juanes did this past april as he pleaded for the end of impersonal mines around the world. That musical revolution left us a more diverse and open world where Rock doesn’t want -or can’t- center all the attention.
