Perú Maravilloso Lp, Tiger´s Milk TGM003. 2013.

I think it is not necessary to remind our regular readers the purpose behind Sotano Beat's fanzine and blog: Returning to the collective memory, the work of Peruvian musicians from the 50s, 60s and 70s. Artists who undeservedly had a brief success at the time and then disappeared forever. But now, more than ten years after the foundation of our fanzine, it is also necessary to highlight the work of the labels that in recent years have released the work of these musicians, putting them again in the musical map for the current generation.

And what is better than international labels in Peruvian hands doing it? I mean the newest Tiger's Milk. I don't need to take too much time on the presentation of this new record label founded by Martín Morales, known in the culinary world for its Peruvian restaurant "Ceviche" in London. We will publish an interview with his partner David Ballantyne, also responsible for this compilation.

Manzanita

Tiger's Milk had already released “Peru Maravilloso” in every sonic format, including vinyl deluxe edition LP and 7".
We must also mention the collaboration of Andrés Tapia (Repsychled Rcds) in the excellent selection of the compiled songs.
Now, the music:

Lucho Neves and his Orchestra started playing with skill and originality a classic tune of the South-American Andean music: “El Mambo de Machaguay”, latin jazz with an unique flavor. Then comes the Caribbean style 'descarga' of Chango y su Conjunto playing an incredible set right before the relentless groove of Juaneco y su Combo, with the hypnotic "Cumbia del Pacurro": cries of wild animals from the dark jungle, soaked in wah wah guitars and the ubiquitous guiro that invites you to move your body in a trance!

Then comes the turn of the "dark" Zheros with their uninhibited psychedelic guitar riffs and reverberant sound, cumbiando with "Para Chachita". The party can't stop! The sound of "Meshkalina" comes now: a little masterpiece of psychedelic Peruvian composed by Traffic Sound, this time in the original version of the Paco Zambrano y su Combo, with a strong boogaloo rhythm. After that, the cumbia returns again, this time with Los Gatos Blancos and their “El Chacarero”; a band reissued for the first time in a compilation, with an extremely fine sound between Los Mirlos and Los Diablos Rojos.

But not every tune here is just salsa or cumbia, Tiger's Milk let us hear the voice of Zulu, an extraordinary musician, who suddenly in the 70s disappeared almost without trace. The researchers from cult Sotano Beat Fanzine tell their story in a fabulous interview here:  http://columnabeat.blogspot.de/2009/04/zulu.html
Zulu sings "Sueño de Amor" in the key of soul and boogaloo, with that sensual idiosyncratic voice of him. After this romantic intermission we are back to the land where cumbia kicks, and we are dancing to Los Orientales, Los Ribereños and Los Ecos, who bring a stunning reinterpretation of the Beatles tune "I feel fine”.

What can be said about the next track "Toro Mata"? It's a tune that every Peruvian has ever heard. It's a song that not only defines our national folklore, but, unlike any, reveals the great contribution of African culture to the Peruvian culture. The compiled version brings the Orchestra of Pocho Purizaga doing some beautiful string arrangements, elegant Hammond sounds and tasty percussion work.

To continue surprising us with this collection of songs comes Manzanita, founder (along with Enrique Delgado) of the Peruvian style of cumbia: the tune "Zambito Rumbero" brings to our ears an electric guitar raving with his unique and uninhibited style, turning upside down the limits of a genre invented by himself: That's what I call originality!
And after that batch of cool songs we know you people want more, so let us bring al last but not least Felix Martínez y sus Chavales and the great Aniceto y sus Fabulosos (you can read their story here: http://columnabeat.blogspot.de/2009/12/aniceto-y-sus-fabulosos.html

The LP also comes with a bonus track from the creators of "Darkroom", The Zheros and their insane "Descarga de los Zheros".It is also important to mention the quality of this first label's release, the very informative notes accompanying the CD and the mp3 downloads accompanying the vinyl edition, adding a good design to a compilation that sets already, musically, a high standard for future editions of our Peruvian urban music.

Thanks to Antonio Ayora González for help to translate this text.

Cumbia All Stars european Tour 2013

FINAL DESTINATION: 2.11. Berlin.

Singer Lucho Carrillo and guitar player Fernando Diaz Loli 

Sitting in a restaurant near the city center, I started my conversation with Lucho Carrillo, singer of Cumbia All Stars. "We really rocked the house!" He replied enthusiastically when I asked how the concert was in the WOMEX .
Cumbia All Stars came to Berlin after several performances starting with their concert at the World Music Expo in Cardiff (UK) representing Peru. Artists from around the world like Sidi Touré from Mali , Les Tambours de Brazza from Congo or the famous Van Van from Cuba were also there.

Sitting at the same table (shortly before their concert) I was honored to see the musicians who played in bands like Compay Quinto, Los Destellos, Los Diablos Rojos or Los Beta 5 : the founders of Peruvian Cumbia, now known by various nicknames, including "Psychedelic Cumbia" or what I like most "Cumbia Beat".
Lucho Carrillo (who answered my questions) was for four decades the lead singer of Los Diablos Rojos, with whom he toured through the country.  Under the direction of Marino Valencia he recorded ten Lps : "Our cumbia was aguarachadita" he told me confident , "we had our own style, Los Destellos  their own style too, you recognized our sound immediately, not like the groups from now sounding similar to each other "
.
GUITARS IN THE ORBIT !
Asking about their European tour he told me that in the peruvian carp of WOMEX they initially  had trouble checking the sound. But then people, their audience, surrendered completely dancing to the hot music that they carry in their drums, guitars and blood.
In addition to be excellent musicians, Cumbia All Stars are perfectionists of sound and proudly want to leave a mark on the European public. Their concert is like opening the door of their homes and like letting you into their world, a world in which sympathy and joy of life make you spend an unforgettable night .
"Thanks to Selvámonos, because of them we are here. They wanted us to play the authentic, original Peruvian cumbia. At the beginning they casted about twenty musicians, but now only eight stayed." As he said it, I saw them eating. It was clear that they fitted together very well.
At the concert in Glashaus Fernando Diaz Loli started playing his stratocaster, making his “solo” with his teeths in the style of rock and roll! Or Manuel Pecho, coming out of the shadows to do a bass solo , starting with deep to the higher notes!

What defines Peruvian Cumbia as music style? " Electric guitars! " answered Enrique Yllescas, "We added effects like Fuzz and Wah Wah " remarked Lucho "And Los Pakines used the Tape Echo" ( predecessor of Delay) -  added Enrique again.
"And how this reinterpretation of cumbia was accepted in Colombia, these new sounds from Perú?  I asked with curiosity : "Well” - Lucho Carrillo told me - “years ago, I was invited to  Bucaramanga in Colombia, and when I arrived they had closed several streets of the city. It was a tremendous party in the whole city. They had put together a huge sound system. More than three blocks of people dancing in the street and they were dancing Peruvian cumbia! The DJs put Los Destellos, then my group Los Diablos Rojos... Everything! I had stayed 15 years living in Colombia, but fate brought me here, to Europe, to be the voice of Cumbia All Stars."

"After Berlin, when we will return to Perú, we will complete our recordings of the first album with the band, we´ll gonna finish the mixing and mastering" concluded Lucho Carrillo.
Jose Rodriguez "El Gato", manager of the 2013 European tour, told me that the album will be officially launched on January 3rd in Lima. He also said that they are working with La Gris Films, for the realization of the next video clip, which will be released about March 2014.

My thanks to Selvámonos team, especially José Rodríguez and Juliette Boggio and Lakino.
Ricardo Garcia, Sótano Beat correspondent from Berlín.

Cumbia All Stars Tour Europeo 2013 : Reportaje.

Entrevistando a la banda

Sentado en un restaurant cerca del centro de Berlín inicié mi conversación con Lucho Carrillo, cantante del super grupo Cumbia  Allstars. “La rompimos !” me contestó con entusiasmo cuando le pregunté cómo les había ido en el Womex.
Cumbia All Stars había llegado a Berlín después de varias actuaciones iniciadas con su concierto en la World Music Expo en Cardiff, Reino Unido, representando al Perú juntos a  artistas de todo el mundo como Sidi Touré de Mali, Les Tambours de Brazza del Congo o los famosos Van Van de Cuba.
Sentados en la misma mesa ( poco antes de su concierto) tuve el honor de ver a los músicos fundadores de la cumbia peruana, ahora conocida bajo diversos motes, entre ellos “Cumbia Psicodélica” o el que a mí más me gusta “Cumbia Beat”.
Lucho Carrillo fue durante cuatro décadas el vocalista de Los Diablos Rojos, con los que recorrió el país y bajo la dirección de Marino Valencia grabó una decena de Lps: “ Nuestra cumbia era aguarachadita “ me comenta confidente, “ nosotros teníamos nuestro estilo, Los Destellos el suyo, reconocías nuestro sonido al toque, no como los grupos de ahora que suenan tan parecidos unos a otros”

Preguntando por su tour europeo me comentan que en la carpa peruana del Womex, al principio  costó trabajo poner el sonido a punto, pero después la gente, su público, se entregó completamente bailando al son de esa música caliente que ellos llevan en los cueros y en la sangre.
Y es que, además de excelentes músicos, los integrantes de Cumbia All Stars  son perfeccionistas del sonido y con orgullo quieren dejar huella en el público europeo. Un concierto para ellos es como abrir la puerta de sus casas y dejarte entrar en su mundo, un mundo en el cual la simpatía y la alegría de vivir te hacen pasar una noche inolvidable.
“Y todo gracias a Selvamonos, es por ellos que estamos aquí, porque querían que tocaramos la auténtica, original cumbia peruana. Convocaron cerca de veinte músicos y hemos quedado solo ocho” y mientras me lo decía, al verlos comiendo juntos poco antes de subirse al escenario del Glas Haus, fué claro que además se llevan muy bien, como cuando más tarde durante su concierto cada uno de ellos fueron haciendo “solos” en sus respectivos instrumentos :

Fernando Díaz Loli arrancando octavas imposibles de su stratocaster para terminar tocando las cuerdas con los dientes al más puro estilo del rockanroll ! o Manuel Pecho, saliendo de la sombra para hacer un solo de bajo eléctrico, empezando con las notas graves y profundas y llegando hasta abajo ! del instrumento me refiero.  Y es que la picardía sale al menor descuido.
Qué es lo que define una agrupación de Cumbia Peruana? “Las guitarras eléctricas !” me responde Enrique Yllescas, “...le anadíamos efectos como el Fuzz y el Wah Wah” remarca Lucho “...y Los Pakines solían usar el Eco de Cinta !” (antecesor del Delay) - añade Enrique nuevamente.

Y cómo aceptaron los colombianos esa reinterpretación de la cumbia,  esos nuevos sonidos desde Perú? pregunto curioso: “Mira - me cuenta Lucho Carrillo - yo fuí a Colombia invitado a la ciudad de Bucaramanga, y cuando llego habían cerrado varias calles de la ciudad y armado tremendo fiestón, con unos equipos de sonido enormes ! Más de tres cuadras de gente bailando en la calle y lo que bailaban era cumbia peruana! Los pinchadiscos ponían Los Destellos, mi grupo entonces Los Diablos Rojos...todo! Me quedé 15 anos viviendo en Colombia pero el destino me trajo aquí, a Europa, a ser la voz de Cumbia All Stars “
“Después de Berlin, cuando regresemos a Perú vamos a poner a punto las grabaciones de lo que será el primer disco con la banda, vamos a terminar las mezclas y la masterización.” concluye Lucho Carrillo. Conversando después con José Rodriguez “el gato”, persona clave y tour manager de la banda, me aclara que el disco será oficialmente presentado el 3 de Enero en Lima.













Mis agradecimientos al equipo Selvamonos, en especial José Rodríguez y Juliette Boggio y Lakino Berlin.

The man is gone

Lou Reed is gone, the waiting has ended.
Music recorded by Ricardo Malpartida (sing & play all the instruments)
Picture: Colibri Underground by Juan Avellanosa.

"El limpiador"

Perú, 2013

95 min - Drama/Sci-fic.

Por curiosidad fui a verla cuando Lakino la presentó en Berlin, además con expectativas pues es la película peruana candidata al Oscar 2014.
"El Limpiador" trata del encuentro entre un hombre maduro y un niño em medio de una epidemia mortal. No creo que haga falta una sinopsis de la película, pues esta se encuentra ya en la red. Voy mejor directo a mi opinión.
Técnicamente (cámara, luces, escenario) "El limpiador" está ok, el ritmo bastante lento y los planos congelados logran crear una atmósfera tediosa y por momentos (pocos) lírica.
Adrian Saba nos recrea una Lima ficcional, vacía, con ocasionales autos en avenidas de madrugada, en la cual los habitantes de la gran ciudad se desenvuelven sin esperanzas y deciden suicidarse sin la menor emoción.
En la cual el hombre maduro mencionado antes, no muestra ni desarrolla ningún sentimiento de afecto hacia ese niño que encuentra y que hasta el último momento trata de apartarlo de sí mismo. Sin emoción.
Lima GRIS. Moderna, con un sistema de Metro y grandes autopistas pero vacía, sin alma y sin identidad.
Los personajes se desenvuelven en ese mundo ACEPTANDO su destino con el truco de no querer verlo. Y eso en medio de una pandemia en la cual la mayoría de la población de la gran ciudad muere, y mueren en un extraño silencio mientras el "limpiador" decide seguir tomando su sopa. Uno se pregunta: es que los peruanos no conocen el miedo?
El director ni se molesta en que sus actores "actúen", amparado en un laconismo inexpresivo se limita a enfocar su cámara y susurrar "acción"
"El limpiador" es una película víctima de la pretenciosidad de un concepto, el mencionado "laconismo", que finalmente me aburrió y decepcionó cuando vi que llegado el final no había sucedido realmente NADA.
Tal vez como película de cortometraje funcionaria, pero además es que la van a mandar a competir por el Oscar!

Pd: Lo mejor de la película es el trailer.

Goo Goo Muck

What "Sellouts" Were

Este blog está dedicado a mis propias experiencias y normalmente no posteo nada de otros escritores, pero esto es importante:
por Hamilton Nolan

Once upon a time not so long ago, there was an idea: that some things in this world should be able to exist free from the influence of money—that these things should be done because of their own intrinsic value. You would be forgiven for scoffing at the notion that this idea was ever taken seriously at all.

These things that people believed were intrinsically valuable were called, broadly, "art." Art could be music, or dance, or graffiti, or whatever the hell else people did to express themselves. Little subcultures developed around each of these art forms. These subcultures were often fiercely protective of the perceived purity of the art. That is, they didn't just believe that the artshould be free of the influence of money and corporate sponsorship; they believed that it had to be free of those things, or else it was corrupted. They believed that art was expression, that came from your soul, and that was it. You could no more sell product placements in your song lyrics or make music at the behest of corporate brands and still remain respectable than you could inject poison into your blood and still remain healthy.

Some people, of course, did not care about this standard. Some people wanted to maximize their earnings. They didn't want to just make money from selling their art, or performing. They wanted to make money any way they could. So they did shout outs to paying brands, and made product endorsements, and allowed their songs to be sold to companies for use in television commercials for cars, or liquor, or fashion. This was perfectly legal. No one could stop them. But by doing this, these artists traded something for that money: the respect of their peers and their most devoted fans. Because they had, very consciously, chosen to sell off to the highest bidder the good will and credibility that they had earned through their art. It was understood by all parties involved that this decision would change things for the artist in two major ways. He would be much wealthier than other artists who had not made the same decision. And he would, at the same time, lose a good deal of respect from the people who cared about the art for its own sake. There was a name for this choice: selling out. It had advantages, and it had disadvantages. All of which were more or less accepted by the sellouts, the artists, the companies, and the fans alike.

Today, things are different. There are still artists, and there is still art, and there are still fans. And there are still corporate interests seeking to buy and use that art to attract customers. And there are still artists who make the choice to sell out, and cash in. The only thing that's changed, really, is that the concept of "selling out" no longer exists.

There is no longer a penalty for selling out. There is no longer a public censure that accompanies it. There is no longer an outcry within an artistic subculture when one of its members is fully subsumed by corporate America. The idea that an artist should preserve the sanctity of their work—that they should not allow it to be manipulated by commerce—is no longer considered a mainstream opinion. It is regarded as utopian, dreamy, unserious. The sellouts have lost their critics.

Consequently, the current young generation is being sold wholesale the idea that music and advertising go hand in hand. Why, there's an entire special section in Ad Age about it. It's not that using music in commercials is new; it's that advertisers have succeeded in buying the good will of musicians while those musicians stay cool. The world's biggest brands, with the help oftheir savvy friends in the advertising world, have won the battle to convince young people—who possess the inherent cool aura that corporations so crave to adopt for themselves—that it is absolutely normal and natural for artists to work on behalf of companies, selling things. That this is the proper state of affairs. That, if anything, the target of ridicule should be the person pointing out the fact that someone has sold out, rather than the sellout himself. The sellout, after all, is just living in the real world.

Selling out is now keeping it real.

I have no illusions of smashing capitalism or dissuading the advertising industry from its business. Nor of returning to a past which is long gone, for both economic and cultural reasons. I have a much more modest goal: of keeping the idea of selling out alive. Of pointing to a line in the sand that has been casually erased and saying, "This still exists." The broke young people who are the most passionate music fans in this world may not have the money or connections to be heard in the boardrooms of the world's biggest companies. But collectively, they have something even more powerful: the ability to call bullshit. The ability to deny their approval, which is what all those billions of dollars of advertising spending are really seeking. No matter how much companies talk about it, there really is no "authentic" "DNA" that resides inside a brand. There is only a shiny outward surface, composed of fictions, designed to get you to buy things. There is no soul inside.

There are people out there—powerful people, who work for powerful companies, with a lot of resources at their disposal, and the ability to bombard you everywhere you turn with the same message—who will tell you that brands are the future of the human experience. They will tell you that allowing your identity, and your art, and your thought to be defined by corporate logos is progress. It is not so. Art is free to make. And your approval is free to give. And you do not need to be crazy, or unrealistic, or a ridiculous utopian to raise your hand and register, for the record, that selling your classic song that enraptures the souls of your fans to a car company is fucking selling out, and that a loss of respect is going to ensue. That's it! You do not need to blow up the system. You just need to redraw that line in the sand. Over time, the world tends to stay within the lines. So someone needs to make sure that the lines don't disappear.

Weep not for the sellouts. Weep for the ones who didn't sell out, and nobody cared.

Pere Ubu in Berlin

Pere Ubu in concert! I`d made this film in May 2011 when they played at Quasimodo, a nice Jazz pub on the west side of the town. It was a memorable night because of the strange vibe (bad mood)  both from people and band. As we see here, people are dancing but it was sometimes very aggressive too!

All in all, a night i`ll always remember.

Cumbia Allstars se divierten

Aqui les traigo más de Cumbia Allstars y esta vez una mirada rapida para mostrar cómo los integrantes de la banda se la pasaron bomba en el festival del Agua, en La Casa de Culturas del Mundo, en Berlin, frente a un público dispuesto a bailar x gozar! Ya viene más.

Cumbia Allstars en Berlin

La banda peruana Cumbia Allstars estuvieron en Berlin y el 2 de Agosto dieron tremendo concierto.
Aqui un vídeo que yo mismo tomé cuando ellos tocan el éxito de Los Destellos "Guajira Sicodélica", el vídeo muestra los magníficos solos de guitarra de los maestros Lucho Reyes y Fernando Diaz Loli.

El Sonido de los 60s en el Perú: La guitarra eléctrica. Parte 5

Geloso G1- 1040: Sonido Saico

Eko Viscount

Amplificadores:
Fender Blackface (Twin Reverb) : Los Vips del Perú, Los Shains, Los Jaguars, Los Farfen, Laghonia, Los Golden Boys
Fender de Luxe Silverface: Los Destellos
Vox AC15 : Los Belkings,
Teisco Checkmate 25 y 50 : Los Yorks.
Geloso 1040 : Los Saicos.
National Valco/Supro: Los Zodiac
Guyatone : Los Mads
Eko Viscount : Los Zig Zero, Los Datsuns
Como vemos las guitarras Gibson con pastillas P 90 y Humbucker, como las ES 335 – 355, Les Paul y SG Standard brillan por su ausencia, tampoco vemos ninguna banda con guitarras Fender Telecaster. Así tenemos Grupos que adoran el sonido de Chuck Berry o de los Yardbirds pero que no pueden acercarse a ese sonido, eso sin mencionar el sonido Rickenbacker/Vox AC 30 de los Beatles o Byrds, verdaderos iconos generacionales.

Teisco Checkmate 50, el sonido de Los Yorks

Lo que si vemos y oímos son bandas que tocan con la famosa dupla Stratocaster / Blackface Reverb y Stratocaster / Vox AC 15, lo cual nos lleva  al sonido del Surf, el sonido de Dick Dale y de los Shadows. En nuestro país ese sonido reinó desde inicios de 1963 con Los Incas Modernos hasta fines de los 60s a través del grupo instrumental más famoso, Los Belkings.
Pero y los fans del distorsionado sonido Yardbird?

Fuzz Schaller

Hicieron lo que todo el mundo, mandaron a traer efectos de Fuzz de las firmas Maestro, Schaller, efectos de Echo como el Binson y efectos de Wah wah Vox o Schaller.

Se puede decir que nuestras bandas y grupos, en su mayoría adolescentes, se formaron en el boom del Twist  y luego siguieron su amateur camino a través del Surf y el sonido distorsionado y psicodélico hacia fines de los 60s. El fenómeno de las bandas de Garage no fue solo americano, fue internacional y en el Perú tuvo los mismos ingredientes y recepción que en otros países. Sólo gracias a la originalidad de cada banda éstas dejaron su marca única y reconocible. Nuestras bandas no se proponían copiar a las bandas inglesas, las admiraban y de ellas tomaron su inspiración para crear sonidos diferentes, se trataba de crear no copiar, la banda más original y desinhibida jalaba más fans , lo suyo era divertirse y dar todo de sí, aún cuando fuera tan solo en los 3 minutos que dura una canción.

Los Destellos con Fender Silverface