Alternative: Radio Zumbido

I can seriously not believe I never bumped into Radio Zumbido before. Not only are they from Guatemala, my second home, but frontman Juan Carlos Barrios was a member of Bohemia Suburbana, one of the greatest bands Central American rock has ever known. Thank you, Fat Planet, for the discovery!

After he left Bohemia Suburbana, Barrios retreated to the magical landscape of Sololá, where he got inspired by the volcanoes and the pristine waters of Lake Atitlán, or as he puts hit himself:

The sights and sounds of old men discussing politics, chicken truck horns, dusty generations-old salsa and jazz records, and the ubiquitous AM radio [...] emerged to me in a way which transcended cliché and inspired me to express the poetry of my native land.

The result was Los Ultimos Días del AM (The Last Days of AM), a beautiful instrumental album of Guatemalan sounds amidst eerie live guitar and countless triphop loops.

That was five years ago. Now Barrios is more a global resident, hovering between Barcelona and Los Angeles, and the 2007 album Pequeño Transistor de Feria can be seen as a reflection on those cities. Not the palm-lined beaches or the big mansions, but the dusty streets of Barceloneta, or the chaos of a latino district in LA.
Radio Zumbido keeps true to the collage-style AM radio feeling, with the more electronic songs ("El Desierto") strongly reminding me of Boards of Canada. Psychidelica reigns on many tracks ("Third Day In Chinatown" is a guitar solo played backwards), but is never disturbing. It's the scruffy analog-recorded percussion of "Revuelta" that appealed the most to me, but the album is so diverse and layered I'm sure you'll find much more that draws you.

Radio Zumbido - Revuelta mp3 buy@iTunes buy@Amazon

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Rock Chapin: Malacates Trebol Shop, El Clubo

A small Spanish lesson: my nickname, Chapín, is actually Central-American slang for guatemalteco (resident of Guatemala). So it's not hard to guess what rock chapín means: in this post we'll have a look at Guatemalan rock music!


The debut of Malacates Trébol Shop was one of the first latin rock albums I bought, so forgive me if the following review is a bit emotionally biased ;) Malacates started out making fun-filled ska and punk music, but on "Déjame Llegar" we hear a more mature poprock sound. Singer Francisco Paez still has that strangely forced voice that inspired me to buy the first album, but I miss the sexy saxophones, politically tinted lyrics, and sheer fun I used to hear. It's a beautiful ballad though, and of a quality rarely seen in these days of Good Charlotte and Chemical Romance cover bands. More yummy music on their MySpace, including my old favorites "Ni Un Centavo" and "Mojado"!


elClubo is a rock band recently emerging from the Guatemala City scene. Real die-hard La Onda readers will recognize the guitar player of Viento en Contra, which was on our playlist almost two years ago. Take a listen to "Me Cansé": both bands sound very much alike, no? So my criticism stays the same too: clear and straightforward music, strong voice, but sometimes it doesn't sound like the right tone. Promising for the future though!

Malacates Trebol Shop - Déjame Llegar mp3
elClubo - Me Canse mp3

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Reggaeton: Local Talent

A big chunk of reggaeton!

Lets have a look at some local talent we've noticed lately. Latin American youth are growing very fond of reggaeton, and you can tell by the number of beginning rappers and DJs that the next generation is coming soon. Here are some fine examples:

Proyecto Suburbio are from Guatemala. They started out only 18 months ago, but they're already a certainty in Central American radio charts, all of their songs reaching #1. Though their producer (VIP) was already doing reggaeton back in the '90s (when it was still an underground movement), they only started Proyecto Suburbio as a 'joke', participating in an international talent contest which they unexpectedly won. Now, they've done shows with Don Omar, Hector y Tito, Ivy Queen, even Shaggy, and soon they'll be releasing their first album "Solo Clase". And it's not just hype: I like their polished, melodious reggaeton very much. "Mala Mujer" was one of their first hits (and the only song I could find).

Calle Ciega is big in Venezuela. The reggaeton boysband conquered the hearts of Venezolan girls with songs called "Tu y To" and "Como Te Extraña Mi Cama", but luckily the music doesn't coincide with their image. The latter song, for example, is quite danceable and very contagious. (If you want to have a good laugh, check out the video). Now they're ruling radio waves in Venzuela, Calle Ciega is looking for their first international successes by promoting their debut album "Una Vez Mas" all over Univision and Telemundo.

Croni-k scored a continent-wide hit with "(Shh Shh) Nadie Lo Sabrá", again a very contagious song with a more exotic, tropically influenced rhythm than standard reggaeton (notice the salsa piano). The six Chilean rappers have been around a little longer (you can tell by their less shabby website), and international success is already their part: from Bolivia to Mexico, you can buy their self-titled debut. Sadly not in the US or Europe, so we'll have to settle with this promotional video (not very woman-friendly, be warned).

Reggaeton is a men's world, but from the Canary Islands come K-Narias: female, confident and successful. The duo just released their album "40 entre las 2" (referring to their age, they're both 20). You can't really say that they have good voices (to make an understatement) but in Tenerife, it's all looks that matter. Luny Tunes produced their debut album, which includes songs featuring Julio Voltio, Don Chezina and Nicky Jam: it seems a lot of important people believe in the potential of K-Narias. Here's the single "No Te Vistas Que No Vas", not suprisingly about a confident and successful woman breaking up with her lousy boyfriend.

Proyecto Suburbio - Mala Mujer mp3
Calle Ciega - Como Te Extraña Mi Cama mp3 video
Croni-k - Shh Shh Nadie Lo Sabrá mp3
K-Narias - No Te Vistas Que No Vas mp3

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