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After Avándaro:
the black hole of the mexican rock |
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Presentation |
What most people
know of Avándaro is the presence of a semi-nude woman
and a musical group that has the disctinction of being promoted
as the only heroes of that time. But the Festival of Rock and
Wheels of Avándaro in 1971 was much more.
To begin with, it included the generation's best rock musicians
of that time in Mexico, the best rock songs were also written
in their era |
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and a community
vision existed among the youths that even transcended social
classification. The nova star of a generation of Mexicans was
divided and repressed by the government's attitude, the conservative
society, the lack of juvenile representation and the natural
transition from youth to adulthood. That star was now a black
hole, the black hole of the mexican rock. These pages hope to
give light to this important stage of the music of the 20th century
in Mexico. |
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>1. Introduction |
A brief explanation of the reason
this page is presented, as well as the main causes that made
Mexican rock what is now, a movement with an important part of
its past forgotten. One of the objectives of this page is to
preserve (up to where the memory and the bibliography reaches)
part of this history.
Continues |
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>2. A piece of history of
the Mexican rock |
A brief explanation of
the birth of rock and roll in Mexico.
Continues |
TV show
Orfeón a Go Go |
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>3. There the plague comes
(the covers) |
From the beginning the groups
and soloists were devoted to copying the original songs, producing
"covers", "refritos" or "fusiles,"
some with ingenious lyrics like "La Plaga" by the Teen
Tops and "Haciéndote el Amor" by Los Locos del
Ritmo.
Some with ingenious lyrics as La plaga of the Teen Tops
and Haciéndote el amor of Los Locos del Ritmo.
Continues |
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Music Cafe Le Chapeau Melon |
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Today, it is very common to listen
to rock anywhere in the country, but at the beginning of the
Rock and Roll movement and later, it was an odyssey when you
went to a club devoted exclusively to music of young people,
interpreted by and for young people.
Continues |
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>6.
The black hole of the Mexican rock |
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In Mexico a discontinuity existed
among several generations of musicians that was captured in a
kind of collective amnesia. The new generations ignore what was
performed in those years because it cannot be easily found in
the record stores, there is little history written on the topic,
and videos of TV appearances remain in the vaults.
Continues |
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>5.The lost groups |
Music groups appear and disappear
with great frequency, but in the case of Mexican rock this was
dictated by government intervention, the attitude of the record
companies, the managers dedicated to the music, etc.. This is
a brief recount of some of the groups of that time.
Continues |
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El Hangar Ambulante |
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Caminata Cerebral from Love
Army |
"Qué pasó con
lo que dijo
ya tan pronto se olvidó
que pasó con las treinta monedas que te dio
porque no te creo lo que dijiste
sé que no es la verdad
lo cierto es que prefiero en mi cerebro caminar
tendré que caminar |
Sindicatos y patrones me han bajado
la moral
Uh, si me dejo, los calzones también me van a bajar
sí, porque la justicia toma tiempo
yo no puedo esperar
prefiero en mi cerebro caminar
tendré que caminar"... |
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The repression against the musicians
was terrible (although there have always been many obstacles
in the development of Mexican rock), up until the last part of
the 20 century, when the government normalized the conditions
for rock's development.
Continues |
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>11.The old
album covers |
The album covers have become works
of art in some cases.
Continues |
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>14. Records
on the internet |
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Addresses on the Internet to find
the recordings for sale, some of which are very difficult to
find. The main labels who are reissuing this music are Denver
and Ciruela Eléctrica. One can also go to Mexico City
on Saturdays to the Tianguis del Chopo, which is located alongside
the railroad station of Buenavista.
Continues |
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Although the rhythm has been the
main reason the youth listen to rock, the lyrics were evolving
little by little. They evolved from songs dedicated to girlfriends,
parties, cars or rebellion, into more elaborate compositions.
In the 1970s the youth began to hear lyrics of great quality,
but these are also lost in the black hole.
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A serious point to understand
is that the music's quality cannot be judged properly if one
doesn't listen. There were many excellent musicians, and groups
with extraordinary horn sections (closer to Lobo y Melón,
a Mexican "tropical" band, than to Chicago, Electric
Flag or Blood Sweat and Tears). It is necessary to hear bands
like Bandido, 39.4, Máquina del Sonido, La Tribu, Peace
and Love, División del Norte, Tequila, Tinta Blanca, Lucifer,
Macho or The Klan, to fully understand the sound of Mexican rock
of that time.
Continues |
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>10. From the black hole
to the "funky" hole |
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And later there was the era of
the "funky" hole (hoyo fonqui), in places like Siempre
Lo Mismo, El Herraderog, Salón Chicago, Petunias, etc.,
where Paco Gruexxo and Three Souls in My Mind became famous.
Continues |
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>12
The heroes of the Mexican rock |
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José Negrete de Los Locos
del Ritmo |
In the book of Fernando Aceves,
Retratos del Rock Mexicano (Portraits of Mexican Rock), there
are small biographies of some of the main players in the "black
hole of Mexican rock." Here are the groups, where they played,
an appreciation of their musical situation, and what they do
today.
Continues |
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>13. Pictures
of festival attendees |
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Pictures of the young people that
attended the concert in mass numbers, and who were attacked in
the press almost as traitors to their homeland.
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Some books used in researching
this page.
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Translation to the english by
Ray Brazen
Thank's Ray! |
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