Juana likes music

There is an important website in English dedicated to Latin music called Club Fonograma; let’s just say it’s like the Pitchfork of Latin music. If your albums is reviewed by them, then you should be considered lucky. They have very good reviews and I enjoy reading them a lot, since they are easy to understand but they still show the complexity of music. 

So whenever I see that an album that they reviewed received a high score, I listen to it like, for example, Doble ola EP (In English: “Double Wave EP”) by El sueño de la casa propia (In English: “The dream of owning the house” or something like that), the project by the Chilean electronic artist José Manuel Cerda.

While I was reading the review written by Pierre Lestruhaut, it was one of the few times in which I could not only understand his opinion but also feel and sense his words in my own ears while I listened to the music: “The first 20 seconds of ‘Balbina’ come as close to noise as anything else in Doble ola, but by the time the piano arpeggios hit the surface there isn’t a single doubt remaining: José Manuel Cerda isn’t here to indulge in fist-fucking your ears, he’s here to give you a 4-minute session of continuous eargasms. Nowhere else will the EP aim for such luxury, but it’s top-notch sequencing makes it so that the climax is not only reached after just the ideal amount of foreplay (the catchiness/dance conflation of ‘Caen Rocas’, the guitar licks/marimba ethereal combo of ‘Peinados de fuego’), but also given its due period of relaxation (leisurely paced, flute-sampling ‘Pobre Ave’).”

I thought this was a beautiful description that deserved to be quoted. You can listen to Doble ola EP above in soundcloud and if you like it, you can download it for free here. It is mainly intrumental, so if language is a problem for you, you shouldn’t worry about that!

“Corduroy” by Pearl Jam from Vitalogy (acoustic live version)

When in the beginning of April I went to see Pearl Jam live, I didn’t know any song by them. Listening to a band for the first time in a concert, it’s very different than discovering them through a studio album, especially because you can see the dynamics in between the band memebers. 

Apparently they are one of the many forgotten bands of the ’90s, the kind of bands whose new releases aren’t interesting for the current music scene. However, Argentines were crazy for them earlier this year; I’ve never seen such a committed crowd. Eddie Vedder’s charisma probably influences that relationship that the band has with its fans. When I saw him singing for around 50,000 people, humbleness was still the word with which I would describe him. He seemed to be so grateful that we were there watching them. (I wrote more about their concert in this post if you want to read more about it) 

I think Eddie Vedder’s voice reflects the personality that he has onstage (or it could also be the other way round). It is captivating, but still it softly trembles and most of all, it sounds very human and sensitive. I have only listened to Vitalogy by Pearl Jam (because it was released in 1994), but if you have the chance to see the live, go to their show. Don’t forget Pearl Jam, they are nice people. 

Three years and three days without Gustavo Cerati (or something like that) 

On May 15th of 2010, Gustavo Cerati suffered a stroke in Caracas, Venezuela. Since then he has been in a coma. Gustavo Cerati is one of the most important songwriters and guitarists of Latin music. With his band, Soda Stereo, he played all around the world and when in 1997 they split up, they were remembered as one of the most influential bands. 

In 2007 they reunited for a tour. I remember Gustavo Cerati saying some words that I though they were very wise. He said that Soda Stereo didn’t split up because they hated each other, but becuase they were simply tired. I remember watching that interview on TV, I remember his so characteristic voice while saying those words; he seemed to be excited about playing with his band again. I went to see Soda Stereo at one of the many shows they gave at the Estadio River Plate in 2007. I wasn’t interested in going to see them because I wasn’t still open-minded enough to accept music from my own country. But now I’m glad that I saw them live, though I barely remember anything from the show.  

Even if Gustavo Cerati wakes up, he probably won’t be able to play music anymore. It is a pity because even though Soda Stereo has broken up a long time ago, his solo albums were both critically and popularly acclaimed. 

I still haven’t listened to a full studio album by Soda Stereo. I should have listened to the album they released in 1995, but I forgot about it. The video that I’m showing you is a performance of their song “Té para tres” from Canción Animal (that Allmusic rated with 5 stars). This is a version they did in 1996 for MTV Unplugged that I like a lot. If you put play, please don’t stop the video until the solo guitar starts. I don’t like to romanticize an instrument, but when the guitar solo starts, an image of a woman crying appears in my mind. Maybe it is influenced by the lyrics, that translated to English they would be like this:

“Tea for three”

The cups on the tablecloth

The spilled rain

A bit of honey, a bit honey

It isn’t enough

The eclipse wasn’t partial

And it blinded our looks

I saw you cried, I saw you cried

For him

Tea for three

A sip of distraction

Looking to decipher ourselves

There is nothing better, there is nothing better

Than home