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Café
Tacuba
Cuatro Caminos
(MCA)
Unbeknown to the general public (or at least outside of Latin
America and pockets of “in-the know” folks here
and there), Stephen Malkmus and Thom Yorke’s Latin American
counterparts have been on the front line of Mexico’s rock
movement since 1992. As if they were long separated distant
cousins, the members of Café Tacuba are an undeniable
presence in rock music south of the U.S. border. Since their
debut album more than a decade ago, this quartet of artistically
restless musicians have consistently raised their musical capacity
to a height which earned their 1999 album Reves/Yosoy
a Latin Grammy nod for “Best Rock Album”.
Comparisons to their North American brethren are of no outlandish
tales either, but while they certainly owe a little to Pavement’s
unbalanced approach and Pablo Honey era Radiohead melodies,
Café Tacuba inject an incredible amount of individual
ingenuity and a distinctly cultured flavor that one will only
find in areas of unsanitary water and cheap tequila. This perhaps,
is what gives them their elaborate mystic appeal; a perspective
of rock music seen outside of the genre’s roots and archetypical
perceptions. Deeply entrenched in their own musical pedigree,
these four students of design all have a heavy hand in how Cuatro
Caminos develops. “Cero y Uno” is a deceptive
opener; drenched in sweeping riffs and vocals that swirl in
and out of melody, it lures the listener into a false sense
of more pliable offerings. And effectively so, because the track’s
approachable arrangements are decisively cut to shreds with
the following “Eo”. A ruckus romp into more frantic
territory; a sound brought to America’s suburbs by the
likes of the Voodoo Glow Skulls.
Their undefined dynamic is once again challenged by “Mediodia”.
A far more subdued pondering that meanders into soft-spoken
melancholy backed by clanging cymbals and kinks of instrumental
chiming. Once again, it quickly swings, this time to the album’s
most outstanding moment. In the ska tinged discordance of “Que
Pasara”, frontman Elfego Buendia’s strained vocals
quiver with the same effectiveness as Yorke’s would on
the stages of Glastonbury. With a bassline so engaging and percussions
that scissor with precision, Café Tacuba more than flexes
their musical intellect as iconoclasts of their heritage. Their
approach to deconstructing South American based rhythms isn’t
entirely destructive either. In “Camino y Vereda”,
the sambaesque beat that slithers in the background may appear
lost in the crowds of rock guitars and echoing vocals but without
it, the song would ultimately crumble.
Deep and truly engaging, the album only briefly succumbs to
experimental pitfalls. The bizarre grouping of light merengue
with enormously aloof disco beats that slipped its way into
the early 80’s makes for one odd partnership; resulting
in “Puntos Cardinales” distinctly Sonny Crockett
feel. Then in “Desperte”, they embark on stripped-down
measures that sneak and crawl its way around lo-fi island sounds
and Buendia’s labored diction but results in a slightly
plodding, directionless pace.
With only momentary misdirection, Café Tacuba’s
latest is as remarkable as the vast ground covered in the album’s
fourteen tracks. Traveling around a globe’s worth of musical
attributes while humbly remaining dedicated to their craft,
they cut through an immense amount of material with great serration.
It is a wonder how so few outside selected circles are aware
of this quartet; hopefully Cuatro Caminos will serve
notice to the masses that Mexico’s most avant-garde rock
musicians have been producing fine work for many years.
Reviewed by
Billy Maulana
November 24th, 2003 |
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