By the Zonagirante.com team @spinning zone. Photo by Alfredo Lois
On August 7, 1990, under the CBS Discos label (soon acquired by the Japanese corporation Sony Music), what many consider the most important album in Latin American rock was released, Animal Song, from the Argentinian band Soda Stereo. This album, with 10 tracks and a duration of forty-one minutes, had been recorded during the previous two months at Criteria Recording Studios, under the production of Gustavo Cerati and Zeta Bosio. Once published, the reactions were immediate. The shelves of specialty stores overflowed and Animal song It became a resounding success, winning Diamond record in Argentina, platinum record in Mexico and Peru, and gold record in Chile.
According to experts, this album reflects the maturity achieved by the trio, achieving in the process a rawer sound, somewhat more direct lyrics, much more emphasis on the riffs guitar, heavier drums, with marked influences from the alternative rock of the time and from Argentine rock of the seventies, moving away from new wave y synthpop from previous productions. Soda Stereo thus faced the changing times and definitively conquered the continent.
Marking three decades since its introduction, We decided to ask musician friends from all over Latin America about their relationship with this production through 3 questions:
1. Do you like Animal SongIf so, why?
2. What is your favorite song from that album?
3. If that album had been released in 2020, how do you think it would have done?
Their responses came quickly:
Silvia Gers (Argentina)
1. Yes. It was the first Soda Stereo album I really liked. More rock-oriented, with a more powerful sound.
2. My favorite song is Man overboard
3. It would have done very well, because it has a tremendous sound, and with many different moods in each song. Without a doubt, it's my favorite album in Soda Stereo's entire history.
Grethel Zavaleta (Grtsch/Mexico)
1. I really like it; it's one of my favorite Soda Stereo albums. From my perspective as a songwriter, I think Cerati always stands out for developing a concept like "animal desire"—something we all feel as human beings—and transforming it beautifully into a feeling we can all relate to.
2. I have several, but among them, Tea for Three, Among Cannibals y One million light-years.
3. I feel it would be a much-needed album during these uncertain times the world is going through. Cerati's vision in his compositions is both futuristic and timeless, making many people empathize with the lyrics. It would be a great album for 2020.
Laura Román (Colombia)
1. I love it. Emotionally, it has an atmosphere that conveys the primal nature of the human heart.
2. Among cannibals.
3. It might not have lasted as long as a collective value because of the amount of music that exists today and how ephemeral it becomes amidst so many distractions.
Carlos Rosales (Surfer Gorilla/Colombia):
1. Yes! Well, I don't think I ever listened to the whole album, but since Soda Stereo was so big, there are many songs from that album that became the soundtrack of my childhood, listening to (the radio program) The Morning Zoo, at home, on vacation.
2. I think that Man overboard. It reminds me so much of my father and uncles singing that song. I remember hearing it recently and saying: «"Damn, this guy, besides being a tremendous guitarist and singer, had amazing lyrics!!! What a legend Cerati was!".
3. With a reggaeton beat and feats. With guys from the genre. And singles, not an album. (Laughter). Lies, being the great Cerati that he is, it's very likely that it would have been a much more experimental album with more collaborations.
Chivas Argüello (Rule/Argentina):
1. I like the album; every song is a hit. I like the rock spirit of the album, influenced by the 90s. I really like Cerati's guitar playing on that album; he established himself as one of the best Argentine guitarists of all time.
2. Despite being a very rock-oriented, guitar-driven album, the song that marked me the most was Tea for three. I always wanted to do a song like this, simple, direct and melancholic.
3. I don't think that Animal Song This is an album for our times, where fluidity, softness, roundness, and tranquility govern the overall sound. It's a work very much a product of the 90s, when Nirvana reigned supreme over the music world.
Sonic Aurora (Colombia/Dominican Republic):
1. I love it! Because it has all the essential ingredients of a truly transcendent work. This album opened many of our eyes to the possibility of creating powerful, artistic, moving, and popular music. It encompasses conceptual extremes from simplicity to complexity, and the lyrics are perfect for singing along to and embracing different moments, achieving true pop. It's an inspiring album.
2. Difficult decision, because, as I said, both the complexity (musically 7/8) and energy of Seventh Day, the basic one of Light music, the "rocker"« You usually leave me alone, the poetics Animal song, the inspirational The sun sets, the nostalgia of Tea for 3, Well…today can be the delicious Man overboard.
3. I have no idea how people's minds work these days, but I think it would be a triumph to hear music like that for the first time, similar to what happens in the movie. Yesterday.
Juan Olmedillo (The Little Revenge/The Mints/Venezuela):
1. Yes, of course! I really like it because, although I was already a Soda Stereo fan at that time, the songs on this album seem to fit together perfectly, much more so than on previous albums. It's almost a perfect repertoire in the sense that I remember listening to the album over and over again, in the order it appears, without stopping or skipping any songs, since none of them feel unnecessary. Furthermore, I think they toughened up their sound, especially the guitars. Undoubtedly an important point in Soda Stereo's history.
2. You usually leave me alone. The guitar progression is a classic of rock in general.
3. Unfortunately, I don't think it had the same impact it did back then. The scene is different now, and the sound of that album belongs to that era. However, the songs are timeless, and perhaps, with more modern production, it could still generate buzz, if reggaeton allows it….
Giancarlo Fragoso (Telefunka/Mexico):
1. I love it, for me it is the album that best represents the sound of Soda Stereo and gives what I would call "coming of age" to Rock en Español.
2. That's a tough one. It's an album I enjoy from beginning to end, but if I had to choose one, I think it would be... Among Cannibals.
3. I think it might be doing better than in 1990, because of global accessibility.
Tana Vallejo (The Tenacious/Colombia)
1. Just with that phrase «"when the body doesn't expect what they call love"» That in itself is special.
2. Among cannibals. Extremely attractive and sexual, crazy times of freedom.
3. Sure, yes, I believe so, perhaps without so much reverb in the sound, (laughs).
Gregorio Merchán (Morphonia/Velvety/Colombia):
1. I love it. As a Soda Stereo fan, I don't really have a favorite album; each one represents a moment in my life. This album was my debut as a drummer, and since it's, in my opinion, their most raw, direct, and simple album in terms of arrangements, it was easy to learn. Not only the drumming, but the lyrics with their more direct metaphors resonated throughout Latin America, making it an album where almost every song is a hit.
2. I have my favorites depending on the era. Now that I had the opportunity to celebrate this album and put it together with El Rito de Soda Stereo, a band I have with friends who love the band's music, and Cerati alone, I rediscovered the least famous song on the album, which apparently they never played live (at least there's no recording). 1990, A song with a folk vibe and even a touch of The Cure, a very special mix.
3. I think that if that album hadn't come out in 1990, the course of Latin American music would be very different. So many people wouldn't have been drawn to rock en español. This album breathed new life into that wave, which was waning at the time, and positioned them as the most important. If it were made today, for example... 1990 It will be called 2020, Perhaps it wouldn't have the same power it has now because it was composed at that moment, who knows? Cerati would be alive, and as was always his way of composing, "reinventing" himself (to use a current term), until suddenly, after many twists and turns, he would say for the first time, “Stuck in 2020, the gods did not settle accounts.”.
Fede Kempff (Argentina):
1 .- Animal song It is, in fact, my favorite Soda Stereo album, basically because of the sound of its songs; it is a very guitar-driven album with a rock atmosphere like they had never had before, songs that at times recall things from other eras but at the same time sounded very current for that time.
2. It's difficult, but if I have to choose just one it is You usually leave me alone.
3. It's difficult to know... we are surrounded by a large number of new sounds that are quite far removed from that classic sound of Animal song, But I suspect that because it was Soda Stereo, it not only would have had a good place but would also have served as a trigger for a new current of sound that would have more to do with guitar rock.
Migue Irrazabal (Zebra 93/Chili):
1. I love it, because it's an album where the guitars take center stage, the band's sound becomes rawer than what they've been doing in Double Life And that brings them closer to rock.
2. One million light-years. That guitar melody characteristic of the song is, for me, one of the most intricate, catchy, and iconic riffs in Latin American music. On the other hand, there's that rhythmic and harmonic cadence that resembles... Tempted by Squeeze, and which is enhanced by the solidity of Charly Alberti's drumming.
3. For me, in terms of production, it's a very period-specific album, and that's related to the context in which it was made. Very typical of bands that had been making music in the '80s and were entering the new decade, like, for example, Seeds of love from Tears for Fears, which came out a year earlier. But good songs are timeless and would fit perfectly into the current scene of bands like Wild Nothing, Bandalos Chinos or Zebra 93.
Maria Monica Gutierrez (Mountaineer/Colombia)
1. I love that album; it's probably the album with Soda Stereo's most iconic songs. It's incredible how so many great songs, so representative of Soda Stereo, can be packed into a single album.
2. It's difficult to choose just one, but Tea for three It's probably the one I've listened to the most. I became even more fascinated by that song when I heard it quote a part of a Spinetta solo.
3. He would have done very well, but not as well as he did back then. Nowadays, people have very particular tastes and no discernment.
Gustavo Ferré (Peru)
1 – Yes, one of Soda Stereo's best albums. A new, very projected sound, and it's incredible because with each album they achieved a completely different sound. For me, it's one of the band's most iconic albums, with many anthems.
2 – Difficult question… I think my favorite is One million light-years o Seventh day. I think one of those two.
3 – I think it would have maintained that guitar-driven essence, but with Gustavo Cerati's futuristic mind, it would have incorporated a lot of technology. Perhaps even more songs would have been composed. I think Gustavo never sought popularity; he composed anthems organically, but he never shied away from experimenting. I think it would have been a huge hit today.
Diego Soto and Kotalo Gallardo (Sleep Paralysis/Chili)
1. D: A lot. I think it's an album without any weak points; from the very beginning, it shows you the direction it's going in. In true Cerati style, it's an album with quite a few arrangements that, as you listen to it again, keep emerging as if they were something completely new. Besides, I've always loved albums that are so peaceful at first, but then gradually become heavier, culminating in a memorable ending. A masterpiece from every angle.
2. D: I have a fight between Tea for 3, The sun sets y One Million Light Years, But I'm leaning towards the latter; it's beautiful in its composition, arrangements, and the band's overall sound. K: Because of its dark vibe and the nuance it brings to the album, I'm going with Animal Song.
3. D: I'm aiming for a good reception. I'm still listening to it and thinking about how good it sounds and the tremendous production work that went into it. It's an album that, despite having all the sound of the late eighties, is still sharp and fresh, like Argentine rock in general. K: Just thinking about the singles from that album, I have no doubt it would do very well in 2020. Animal Song, Among Cannibals, A Million Light Years Away, Tea for 3 They are beasts, compositions that have already transcended their generation and will surely remain popular for a long time to come. Not to mention From Light Music, which continues to be played non-stop on radios, in bars and gigs all over the continent.