Aterciopelados

Aterciopelados (English: ), led by Andrea Echeverri and H?ctor Buitrago was one of the first rock bands of Colombia and is among the country's top groups. Their music fuses rock with a variety of Colombian and Latin American musical traditions to create a unique organic rock sound. Time Magazine has written, "Aterciopelados's true skill lies in its ability to take north-of-the-border musical styles?and breathe new life into them, all while giving them a distinctly Colombian sheen."

Additionally, Aterciopelados engages audiences all over the world with their socially-conscious message. Honored by the United Nations for their work denouncing violence in Colombia, Aterciopelados speaks out about myriad issues including political injustice, women's rights, and environmental destruction.

The group has been the recipient of numerous awards and recognitions. Recently, they won the Latin Grammy Award for Best Alternative Album in 2007 for Oye (Nacional Records).

In October 2008, Aterciopelados released a new studio album, Rio, on Nacional Records. The album has already received rave reviews from publications like Rolling Stone, the Washington Post, Billboard, and from NPR?s ?All Things Considered.? As Vibe Magazine said, ?For Aterciopelados, maturity has become a form of liberation.? The group will do an extensive United States tour April 2009 in support of the new album.

Musical Style

Over the last several years the restless youth of Latin America (and their Latino cousins up North) have been swept up in the Latin alternative scene. They like their hip-hop and alternative rock, but they don't want to give up their soulful, folkloric roots. At the forefront of the nuevo wave is Aterciopelados, whose music would feel equally at home at a rock concert, electronica lounge, or salsa club. They can rock like Radiohead, but have the same dedication to Latin music's traditions as the Buena Vista Social Club.

History

Essentially a collaboration between vocalist/guitarist Andrea Echeverri and bassist/arranger H?ctor Buitrago, Aterciopelados has recorded eight albums since they originally teamed up in Bogot?, Colombia in the early 1990s as "Delia y los Amino?cidos". "H?ctor was an essential revelation in my personal and musical life," said Andrea. "He brought new aesthetics, unsuspected rebellion, and truckloads of music." Buitrago came from a hardcore rock background, heading up a group called La Pestilencia, while Echeverri had been drawn into the fledgling scene through art school friends. "When I was young I listened to bugaloo by Richie Ray and later stuff like Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Yes," said H?ctor. "The first time I bought a bass guitar, I'd never had one in my hands before. I began to write songs by ear." H?ctor and Andrea went on to open one of Bogot?'s only rock clubs, and their relationship is one of Latin rock's most successful artistic partnerships.

Music and Albums

Aterciopelados' first album, Con El Coraz?n en la Mano (With my Heart in my Hand), features crashing, distorted guitars and a loud punk drumbeat.

With their second album, El Dorado (The Golden One), Aterciopelados began to expand their horizons, including traditional llanera rhythms of the Colombian countryside as well as the flamenco-bolero sound of their first big hit, "Bolero Falaz." "At first what we were doing was very elementary", said Andrea. "But since we've played out a lot, learned to compose, and made a few records, even though we haven't had a lot of formal training in music, we've just learned how to develop. We've done it in a very instinctive way, but I think it's very valid." The hit song "Bolero Falaz" not only had a strong rock-ballad feel, but it showcased Andrea's powerfully seductive voice, one influenced by her mother, who sang boleros, rancheras, and tangos, and the great legends of nueva canci?n, Iike Joan Manuel Serrat, Mercedes Sosa, and Pablo Milanes. The song broke the band on MTV Latin America and made them stars all over Latin America.

Their third album, La Pipa de la Paz (The Peace Pipe), was recorded in London with legendary Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera producing. The album's signature songs, "Cosita Seria", "Chica Dif?cil", and "Baracunatana" were hard-driving Latin rock classics that defined Echeverri's coy, new-feminist attitude by teasing macho men. After releasing La Pipa de la Paz, Aterciopelados was able to tour in the U.S., recording an MTV Unplugged appearance in early 1997.

The following year Caribe At?mico (Atomic Caribbean), which was recorded in Manhattan with guest appearances by guitarists Arto Lindsay and Marc Ribot, further expanded Aterciopelados' sound into the world of electronica.

Gozo Poderoso (Powerful Joy), their fifth album, is a melodic, moody manifesto for the vibrantly eclectic Latin alternative movement. It is world music for a new world. Recorded in Bogot? and produced by H?ctor Buitrago, this album led the way to independence and development of their own true sound. Following the album's release, Aterciopelados won a Latin Grammy award for Best Rock Group.

A couple of years later came Evoluci?n, a collection of greatest hits.

In 2006, Aterciopelados released Oye (Listen) (Nacional Records), a return to the more organic, rock sound reminiscent of their earlier work on albums like La Pipa de la Paz. Produced by H?ctor Buitrago and mixed by Thom Russo (Johnny Cash, Juanes, Kinky and Illya Kuryaki), the album's first single, "Complemento", is an upbeat declaration of love from someone who has found her soulmate; the person who complements her. The album also features Aterciopelados' trademark social and political commentary on songs like "Don Dinero" ("Mr. Money"), which questions the idea of money as the solution to all problems, and "Oye Mujer" ("Woman, Listen") which asks of women, "Are you a human being or the erotic fantasy of some guy?" The band continues to win over audiences around the globe playing shows in Mexico, Central and South America, Europe and the U.S.

Aterciopelados' single and video "Canci?n Protesta" ("Protest Song") from the album Oye continues to make waves for its outspoken social and political commentary against war and injustice. The video features the group using guitars fashioned out of former machine guns ? the special guitars were given to Aterciopelados by the United Nations in support of its efforts to take guns off the streets of Colombia.

On October 21, 2008, Aterciopelados released the album Rio (River) on Nacional Records, aggressively building upon the creative momentum of Oye. The album was recorded in Bogot? and mixed by H?ctor Castillo (Brazilian Girls, David Bowie, Gustavo Cerati) in New York City. It is an impassioned, socially conscious record with the group's signature organic rock sound. The album's opener and title track is a call to action that finds Aterciopelados at a new level of creativity and musicality. It coincides with a proposed Colombian constitutional referendum that declares that access to clean drinking water is a fundamental right for all Colombians and provides for maintenance and preservation rights. "Musically and lyrically, the track 'Rio' is unlike any previous Aterciopelados song," Echeverri says. "I'm even singing in a different way than in the past. With this one, we reached an entirely new place."

In "Bandera" ("Flag"), Aterciopelados speak out on immigration, another issue close to home. "We have toured across the world many times, yet every time, certain countries give us so much trouble when entering," Echeverri explains. "My problems with traveling are so small compared to others across the world but I thought I could give all these people a voice." The album's guests range from rapper Gloria "Goyo" Mart?nez (of Colombian hip hop act Choc Quib Town) on "28," to the Andean group Kapary Walka on "Madre" and "Aguita," and even include Echeverri's daughter on "Ataque de Risa." Aterciopelados will do an extensive tour of the United States in April 2009 in support of Rio.

Solo Albums

In addition to their many albums as "Aterciopelados," in 2005 and 2006 Echeverri and Buitrago made individual albums, Echeverri's self-titled Andrea Echeverri and Buitrago's Conector. Andrea Echeverri is centered around Echeverri's experiences being pregnant, giving birth, nursing, and loving. Conector, which translates both as "with H?ctor" and "connector", connects musicians, ideas, paths, and results in a potent inner perspective of contemporary spirituality. It features several guest artists including Echeverri, Alex Ubago and Julieta Venegas

Projects

Aterciopelados? album Rio, released Oct. 21 2008, coincides with a proposed Colombian constitutional referendum that declares that access to water is a fundamental right for all Colombians and provides for maintenance and preservation rights. ?When I was growing up, the Bogot? River was considered a mythic and iconic place, and now it?s a tiny stream,? says Echeverri. With Rio, Aterciopelados takes an increasingly forceful stand on the environment. Buitrago notes, "While on previous albums, we may have simply declared many of the world's problems, we now strive to work in a more active way. In this case, it is with the recovery of Bogota's river, as it is one of the most polluted rivers in the world." On the album, Echeverri sings that, "The waters of the river come running, singing / They go through the city dreaming to be clean, to be clear." This theme is carried throughout the album. In the song 'Aguita' (?Water?), Echeverri sings that "the water belongs to everyone / Not to the highest bidder." In August, the band promoted awareness of the issue by traveling down the Bogot? River gathering signatures for the referendum. By Sept. 15, over two million signatures had been collected, propelling the referendum to its next phase of the lengthy process.

Aterciopelados have teamed up with Amnesty International and Link TV for a human rights project featuring a re-worked version of ?Cancion Protesta,? the hit single from their 2006 album, Oye. The song and music video will commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It has been re-written to address issues of human rights, and is now entitled "The Price of Silence." The video will take place in the United Nations General Assembly (The United Nations has granted unprecedented access to the General Assembly for this project). Other artists involved include: Stephen Marley (Jamaica), Gilberto Gil (Brazil), Angelique Kidjo (Benin), Yerba Buena (PanLatin), Julieta Venegas (Mexico), Emmanuel Jal (Sudan), Hugh Masekela (South Africa) and Rachid Taha (France/Algeria).

In Colombia, Aterciopelados is involved with the Destierro y Reparacion (Displacement and Reparations) project, which addresses the issue of displacement of native peoples ? a huge issue in Colombia as well as many parts of the world. Promoted by the Museum of Antioqu?a, its goal is to generate social conscience concerning the dimension and implications of the forced displacement phenomenon as a reality affecting everyone and weakening social stability. Additionally, the project aims to identify possible methods and forms of reparation that would insure the application of fundamental rights that would include the recuperation of the culture of the affected communities. The project features discussions, workshops, exhibits and concerts and includes the participation of more than 20 institutions. Aterciopelados contributed the song, ?Errante Diamante? (Wandering Diamond), in support of the project.

Recognitions

In 1997 and 1998, they received Grammy nominations.

Aterciopelados won a Latin Grammy award in 2001 following the release of their album Gozo Poderoso for Best Rock Group.

In 2001, Aterciopelados was recognized by the writers of Time Magazine as one of the top 10 contemporary global bands (those bands located outside of the United States.) The list included U2 and the Rolling Stones.

In 2007 they won the Latin Grammy award for Best Alternative Album for Oye. They had received two Latin Grammy nominations that year, including Best Alternative Album for Oye (Nacional Records) and Best Alternative Song for the single "Complemento."

Oye also won the group a Premio Lo Nuestro award in 2008 for Album of the Year.

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