365 Days, 365 Files: Aterciopelados – El Estuche

Around the time I was getting into Japanese indie rock, I was also exploring rock en Español. I attempted to give Latin rock the same kind of coverage its Japanese counterpart, but the Latin music community doesn’t have the same kind of thorough presence on the Internet as the Japanese music scene.

Finding reliable information was difficult. Official web sites seemed optional to even major label Latin artists, so I was forced to explore some very poorly-designed fan pages. It also didn’t help that I spoke no Spanish. I could at least decipher some Japanese, having studied it before.

Still, I bought up CDs by the likes of La Ley, Nek, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, Bloque and Shakira at the start of the decade. I’ve pretty much narrowed my favorites to Molotov and Café Tacuba.

Aterciopelados was a band I thought I could really get into, but the only album I possess now is Caribe Atómico. The album drew comparisons to Portishead for its trip-hop beats and mellow tone.

The description wasn’t entirely accurate. The band’s early work was squared solidly in the rock vein. "Florecita Roquera" is one of the duo’s classic rockers. Gozo Poderoso, the follow-up to Caribe Atómico, focused more on the Latin influences of their music.

I love Andrea Echeverri’s voice, and I probably would have bought up the band’s catalog. But at the time, Japanese imports trumped Latin acquisitions. In essence, I sacrificed two Aterciopelados CDs to get one Number Girl album.

"El estuche" is the second track on Caribe Atómico, and it’s an obvious choice for a single.

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