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Union PUYA |
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Hardened by more than a year on the road in support of their debut the PUYA tribe has returned with an even more brutal edge to their funky Salsa meets Metal mix. Top put it in its most base terms “UNION” is just a better record than the group’s first due, I would guess, to the fact that it was conceived and recorded in a fraction of the time than the first one took so everything is so much more immediate. The opening track, “Ride” does just that, it rides a funky Metal rhythm right into one of the most alluring hooks ever written. This track is the perfect show starter number for the upcoming tour. “People” has some Santana-like elements to it that will appeal to a wider range of fans but is still lead shot heavy. “Erizo” beats you up with pit inducing rhythms surrounded by progressive Jazz bits that anywhere else would seem forced but here sound perfectly natural. And so it goes for the next dozen or so tracks, each with their own charm not the least of which is that they are so independent of everything else gong on in music at the moment. PUYA was holding back on their first record, playing possum if you will, but now they just unleash all the power and intensity they can muster while stirring an eclectic pot of Metal tillings, Salsa flavors and anything else that is needed to square off the edges. Released by MCA Review by David Lee |
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Union Puya |
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They slammed on the scene with their ground-breaking "Fundamental," a couple years back and defied the odds of combining Hard-Core aggression with Latin rhythms and crushing North American stages playing with the likes of Fear Factory and System of a Down. Now their follow up combines the traditional elements first fostered on their debut with an extra degree of musicality and soulfulness without the sacrifice of intensity. For the uninitiated, many song characterizations feature thrash-fit fast tracks, infused with break beats, sprinkled with Salsa dance seasonings with prideful lyrics in a primal setting, organically grown and well nourished. Quick comparisons would follow the Nu-Metal, Aggro-intensity of the big name Roadrunner acts, Soul Fly, Sepultura with the Hard-Core exploits of a straight outta Brooklyn Biohazard-type with an extra ounce of funk flavorings spotlighting tracks like "Erizo, "Numbed," Si Aja," often mixing in Spanish/English vocal interplay and wrought with rage, with the latter track particularly pointing toward a 1970's styled Cheech & Chong theme music "Low Rider" spread with kickin' chorus. The first go round proved them more than just the Puerto Rican-bred novelty act, this time they've pulled out all the stops and for just the sophomore release, have made some impressive developments that by comparison with "Fundamental" take the more disciplined approach if sometimes tangled route to reach the gold-strewn beach of success-further reasons to stay tuned toward the end include "Matter of Time," which in riff alone puts anything Metallica's done the past ten years to shame, and the evil stepbrother of "Fundamental's" "Oasis" hit, "Pa' Ti Pa' Mi" and the monstrous closing title track! Released by MCA Records Review by Vinnie Apicella
[va85@columbia.edu] |