Welcome to the playlist for another two hours of psychedelic music from around the world with your host The New Elastic Infinite. This is Global Psychedelia, and today’s show is Argentine psychedelia! As was the case with Chilean psychedelia, during the years of Argentina’s military dictatorships and continued political oppression (~1969/74 – 1983, when ~13,000 are estimated to have been disappeared), much of its music scene was in exile or defunct. Because of this, and because I (usually) only play things I really dig, I put extra attention on the highly intelligent and hugely literate Luis Alberto “El Flaco” Spinetta (23 January 1950 – 8 February 2012) because he fronted some of the greatest rock, psych, folk, and prog bands in Argentina: Almendra, Pescado Rabioso, Invisible, Spinetta Jade, and Spinetta y los socios del desierto. On that note, Almendra‘s guitarist Edelmiro Molinari went on to join the band Color Humano. Guitarist Kubero Díaz of Billy Bond y la pesada del Rock and Roll also played in Spinetta’s Pescado Rabioso, and Emilio del Guercio and Rodolfo García of Almendra joined forces in the early hard rock and psychedelic band Aquelarre that spent the majority of its life in Spain (1971-1977).
A brief side-note, euskaldun naiz, eta: the band’s name, Aquelarre, is a Spanishization of the word akelarre (a witches sabbath in a cave) in the Basque language (euskara), and was probably taken from Goya’s paintings of the same name (also taken from the Basque akerra, or akerbeltza) depicting the devil in the form of a goat, which in euskara is called Akerbeltz(a), or (the) black goat. Aker is the word for ahuntza or akerra, goat in English. Or perhaps the band named themselves after La Cueva: “according to local legend, Argentine psych was born in a basement hang-out on Pueyrredon Ave. in Buenos Aires called La Cueva.”
Reynols . Live at TV 1997
“Recorded live in 1997 at Canal 9 (Argentina), with the original presentation & TV tune. released on the “Minecxio” 7″ep by Freedom From.” Is it just me, or does it sound like they cut them off and cue the TV station music? Bogus.
Reynols is an excellent avant-garde band fronted by Miguel Tomasin, and includes Anla Courtis, Fernando Perales, Roberto Conlazo. It began when Tomasin and Conlazo met at a music school in the Caballito neighborhood of Buenos Aires. You can read about it (in Spanish) here. Tomasin was born with Downs Syndrome, and always had great skill for drumming. He began formal training in drumming/percussion at a very young age (some say he got his first kit at age 8, but was drumming much earlier). Christian Dergarabedian, another Argentine noise/avant-garde musician sometimes played with the group. Everything they do is improvisational, and they also do a lot of great tape manipulation work. Check out Anla Courtis’ solo and collaborative works, too. He’s awesome!
Los Barrocos . Sin tiempo ni espacio . Noche de sol . 1973
Morbo & Mambo . Morbo & Mambo . Das papier . 2011
Vox Dei . La Biblia . Las guerras . 1971
Pescado Rabioso . Desatormentándonos . El Jardinero . 1972
Piel de pueblo . Rock de las heridas . Sexo galáctico . 1972
Color Humano . Color Humano . Humberto . 1972
Muceh . Imperio gris en el cielo . Arrastrá tu prole hasta acorralarla . 2013
Billy Bond y La Pesada Del Rock and Roll . Self Titled . Cada día somos más . 1971
vlubä . basic breathing . festival for ascension . 2012
If you want to hear what’s next in the super psychedelic global scene, check out vlubä, a.k.a. (((vlubä))). This is what’s up. Also, Keroøàcidu Suäväk and KéröAska from São Paulo, Brazil. The German Kosmische Kollektiv 36 is on Gurken Records, strangely reminiscent of Vintage Cucumber, which you should also check out, especially his split with Felipe Arcazas, which you can find here.
Arco Iris . Sudamerica: o el regreso a la aurora | acto segundo . La duda de los campesinos . 1972
Almendra . Almendra . Agunus dei . 1970
La cofradía de la flor solar . La cofradía de la flor solar . Fiesta de amor en el dielo . 1971
Kill West . Kill West EP . Freedom Ride . 2014
Bosques . El alimento hace bien EP . Tomate el tiempo . 2013
Invisible . Duranzno Sangrando . Encadenado al ánima . 1975
For further listening, I recommend the Peruvian/Argentine heavy rock band Tarkus, which I played two weeks ago on the all vinyl show, and the following Argentine musicians/artists/bands:
Anla Courtis (plays with Reynols)
Daddy Antogna y los de helio (with Anla/Alan Courtis)
Prietto viaja al cosmos con mariano, a.k.a. prietto
Miguel Tomasin (leader of Reynols)
Ave Rock (1974 self-titled album)
Spinattalandia y sus amigos (album)
As with all of my shows, I do not purport that this is a definitive list, but I do hope it includes some of the major groups, individuals, and sounds in Argentine psychedelic music throughout the years. If you are particularly savvy in this area, please share with me your knowledge! I love music, I love psychedelic music, and I want to share the joys of this music with the world. That said, this playlist covers music from 1970 to 1975, (maybe the ’90s with Reynols), and 2012-2014. Please help me fill in the gaps.
GLOBAL PSYCHEDELIA 
and what about “Astral platypus” albums ?
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I’m not familiar with them. I’ll check them out. Thank you!
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