HABLAN POR LA ESPALDA // MACUMBA

Album cover © Pedro Luque

Rock communion, ritual, gathering of forces, spirits that are alive and calling back to every lost soul to focus and concentrate into the sound waves of the inner beat, the inner rhythm, that life force that strikes us foward.
HPLE feels a lot like that, they’re men in a band, but together they feel like a living force pushing us thru to another state of both physical & mental voyage, driving us forward to what’s beyond.

They’ve come a long way, this band of brothers, starting back in 1996, and releasing at the end of 2009 their fourth LP “Macumba” (under Estamos Felices record label) to show the world, themselves and everybody that stand in their way, that Uruguay has it, and has it strong. The mighty forces of rock are alive and kicking in the small country and it’s both a pleasure and a blessing to be alive to see that. This record has blood and sweat all over it and it’s one of the best that will be heard in 2010.

I believe we’re going thru a time of change regarding the under scenes, both Argentinean and Uruguayan. I think bands have left behind that old motto that sung “if it’s under it’s better” and by doing that and riding into battle with their music, they’ve become as under as you can get, the true under that is, not the posse under that we all know and vomit upon. Not giving a shit about the “scene” and just playing fucking great music says a lot more.

HPLE push us with the 13 songs the album holds, to see if we can handle the mood changes, if we’re able to manage being pushed to the limit. From folk “A Luis” (one of the most beautiful songs about frienship and love I’ve heard), going thru the candombe of “Candombe del Temporal” into the hard rock of “Santo No”, HPLE not only prove to be a multifaceted band, they also prove to do it right in every single rhythm and genre.
Guess that’s what happens when what you do, you do it with passion. And that’s a huge word for this band; their shows are a thing to both see and experience, the physicality of all of them on stage is not only contagious but also highly moving.

What is HPLE? Is it psychedelic rock? Is it stoner? Is it folk rock? Do they resemble another band? Which one?
The answer? If you ask me, I don’t know, and I don’t care, it’s about time we stop labeling everything that surrounds us and start wondering what it makes us feel; there’s surely one thing to be said about them though, it’s divine and pure music to cure your soul.
Divine? Yes! Because it comes from another human being’s joy, sadness, suffering, blessing and it was given to us freely, every musician is an uncontrollable gifter, and what better gift than music.
Pure? Yes again! Because it hasn’t been touched by the man with the dark suits, the expensive cars and the fancy cell phones; and because it comes from everywhere, from Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Perú, even México… I dare say these guys have managed to unite Latin America with their sound, Bolivar’s dream came true and I’ll drink to that!

Rank: Say Hello to the Angels!

+INFO:

HPLE on MySpace