Soda Stereo

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Pierre
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Soda Stereo

Post by Pierre »

I decided to try an exclusive topic for them. Out of my support for them in the Hall of Acclaim, has anyone tried this band? They are seen as a sort of latino U2 in Spanish-speaking countries.

[imgsize 700x500]http://www.rock.com.ar/sodastereo/media ... stereo.jpg[/imgsize]

From left to right, Charly Alberti (drummer), Gustavo Cerati (singer, lyricist, guitars, synths and others) and Héctor "Zeta" Bosio (bass, synths and others).

They sold 7 million albums during their career alone, and sales have continued since their break-up. They formed in 1982, starting in the Buenos Aires underground circuit before being signed in 1984. Their first album, Soda Stereo, was released later that year, influenced by ska and new wave. Here are some excerpts:

"Sobredosis de TV" (TV Overdose) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mn3EZLgNZj0
"Te hacen falta vitaminas" (You Need Vitamins) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrMHKk_sSXU
"Un misil en mi placard" (A Missile in My Closet) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUZjndTLERI

The second album, Nada Personal (Nothing Personal) was released the following year.
[imgsize 600x400]http://i419.photobucket.com/albums/pp27 ... ereo-m.jpg[/imgsize]
It helped increase their fanbase substantially and make them one of the best-selling band in Argentina. Here's the main song from this album:

"Cuando pase el temblor" (When the Shiver Leaves) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0iWc9LbHH0

The third album (1986) was the one which made them become a huge phenomenon in all of Latin America. Signos (Signs) is widely seen there as their first classic, and began shedding the new wave influence to a more clearly alternative rock sound. Here are some excerpts, notably "Persiana americana", one of their greatest songs.
[imgsize 300x300]http://fanart.tv/thumb.php?src=/fanart/ ... .jpg&w=280[/imgsize]

"Prófugos" (Fugitives) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mY6U_rLrCco
"Persiana americana" (American Blinds) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WSUU_iB9iH8
"Signos" (Signs) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRPyLLrchE0

The following fourth album, Doble Vida (Double Life) (1988), was produced by Carlos Alomar. Here's "En la ciudad de la furia", which video nearly won a MTV Video Award:

"En la ciudad de la furia" (In the City of Fury) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5WfrL2ku5E

However, the next album in 1990, "Canción animal" (Animal Song) was something else entirely. It's an absolute masterpiece from start to finish. The album and singles sold strongly, and "De música ligera" (Of lightweight music) is seen by many as one of the strongest contender for the greatest Spanish-language rock song ever.
[imgsize 300x300]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_oXiCTv1jMXk/T ... ligera.bmp[/imgsize]

"(En) el séptimo día" ((On) the Seventh Day) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sQBgDLCdmw
"Un millón de años luz" (A Million Light Years) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBiUjSBvjYs
"De música ligera" (Of Lightweight Music) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yPLldeAkpCQ
"Hombre al agua" (A Man Overboard) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZyj9mXPFB0

Instead of trying to top it, Soda Stereo decided to make an unexpected move and incorporate experimental, electronic and shoegazing sounds in their music for their next album, "Dynamo" in 1992. The album has been compared to "Loveless" or "Zooropa", some even went to say that the somewhat similar move made by U2 with "Zooropa" was influenced by "Dynamo". Whether that's true or not, it appears that U2 was aware of Soda Stereo at some point, as they have since paid tribute to Cerati during a tour in Argentina. One of the songs, "Claroscuro" (Chiaroscuro) features a riff similar to that of "Lemon".

"Primavera 0" (Spring 0) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yT9dVHv9Zu4
"Luna roja" (Red Moon) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMOceDwyEHo
"Claroscuro" (Chiaroscuro) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaGhrGty-Co

Their final album was released in 1995, and was titled "Sueño Stereo" (Stereo Dream). The album was a substantial hit, the video for "Ella usó mi cabeza como un revólver" (She Used My Head Like a Revolver) was highly popular, as was the second single, "Zoom". Although still influenced by their "Dynamo" experiments, the sound was overall poppier.

"Ella usó mi cabeza como un revólver" (She Used My Head Like a Revolver) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAu84qbPjJY
"Zoom" - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r37mYd7L308

They waited two years before finally announcing their breakup in 1997 for "personal and musical misunderstandings". They did a final concert on 20 September 1997 before parting ways.

[imgsize 500x400]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... naroja.png[/imgsize]

The post-Soda solo career of Gustavo Cerati as received critical attention as well. Their breakup was an event on the scale of the Beatles breakup for Argentina, as were the constant rumours of reunion. Unfortunately, these rumours met an ending as sad as those of the Beatles. On May 15, 2010, Cerati suffered a stroke which has left him comatose since then. At this point, he will probably never fully recover.

I hope this topic will incite other people to explore the catalogue of this extraordinary band. I'll be honest, if I can gather some points for them in the Hall of Acclaim voting thread, I'll be happy, but only making people discover them is already fine with me.
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Blanco
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Re: Soda Stereo

Post by Blanco »

Yes!
One of the greatest rock bands in Spanish language.

This is one of those bands you have to listen at high volume.

Just feel it!
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=AL ... playnext=1
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Blanco
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Re: Soda Stereo

Post by Blanco »

Today's Google doodle in this part of the world:

Image

Celebrating the 56th birthday of Gustavo Cerati.
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bootsy
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Re: Soda Stereo

Post by bootsy »

I had never heard of this group and as I was listening to Iggy Pop's Idiot album I saw that Soda Stereo sampled "Mass Production". Just weird that as I opened this thread and then read that about that song.
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Pierre
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Re: Soda Stereo

Post by Pierre »

Wow, talk about thread necromancy. I remember doing this, now all of the pictures are dead... Was trying to gather support for the Hall of Acclaim, it was all for naught in the end, although Soda did get in anyway.

We don't have the Google doodle around here. The Gustavo Cerati has yet to spread to the rest of the world, and that's a shame, I still think Soda Stereo is one of the greatest rock bands of all time. :music-rockon:
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