Latin alternative, or "alterlatino", is a brand of Latin rock music produced by combining genres like

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...

, lofi,

chillout Chill-out (shortened as chill; also typeset as chillout or chill out) is a loosely defined form of popular music characterized by slow tempos and relaxed moods. The definition of "chill-out music" has evolved throughout the decades, and generally ...

metal A metal (from ancient Greek, Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, e ...

, electronica, hip hop, new wave,

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, ear ...

, punk rock,

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

, and ska with traditional Ibero-American sounds, in Latin Europeans and Latin Americans countries ( Spanish, Italian, Portuguese,

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

and

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

languages).

History

Rock music has been produced in Iberian America since the late 1950s. Some rock bands started to use unusual instruments such as maracas and quenas. In the late 1960s, artists like Santana started using a different technique to make rock music; by incorporating influences of Latin jazz. Its sound was incorporated by young Latino-players in the US, as an answer to the ''rock en Español'' movement in Americas and Spain led by bands like Héroes del Silencio, Caifanes or Los Prisioneros. In the early 1990s, it was used by Mexican bands such as Maldita Vecindad and

Café Tacuba Café Tacvba (Pronounced ''kaˈfe taˈkuβa'') is a band from Ciudad Satélite, Mexico. The group gained popularity in the early 1990s. They were founded in 1989, before they had the current lineup of Rubén Isaac Albarrán Ortega (lead vocals, ...

, they were accepted on the Latino circuit in the US, especially by the Mexican community. Subsequently, experimental musician

Lynda Thomas Lynda Aguirre Thomas (born 21 December 1981), known professionally as Lynda, is a Mexican musician, singer, songwriter and activist. She achieved recognition in her native Mexico during the 1990s and early 2000s. She was signed to EMI Capitol ...

earned recognition and commercial success with alternative music in the same decade. With the passage of time and many musical styles in the US-Latin, Latin alternative has become as diverse as the rock music genre itself. Today, many music journalists and fans regard Latin alternative as a subgenre of ''rock en Español'', and like ''rock en Español'', it may be further divided into more specific genres of music.

Events and media coverage

The most known event of Latin alternative is the Latin Alternative Music Conference (LAMC) that every year gathers a large number of bands from all over the Americas and Spain. The conference was co-founded by artist manager Tomas Cookman and music executive Josh Norek. It was first held in New York City in 2000, moved briefly to Los Angeles, and then returned to New York. The 2009 event featured artists from across the Americas including Argentina's Juana Molina, Puerto Rican hip-hop and reggaeton outfit Calle 13, Colombian group Bomba Estéreo, Brazilian singer-songwriter Curumin and Mexico's Natalia Lafourcade, and was profiled along with the wider Latin alternative scene in an article in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''.

Notable bands and artists by country

Argentina

* Karamelo Santo * Bersuit Vergarabat * Cabezones * Érica García *

Illya Kuryaki and the Valderramas Illya Kuryaki and the Valderramas (IKV) is a musical duo formed in 1991 consisting of Dante Spinetta and Emmanuel Horvilleur, from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The duo split in 2001 to follow solo careers, but later performed together several times, ...

* Juana Molina * La Yegros * Los Fabulosos Cadillacs *

Vicentico Gabriel Julio Fernández Capello (born July 24, 1964 in Buenos Aires, Argentina) is a musician and composer better known by his stage name Vicentico. Co-founder and vocalist of the band Los Fabulosos Cadillacs Los Fabulosos Cadillacs is an Arg ...

* Los Auténticos Decadentes *

Los Piojos Los Piojos were an Argentine rock band. Extremely popular, it became one of the seminal bands of the 1990s Argentine music scene. Unlike most suburban outfits, however, their style evolved significantly with each successive album, not only deve ...

* Todos Tus Muertos

Brazil

* Chico Science * Marcelo D2 * O Rappa

Canada

* Alex Cuba *Santa Lucia LFR *The Mariachi Ghost

Chile

*Joe Vasconcellos *La Floripondio *Chico Trujillo *Juana Fé *

Tiro de gracia Tiro de Gracia is a Chilean Hip-Hop group formed by the MC's: Lenwa Dura and Zaturno "Tiro de Gracia" was known for their raw lyrical style. They initially performed using cassette tapes looped by "DJ Raff" former member of " La Pozze Latina ...

* Los Bunkers * Los Tres * Mon Laferte * Daniel Puente Encina * Rubio * Alex Anwandter *GEPE *Pedro Piedra *Spiral Vortex *CAF *De Pereiras *Lanza Internacional *Lopez *La Brígida Orquesta * Camila Moreno

Colombia

* Andrea Echeverri *

Aterciopelados Aterciopelados ( en, The Velvet Ones), also known as Los Aterciopelados, is a rock band from Colombia, led by Andrea Echeverri and Héctor Buitrago. Their music fuses rock with a variety of Colombian and Latin American musical traditions. Ater ...

* Bomba Estéreo * Cabas * Carlos Vives * Estados Alterados * Juanes * Monareta * Ondatrópica * LosPetitFellas * Nicolás y los Fumadores

Costa Rica

Akasha Akasha or Akash (Sanskrit ' ) means space or sky or æther in traditional Indian cosmology, depending on the religion. The term has also been adopted in Western occultism and spiritualism in the late 19th century. In many modern Indo-Aryan lan ...

Debi Nova Deborah Nowalski Kader, better known by her stage name Debi Nova () born 6 August 1980, is a Costa Rican singer-songwriter who resides in Los Angeles. She was involved in six Grammy award nominated projects, including a dance song, "One Rhythm", ...

* Escats * Gandhi * Jose Capmany * Pneuma

Cuba

Addys Mercedes Addys Mercedes (, formerly known as Addys D'Mercedes) is a Cuban pop and world music singer living in Germany and Spain. She made her UK debut in 2001 at the Guildford Festival and since then has undertaken two British tours. Early life A ...

* Porno Para Ricardo * Alex Cuba * Madera Limpia

Dominican Republic

* Alex Ferreira * Carolina Camacho * Toque Profundo * Rita Indiana

France

* Mano Negra

Guatemala

* Di WAV * Gaby Moreno * Jesse Baez * Easy Easy

Italy

* Talco * Egin * Notagitana

Japan

* Porno Graffitti

Mexico

* Caifanes *

Café Tacvba A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non-ca ...

* Tijuana No * La Lupita * La Gusana Ciega * Molotov * Control Machete * El Gran Silencio * Plastilina Mosh * COhETICA * Jumbo *

Zurdok Zurdok was a Mexican rock band based in Monterrey. It was formed in 1993 under the name Zurdok Movimento, changing it several years later to simply Zurdok. It was one of the most important bands in the Mexican rock band scene at the end of the 19 ...

* Kinky * Zoé * Akwid * Cartel de Santa *

Mexican Institute of Sound Mexican Institute of Sound (MIS; es, Instituto Mexicano del Sonido — ''IMS'') is an electronic music project created by Mexico City-based DJ and producer Camilo Lara. Along with groups like Nortec Collective and Kinky (band), Kinky, M.I.S. is ...

* Nortec Collective *

Bostich Ramón Amor Amezcua Sánchez (born November 10, 1962), a.k.a. Bostich, is an electronic music composer. Amezcua is an important figure in electronic music, especially in Mexico, Tijuana, and along the Mexico–United States border regions, but ...

* Fussible * Natalia Lafourcade * Ximena Sariñana * Los Concorde * Ely Guerra * Julieta Venegas * Sonex

Panama

* Los Rabanes

Puerto Rico

* Calle 13 * Circo * Draco Rosa * Zayra Alvarez

Spain

* Amaral *

Amparanoia Amparanoia is the pseudonym of Spanish singer/guitarist Amparo Sánchez combining her first name with the word 'paranoia'. It was also the name of the band she fronted from 1996 to 2006. Debut album, ''El Poder de Machín'', has been described a ...

* Bebe * Chambao * Che Sudaka * Enrique Bunbury *

Jarabe De Palo Jarabe de Palo ("Wooden Stick Syrup" or, by virtue of the Spanish expression "dar un jarabe de palo", i.e. a "hell of a beating") were a Spanish rock band founded in 1996, once led by singer, songwriter and guitarist Pau Donés, who, on 9 June ...

* Héroes del Silencio * Macaco *

La Mala Rodríguez LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figure ...

* Ojos de Brujo * The Pinker Tones *

Radio Futura Radio Futura was a Spanish pop rock group. They rose to become one of the most popular bands in Spain during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1989 they were voted the best Spanish act of the 1980s. The beginnings In 1979, painter, amateur singer ...

Christina Rosenvinge Christina Rosenvinge Hepworth (born 29 May 1964) is a Spanish singer. A veteran of the music industry with a career spanning more than thirty years she was a member of the Spanish groups Alex y Christina and Christina y Los Subterráneos, whic ...

* Ska-P * Vetusta Morla

United States

* Bang Data * Grupo Fantasma * Hip Hop Hoodíos *

Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an early Christian scholar, ascetic, and the ...

* Orixa * Ozomatli *

Pacha Massive Pacha Massive (from ‘Pachamama’ meaning "Mother Earth"), is a Latin alternative band led by Dominican-born multi-instrumentalist, DJ and producer Nova. Formed in the Bronx, New York in 2005, the band was Nacional Records’ first U.S.-based ...

* Ritchie Valens * Santana * Very Be Careful * Yerba Buena * Quetzal * Aaron Andreu

Uruguay

* Hablan Por La Espalda * Diego Janssen *

La Vela Puerca La Vela Puerca is a Uruguayan rock band formed in Montevideo, Uruguay, in December 1995. Its founders and current members are Sebastián Teysera (lead vocals, frontman and main songwriter), Sebastián Cebreiro (vocals, songwriter), Nicolás Lie ...

* No Te Va Gustar * Peyote Asesino * Sante Les Amis

Venezuela

* Los Amigos Invisibles * Devendra Banhart *

Jeremías Carlos Eduardo Lopez Avila (London, September 19, 1973) is a Venezuelan singer and songwriter, better known as Jeremias. His songs include a wide spectrum of genres, including pop, ballads and tropical music; all infused with romantic lyric th ...

* Rawayana * Simon Grossman * La Vida Boheme

Record labels for Latin alternative music

* Nacional Records * Afonico Music * Doula Music * Happy-fi * Six Degrees Records * Surco * K Industria Cultural * EMI Latin * Waxploitation
Round Whirled Records

References

External links

Defining Latin Alternative Music
{{Music in Spanish Spanish-language music Alternative rock genres Rock en Español