A veces cuesta llegar al estribillo

Album review

Veces Cuesta Llegar al Estribillo sounds every note a record by a rock veteran -- professional, natural, non-mandatory. In the '70s, Rosendo Mercado was among the pioneers of Spanish rock urbano, but in 2010, his early hard rock influences don't really qualify for innovation. Veces Cuesta Llegar al Estribillo is basically a set of riff-based tunes, centered around Rosendo's playing and vocals -- which requires more skill than it may seem: there's a thin line between a good riff and directionless rambling, and all too many bands fall prey to that, thinking that some loud power chords will get them somewhere. By contrast, Rosendo's songs have recognizable guitar leads, delivered against the backdrop of unobtrusive midtempo hard rock, which is perfect for this sort of thing. Ironically, it sounds almost contemporary without really trying -- just because stoner rock legalized this sort of thing a decade-plus before Veces Cuesta Llegar al Estribillo, even though in a post-Kyüss world, it is played with a Sabbath-ian ferocity, not a rock & roll undercurrent. But the thing is, these riffs are good but not great -- nothing Josh Homme would write home about -- and so the whole experience, despite occasional impressive flashes (the opening notes of "Contigo Mismo"), zips by without really demanding much attention. A lack of variety, with the sole exception of the acoustic "Rompe la Cadena," does not help matters. It does sound like Rosendo had a good time writing these tunes, and it works as a nice homage to early-'70s rock, though plays more laid-back than actual music from the era. But it's hard to imagine someone professing Veces Cuesta Llegar al Estribillo to be his or her favorite record ever, or even close.

© Alexey Eremenko /TiVo