Alegría Rampante, Chango Menas - “Por Ahora Camino Solo”
Alegría Rampante’s new album Poblado arrives seven years after their acclaimed debut, Se Nos Fue La Mano. This time, they deliver a living art-rock document of the “it takes a village” ethos Puerto Ricans – and artists, in particular – must adopt to survive within colonial precariousness. Keeping this spirit of collectivism in mind, frontman Eduardo Alegría convened an all-star cast of the island’s indie finest, including Sr. Langosta, Mima, Andrea Cruz, Bayoan, and Macha Colón. On singles like “Jirafa,” Alegría is joined by Circo singer Fofé Abreu for a defiant ode to aging and decaying infrastructures, while his deceptively danceable crossover with Los Wálters on “Ciudad Fantasma” is a simultaneous meditation on pandemic isolation and Boricua migrations. Among the newly unveiled crop of tracks, “Por Ahora Camino Solo” stands out as a beacon of grief and ultimate acceptance, pondering the loneliness and frustration of artists trying to create against all odds. More amused than angry, Alegría observes how formulaic reggaeton dominates the land while rock n’ roll languishes in fictitious glory days — a powerful self-indictment defused by pop folkster Chango Menas on a luminous chorus that reassures us everything is always in a state of transition. – Richard Villegas