Colombian band Bajo Tierra has apparently been rocking all the bitches in the biker shots since 1988 and all I can think is “where in the world was I?” This punk rock fusion band is right up my alley, as evidences by their first single off their 4^th album in 20 years, named Los Dias Adelante. I think I remember hearing them coming to Panama once around the later 90’s, but then again I could be wrong. I also wasn’t as musically versed (HA!) as I claim to be at the moment and would’ve promptly dismissed them over Limp Bizkit or some other God-forsaken band of my youth. As a parenthesis, I was never caught on the whole pop band resurgence of the late 90’s-early 2000’s that many of my friends and classmates fell into; instead I dived headfirst into the whole rap metal thing developing at the time with bands like the aforementioned Limp Bizkit, KoRn, Linking Park and, to a certain extent, Incubus. Incubus is the only salvageable group of that lot (their last two albums have proven to be a return to form), and while I am pretty ashamed to have associated myself with the others, it goes to show how music is highly suggestive and, as a result, hard to find any that’s actually good. This brings me right back to Bajo Tierra.

From what I can gather, the band’s history goes a little something like this: friends Lucas Guingue (lead guitar, vocals) and Jaime Pulgarin (rhythm guitar, bass) grabbed the ever-increasing social ills that were plaguing Colombia at the time the group was formed (circa 1988) such as drug trafficking, prostitution, violence on the streets and other social turmoil, making music as a sign of protest against these things around the bar circuit of their hometown in Medellin. During those analog times, getting your music out there in an effective way basically meant to hit the underground circuit and rely on word-of-mouth promotion to get yourself known… this “underground,” or bajo tierra as its translation in Spanish implies, is what inspired the two young lads to christen their group with the name.

Along with their musician friends such as vocalist Nicolas Naranjo, drummer Cesar Cura, bass player Alejandro Posada, Daniel Betancourt on the keyboards and Paula Velez on the saxophone, Bajo Tierra recorded their independent debut vinyl. After that, they stuck to playing live shows and selling as many copies of their album as they could. A couple of years later they recorded their first demo album called 1992.

In 1994, Bajo Tierra signed a record contract with Codiscos Records, where they made 2 albums: Bajo Tierra and Lavanderia Real. They achieved critical and financial success with songs such as El Pobre, Pancho Villa, Ojos Enfermos, and El Justiciero. In the late 90’s some changes in the lineup took place and even though another demo album was recorded with hit songs Vigilante and Reina del Hielo, Bajo Tierra disbanded by the year 2000. It’s not until 2007 that, to the joy of millions of fans across Latin America, Bajo Tierra returns with all of its original members to produce Los Dias Adelante with the help of production facilities Sonido Azulado. The result, then? Aureal bliss:

I could listen to that riff all day long. At present time all you can find on Bajo Tierra online are some articles talking about Los Dias Adelate and a few videos on YouTube of previous live performances. You should seek them out, because their live sound is fantastic amidst the shitty recording and, well, it’s the only way you can actually get a good listen of the rest of the band’s repertoire. I tried looking for shops selling their albums online for hours and no such luck; now, if you believe CD stores are dead in your country, imagine what it’s like in Panama! I am at a loss. I’d love to buy their records but it seems that outside from a round trip to Colombia I’m up shit creek without a paddle. In the meantime, please enjoy “Los Killer Monkeys” and pray you know someone with more music from this Medellin-based rock band… for they are truly a welcome change in the music world. If you’d like to find out more about Bajo Tierra, you can check out their official site or their MySpace page, where they have several tracks for you to listen to free of charge.

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