MULTIMEDIA

Listen to a clip of Molotov's "Voto Latino" Audio clip: 335k WAV (Courtesy Universal Records)

Web posted on:
Friday, February 12, 1999 4:51:35 PM EST

(CNN) -- Looking for the next big thing in Latin music? You need look no further, some say, than the clubs of Monterrey, Mexico, which have seen local bands go from the small-club scene to headlining major acts in concert halls.

"It's a very interesting time in Mexico -- on what's happening with the bands in Mexico, I think it's kind of a renaissance," says Randy Ebright of the band Molotov, whose single and video for "Voto Latino" sound and look like nothing you've seen out of Mexico before.

"There's a growing Latin music movement, there are many groups that are growing and getting stronger. In all of Latin America, many groups are doing similar things, mixing their style and their music with rap," says Molotov's Paco Ayala.

"More than anything, we're part of a generational problem in this country," he continues. "Ourselves and a lot of other groups are talking about things in the streets, problems that are much bigger today, and that makes us sing about such things."

Teto Ocampo of Bloque

Bloque, another Mexican group which released their self-titled major-label debut last year on Warner Bros., has a more traditional Latin sound, but still breaks away from strict merengue or cumbia.

"There's always been cumbia, south, rock, merengue," notes Bloque's Teto Ocampo. "What we do is like put them all together."

Then there's King Chango, which goes even farther, melding the Latin sound with reggae, ska, punk, funk, hip hop and dance hall. "You name it," they've added it, says the group's Andrew Blanco. "I think a lot of music lately is becoming stuck in formulas, so like the rock en español movement is grabbing all these great influences of bands from London, England, from the United States, from Europe, from all over and mixing it up with their flavors and our flavors and becoming something totally new."

Needless to say, not all Latin alternative music sounds the same. For example, there's an entirely separate movement underway in Argentina, where on any given night, many of the hundreds of bars and dance clubs are raving to the sounds of DJ Dero and King Africa.

In contrast to Mexico, Argentina is musically closer to the Euro sound than that of the United States. And when it comes to dance, the Argentines prefer rave and techno.