, the most important band of the 1990s. In the 1990s, Chilean rock was characterized by a diversification of styles derived from rock and pop, as well as a greater exposure to the international market. This was due in part to the return of democracy and an end to the repression of cultural activities, as well as an increase in contact between the Chilean population and the rest of the world as a result of
economic liberalization. Thus,
Alternative rock and
Pop rock were the most common styles, among an increasingly wider range of subgenres.
Los Tres The leading Chilean rock band of the 1990s were
Los Tres, who mixed styles like rock (from
rockabilly to
grunge),
jazz and
cueca (Chile's folkloric national dance) and became particularly successful in Mexico, The albums
Los Tres (1991),
La Espada & la Pared (1995) and
Fome (1997) are considered among the most influential albums of
rock en español according to
Rolling Stone Magazine and Culto Magazine from
La Tercera. Besides an
MTV Unplugged in (1995) which was one of the most laureate unplugged of the MTV Latino era. They became the iconic rock band of the
Chilean transition to democracy. The band took musical quality to a new level in Chile with its instrumental development of rock, thanks in part to versatile guitarist
Ángel Parra, grandson of
Violeta Parra, and leader of his own latin jazz band called
Ángel Parra Trío.
Álvaro Henríquez, lead singer and second guitarist, was previously known as the musician of
La negra Ester, a very influential musical theater play (based on the poetry book written in
décimas by
Roberto Parra Sandoval and directed by
Andrés Pérez). He also led
Los Pettinellis, during
Los Tres hiatus, who had a short but successful career from 2001 to 2004 before splitting up, not long after also performing in the Viña del Mar International Song Festival. In addition to a homonymous solo album in 2005. The rest of the band was composed by bassist
Roberto Lindl and drummer
Francisco Molina, who left the band in 2000 to start a jazz career in the United States after his experience in Chile with
Los Titulares. Henríquez would become the third major rock star of Chile, after
Gato Alquinta from Los Jaivas, and
Jorge González from
Los Prisioneros, due to his outstanding career with Los Tres.
Pop Rock and
La Ley, became the most important pop rock band of the 1990s, and the most awarded
La Ley (Spanish for "The Law"), also had a very successful career in Mexico and other Spanish-speaking countries and won a
Grammy Award, two
Latin Grammy Awards and an
MTV Video Music Award. After a failed first album,
Desiertos (1990), they released
Doble Opuesto (1991), which appears as the official first album of the band. Singles like "Desiertos," "Tejedores de Ilusión," and "Prisioneros de la Piel" made them stars in
Chile,
Argentina and
Mexico, especially after the release of
La Ley, their second recording (1993). After Andrés Bobe's death in 1994 (guitars, vocals), La Ley continued with a new guitarist, Pedro Frugone, and released two more albums; in 1995, the band released
Invisible, the album was their international breakout record and provided to the band their best-selling studio album to date, it included the number ones "Dia Cero" and "El Duelo". Other key 1990s bands included:
Lucybell, whose popularity expanded during the decade throughout Chile and the rest of the continent, and more closely related to
alternative rock.
Javiera y Los Imposibles, whose lead singer
Javiera Parra is also member of the
Parra family, and
Nicole who became the first female rock pop solo artist to gain international recognition, were also very popular. During the first half of the 2000s, Javiera y Los Imposibles, whose 2001 album
AM was performed at the prestigious
Viña del Mar International Song Festival in 2002, became widely popular.
Saiko also formed in the late 1990s (1999) and, made up of former members of
La Ley and the singer
Denisse Malebrán, found recognition during the first half of the 2000s.
La Rue Morgue would be a good example of jazzy pop rock music with good mainstream acceptance.
Sexual Democracia was a regional band from
Valdivia that reached popularity in Santiago. Other alternative pop rock bands were
Elso Tumbay,
Golem,
Ludwig Band and
Profetas y Frenéticos from
Claudio Narea.
Aleste and
Sol Azul were the iconics
one-hit wonder of 1990s pop.
Teen pop was led by
Supernova and
Stereo 3, and in the 2000s by
emo pop band
Kudai.
Funk and Soul were the most successful and representative funk band, alongside
Chancho en Piedra Even though the history of
funk in Chile goes back to the late 1960s and Los Minimás, it was not until the 1990s that funk became widely popular. The first band to create a purely funk album in Chile was Los Morton, who formed in 1990 and released their debut album, "Santo Remedio", in 1993. Their funk sometimes incorporated other styles such as
rap and
Hardcore, with other bands like
Supersordo sharing this kind of sound. In 1995
Los Tetas, released their debut album entitled
Mama Funk, combining rock, funk, soul and hip hop. Los Tetas’ first single, "Corazón de Sandía" (Watermelon Heart), was a
summer hit on the local radio stations and their first two albums
Mama Funk (1995) and
La Medicina (1998), went on to be released and performed in several other Latin American countries. Between these two major works, they collaborated in the 1997 album of
Tiro de Gracia "
Ser humano!!" (
Human being), which is considered the sixth best album in the history of Chile according to Rolling Stone Magazine. In 1995, the successful band
Chancho en Piedra emerged with their debut album "Peor es mascar lauchas" (It's Worse To Chew Mice). Their style has been compared to the
Red Hot Chili Peppers but they are also known for their unique funk/rock sound, goofy style, and their socially and politically aware lyrics. Their success continued with
Ríndanse terrícolas (Surrender earthlings) (1998) and
Marca Chancho (Pig brand) (2000). As of 2020, they have released 11 albums. Other funk bands emerging in this decade included
Papanegro,
Matahari,
Raiza,
Mamma Soul,
Solo di Medina, or
Cholomandinga in a mix of Latin rhythms and funk.
La Pozze Latina,
Makiza,
De Kiruza, and
Tiro de Gracia, made the
rap funk scene, in the Chilean
hip hop boom of the late 1990s. The electronic scene was led by
DJ Raff and
DJ Bitman. After the Los Tetas' hiatus in 2004, his members would have solo projects.
C-Funk made a solo career in the United States and joined
Chancho en Piedra as a guitarist in 2019.
Tea-Time would found
Funk Attack together with
Rulo (who also founded
Esencia) and both would have a solo career as well before they all reunited in 2011.
Grunge As in the rest of the world, the
grunge bands of
Seattle had a great impact on Chilean youth in the beginning of the 1990s, and the decade saw the emergence of Chilean grunge bands like
Jusolis,
Mandrácula,
Los Ex,
Blu Toi and
Duna. These last two produced their first albums independently, though Blu Toi's album was distributed by
Warner Bros. The influence of the grunge sound can also be seen in bands like
Los Tres,
Yajaira and
Weichafe.
Reggae became the most popular reggae band of Chile One of the first bands to play
reggae in Chile, despite reggae not being their main influence, was
Sol y Lluvia, founded in 1976 and still active today. Sol y Lluvia also had strong ties to the Nueva Canción Chilena and later to
alternative rock. Los prisioneros were also pioneers in reggae and ska during the 1980s. However
Gondwana, founded in 1987, are today considered the most successful Chilean reggae band. Produced by the well-known
Doctor Dread of
RAS Records, Gondwana found success in Chile and abroad and performed in both
Jamaica and the United States as well as his lead singer
Quique Neira since he began his solo career in 2003. Another exponent of Chilean reggae in the 1990s was
La Floripondio, who mixed
reggae with
cumbia,
ska, and rock, similar to
Joe Vasconcellos.
Chilean "Brit" Pop In the second half of the 1990s a new wave of Chilean bands appeared, influenced mainly by the
alternative rock and
Britpop scenes that spread around the world. These included bands like
Glup! who were heavily influenced by
Blur, and reached great deal of mainstream success thanks to their hit single
Freebola of the album
1999 released the same year. Other importants bands were
Canal Magdalena,
Solar, and
Santos Dumont, all of whom became popular with Chilean Britpop fans.
Latin Rock is noted as the main driver in the fusion of rock with Latin rhythms, such as the
New Chilean cumbia A prominent and special case was
Joe Vasconcellos, who had worked as lead singer in
Congreso between 1980 and 1984. Since the late 1980s, he developed a solo career that in the 1990s reached his peak. His style combines rock,
blues,
cumbia,
Brazilian music, and other Latin rhythms, often with big percussion and
brass sections. His albums
Toque (1995), and
Vivo (1999) were major hits, and would influence on next generations of Latin percussion-based rock artists, such as
Chico Trujillo and the
New Chilean cumbia movement. Other bands in this kind of fusion would be
Santo Barrio,
Cholomandinga, and
La Floripondio.
Blues Rock The origins of
blues in Chile are uncertain, although
Aguaturbia was a benchmark in this style, as were
Los Jaivas in their songs such as "Canción del gancho", there is no more concrete background. The song "O'Riley" by
Destruction Mac's can be taken as a reference, which applies a harmonica with bluish touches, although the music of this band is clearly inspired by groups of
hard rock like Mountain. Although there was a small revival in the 1980s with
Mauricio Redolés, it was not until the 1990s that groups such as
El Cruce and
La Banda del Capitán Corneta that a blues of Creole dyes spread in Chile, the first two decades of the 21st century stood out
Perrosky,
Julius Popper,
Zapatillas Social Blues,
La Rompehueso and
La Rata Bluesera. == Digital era, commercial decline and future (2005–present) ==