The Wayback: Malo

Out of the long shadow of Santana, a different Latin rock vision rises….

Out of the long shadow of Santana, a different Latin rock vision rises….

MALO

Dos

Warner Brothers 1972

What, exactly, was going on in the first few years of the 1970s that inspired so many bands to begin their records with extended “overtures”? The splashy opening of Malo’s second effort Dos, from 1972, is an artifact of that trendlet — a fast-paced 6-minute preamble dotted with brass fanfares, chattering percussion-section jamming and heat-seeking rhythm-guitar grooves. It’s a “here we are!” statement, a relic from a certain tier of touring — recalling the kind of super-exciting set-opener bands had to work up in case Disneyland offered a slot at Tomorrowland Terrace.

The tune, “Momomambo,” recalls “Introduction” and similarly elaborate pieces by Chicago, those kings of brass-fueled dazzle maneuvers. Malo puts salsa polyrhythm front and center, and mostly manages to sidestep the inherent pretension associated with these compositions — from the first note, “Momomambo” is one athletic, daring, oddly over-the-top show piece. It’s a thrill ride intended to spotlight the range and dexterity of the group and its soloists, which include brass players and the underappreciated guitarist Jorge Santana (brother of Carlos, another icon of that era who was known to begin performances with extended instrumental excursions).

Something else about this opening: It harks back to a time when success or failure for rock bands was directly related to group cohesion, the ability to generate heat in live performance. Sure, there’s not much melody going on, but what unfolds here is absorbing — engrossing — all the same, largely because of each musician’s investment in the rhythm. Today, the magic of a studio recording happens track by laborious track, in an almost clinical way. These guys just worked up a curtain-raiser and when it was time to record, they just blasted away live. There are small flubs and cracked notes, and the propulsion is so strong, those things don’t matter. This is what musicians working together sounds like.

Dos was developed in the months after a track from Malo’s debut, the enduringly sinewy “Suavecito,” became an unlikely hit. The song put Malo on the national map, but led to business disagreements and artistic dissention in the ranks, as some musicians wanted to follow Santana into a more progressive direction; before the Dos sessions, that faction left to form a competing Latin-rock outfit. Those remaining ginned up solid (if somewhat ordinary) tunes built on venerable Afro-Cuban rhythms — son montuno, especially — and sought ways to broker a peace between the traditional pulses and guitar-fueled show business. It’s a persuasive blend that deserved to flourish and evolve over a long period. Because as the torrid opening track demonstrates, even in the early ’70s, way before the diversity wars, there was room for more than one flavor of Latin rock.

Key Tracks: “Momomambo,” “Oye Mama.”

By This Artist: Malo (1972).

Contemporaneous: Santana: Caravanserai. (Itself an excellent candidate for Wayback love….)

Influenced: La Ley (Chile); Los Amigos Invisibles (Venezuela).