Some of yesterday's angry young men have mellowed with time and let go of much of their youthful passion, but not Alejandro Lora. On 2007's
A Talonear, the longtime leader of
El Tri is every bit as edgy, ballsy, and gutsy as he was back in the '70s and '80s -- which is not to say that anger is the only thing that Lora expresses on this engaging rock en español album. Humor has always been a very effective weapon in Lora's musical arsenal, and while a politically charged rocker like "Tenemos Que Hacer el Amor" ("We Have to Create Love") has plenty of bite, it also benefits from Lora's realization that a rocker can have fun and get some serious messages across at the same time. Plus, Lora (who addresses both political and romantic subject matter on
A Talonear) has always known that great lyrics do not eliminate the need for great melodies, and even those who do not speak Spanish and don't understand the lyrics will find
A Talonear to be musically solid. The influences that have served Lora well in the past (influences ranging from
the Rolling Stones and
AC/DC to blues-rock) continue to serve him well on
A Talonear. Tracks like "Bésame" ("Kiss Me"), "Nadie Me Quiere" ("Nobody Loves Me"), "Nunca Es Tarde" ("It's Never Late") and "Mañana" ("Tomorrow") are quite infectious even if one doesn't speak ni una palabra de español (not a single word of Spanish). Longtime fans of
El Tri will be happy to know that after all these years, Lora is still very much on top of his game throughout the excellent
A Talonear. ~ Alex Henderson