ACIDA: Human songs with electronic soul

By Juan Data (Originalmente publicado en Batanga, Estados Unidos, 2003)

Unless you are of those who read into the small types on the credits of rock en español albums, the names of Acida members won’t sound familiar to you. But both, Tweety González and his wife Alina Gandini, had been involved in this music genre for years, although always in a supporting role. This time they are taking one step foward.
Acida was born in Argentina in 1999, when two different personal projects came together. “It was natural, in our house,” says Alina. “We both were composing individually, one upstairs and the other downstairs, but having only one computer, it was necessary to share and take turns. We got to a point when I asked him “so, are you gonna be my producer or what?” and he said “no, I’ve got a better idea, why don’t we come out as a group?”
Tweety González had already been the producer in thousands of previous occasions. There are few well-known Argentine rock artists who haven’t at least worked with him once. Fabiana Cantilo, Illya Kuryaki, Man Ray, Bersuit Vergarabat, Luís Alberto Spinetta, Fito Páez, all have one thing in common: Tweety behind the boards. However, he is most recognized for having played keyboards for Soda Stereo beginning with Canción Animal, until their break up.
Alina’s resume may not be that impressive, but music has been an important part of her life as well. Daughter of a famous tango player, she had also collaborated several times with Fito Páez band. One thing for sure, there is no link between Acida and their previous works with other artists; they made that quite clear.
“If there is any type of connection, I don’t see it,” declares Tweety. “Perhaps someone from outside the band could think so. On the slowest songs there might be a similarity with what we were doing with Soda Stereo during the Confort y Música Para Volar times, but that’s because we where using the same type of instruments and effects. In reality, we focus on looking less like our ex-bosses.”
“Gustavo (Cerati) once gave me a critic that helped me a lot,” adds Alina. “He told me I was singing too much in a Fito Páez style. Since then, I realized and changed. If you listen to our first demos you’d notice that the vocalization was very different.”
The past year Acida’s history took a significant turn when the duet left Buenos Aires to come and settle down in Los Angeles, CA. Tweety González had been hired as A&R for the brand new Latin record label Cielo Music Group for whom he worked as a producer of what will be soon their first release: the third album of the funky Colombian combo, Superlitios.
“Acida’s first album was recorded in Buenos Aires with Chris Allison (producer of Plastilina Mosh, Coldplay and Kinky) and we did the mixing here,” comments Alina. “But it is a very porteño recording, created and made in Buenos Aires. But recently the sound of the group had changed, since we moved to LA, mostly because of the inclusion of the new drummer Argel (from the local LA band Niño Astronauta), whose contribution to the sound of the band was enormous”.
La Vida Real (The Real Life), Acida’s debut album, will soon be released by the English record label Sonic 360, who gained a lot of exposition in the states since their last year’s release of Kinky’s self-titled LP. “I don’t think Kinky’s success will help us much, because they are two too different things,” says Alina. “But it might be that the audience will pay us more attention since we are under the same label. I think that was what attracted so many people to our first LA performances”.
In contrast to the group from Monterrey and their extra-energizing formula, Acida’s sound is distinguishable for their ambient electronic atmosphere and laid-back beats, created by blending trip-hop and down-tempo with delicate Latin spices taken from tango and bossa nova. Recommended for those who are looking for extremely cool and modern sounds and appreciate Ely Guerra, Bebel Gilberto or the newyoricans Si*Sé.
“I have great awareness of the Latin element in our music,” asserts Tweety. “It’s not just about injecting some Latin vibes to influence and attract American listeners. Anyway, the record was composed in Buenos Aires, which is not a very Latin city. The concept of what Latin is over there is very different. Hence, from that point of view, no, we are not ‘Latino for export’”.