GUSTAVO CERATI
Ahí Vamos
[Sony-2006]
There had been a lot of speculation about the direction Cerati's next release would take, after Siempre Es Hoy [BMG-2002] turned out to be the lowest-selling of his solo albums. One theory out there postulated his return to guitars, and therefore to a more rock sound after a decade making electronic pop, which had taken him further and further away from the sound of the band that made him an international star. (Truth be told, Siempre Es Hoy was less reliant on electronics and displayed his guitar more prominently than in earlier times.) So the question: would the low sales of Siempre Es Hoy lead to the reconciliation of the Argentine rocker with his past glories and turn up the amps? Intentionally or not, since the album starts with "Al Fin Sucede" — in addition to the forcefulness of the second single "La Excepción" and the house-sized chorus of "Uno Entre 1000" — the rumors of a propelled album guitar by former Soda Stereo are immediately confirmed. Not only that, but Ahí Vamos is reminiscent of Soda's last three studio albums — Canción Animal [Sony-1990], Dynamo [Sony-1993] and Sueño Stereo [BMG-1995] — which were anchored by heavy rock, electronic, and Beatlesque pop, respectively.
It is this last attribute that Cerati seems to have wanted to accentuate when the piano ballad "Crimen" was chosen as the first single from the album. Nice, but not entirely representative of Ahí Vamos. However, this is an album that covers a lot of ground: from the aforementioned rockers that open the album, through the '80s guitar pop of "Caravana", "Lago En Cielo", "Dios Nos Libre" and "Bomba De Tiempo", to the relaxing grooves of "Me Quedo Aqui" and the great "Otra Piel", one of the sweetest love songs ever written by Cerati.
In a recent interview, the always pragmatic Cerati referred to the division that characterizes his fans: rockers on the one hand and the devotees of his electronics on the other, and how their numbers expand and contract depending on the way the muse guides him. If Ahí Vamos has to segregate the masses that follow Cerati, then the rockers yearning for Soda Stereo Part II win this time. But it would be unfortunate if the techno guys decided not to join the party as well.
