Psicofásicos de Bolivia - Gogó a 4000 Metros 1966-69 (2003)

«Although '60s punk sides from a lot of different exotic countries have been reissued for the last 20 years, I believe this is the very first time as far as Bolivia is concerned. I could not find even one Bolivian song on any of those Latin America samplers issued since the '90s. It's probably because you have to be a real Indiana Jones to find records from this land way up in the Andes. […] So this effort deserves a lot of respect, especially when you know that, as I write this, while playing this compilation, its creator, with the maker of Delicuentes by his side, is back in that part of the world, where the cold winter has just begun, to bring back more sonic treasures.

The result was worth his sweat and my money. Fourteen songs, mucho fuzz, primitive-but-great productions; here lies what should satisfy most garageheads. As expected from this type of comp, most tracks are covers, but wait till you hear the Dhag Dhag's rendition of "One Track Mind" (Knickerbockers), Grupo 606's takes on "Break On Through" (Doors) and "Gotta Get Away" (Blues Magoos), Rufus Thomas's "Walk That Walk" by los Ecos, or the Stones' "Complicated" in the hands of the Loving Darks. And dig that ear-piercing fuzz on los Buros' treatment of the Rascals' "You Better Run." The original songs are often as impressive, like the punker "Pena" (Black Stones) or the somber "Tipo sicodélico" and the swinging "Bohemio" (both by the Dhag Dhag's). Don't miss this unique record.» (Laurent Bigot, originally published in Ugly Things #21, 2003)

«[…] The liners (in both Spanish and English) tell us that these toons all date from 1966-'69 "from incaic go-go to the psychophasic sound". Kick off track, Los Daltons' instro 'Alto Y Seco' has the trademark lack of sophistication that tells us it was recorded inside an empty baked-bean tin, but this hits where you want to feel it. In fact, the whole album has a very full and rich sound which implies a decent vinyl to vinyl transfer job has been done on it, despite the apologies for the surface sound (man, that's obligatory for atmosphere!). You wonder how records of any kind were made at all in a country where even in the big cities the power was regularly shut off at 11:00pm every night and where farm carts still outnumbered cars on the roads. Groups like Grupo 606 had to make their own instruments before they could get to play anything! In common with Warsaw Pact Europe of the time, Bolivian police in La Paz and other cities like Cochabamba especially looked out for local long-hairs to practice their shearing techniques on. In general, not a well-disposed environment to start a band, but plenty of reasons to want to!

This whole set is troglodyte magic. Los Ecos for instance featured an eleven year-old girl as their drummer, but she sounds like any demented howling teen and keeps a damned good 4/4 beat. Los Dhag Dhags' 'Tipo Sicodelico' is a psych creeper, but most of this stuff is primal (think Peru's Los Saicos, for instance). Groups like The Donkeys, Loving Darks, Los Tennyson and (I kid you not) Los Bunny Boy's Hots presumably grabbed any opportunity that presented itself to do their thang. Maybe it was the thinness of the air at 4000 metres above sea level, but something sure put the dementure into these cats! A must have comp and I insist there is a volume 2 soon! (Paul Martin, Sweet Jeanne Productions)

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