As Puerto Rico’s independent music scene continues to grow, the genres of hip hop and R&B are becoming the most popular modes of expression. Every day, one can find a variety of new artists exploring these sounds and slowly blending them to create unique and interesting projects. Among the many musicians to experiment with these genres are Vento Alejandro, Erre, FOKINFROID and producer Nebu OTB, all of which recently came together to form the group Los Raros. After a brief promo that involved psychedelic imagery and what seemed to be a precursor with Erre’s “3:18” EP, the ensemble finally released their debut project “VLMN1” last week.
(cover art for “VLMN1”)
Starting the project is the song “Rx,” a group effort that sees the rapping talents of FOKINFROID and Erre blend with Vento Alejandro’s nice guitar work and fantastic vocals while Nebu OTB perfects the production on the side. Afterwards, listeners are provided “Usame,” a blend of R&B and hip hop that features Nebu OTB’s production as FOKINFROID and Vento Alejandro rap and sing a tale about letting love interests use them as escapes from their terrible relationships. Then the first of the project ends with the sexiest and smoothest track in the EP, “Arena Movediza,” a collaborative ethereal alternative R&B tune that serves as a perfect addition to anybody’s late night playlist.
(picture of Erre found on his Facebook page)
(picture of Nebu OTB as found on his Facebook page)
From there we are treated to the FOKINFROID led “Mary Wanna,” a blend of hip hop and R&B that explores how people sometimes use drugs to remember certain people and moments in their lives, in this case the subject of focus being a female love interest and the late nights spent with her. Then “VLMN1” comes to a close with “Afrodisiaca,” a hip hop and R&B track celebrates women who are proud to express themselves sexually.
(picture of FOKINFROID as found on his Facebook page)
(picture of Vento Alejandro as found on his Facebook page)
In sum, Los Raros’ “VLMN1” EP is a fantastic sexually driven mixture of hip hop and R&B that serves as a perfect presentation for what seems to be a supergroup of the Puerto Rican indie music scene. Moreover, the project’s replay value shows the ensemble’s potential for mainstream success and makes one quickly ask for another EP or a full-length album.