Cronicas De Un Laberinto
Mexican rockers Jaguares favor jangly rock rhythms and arena bombast onCronicas de un Laberinto, and that's not necessarily a great thing. Much of the album is filled with noisy, outdated arrangements that seem swiped from 1980s English-language hair bands--often a pitfall of the rock en espanol genre. Producer Adrian Belew only amplifies the effect, and any social or political messages are diluted. As a result, several of the disc's 14 tracks run together, making for an often monotonous listen. Vocalist Saul Hernandez does what he can, but there's no real fire or passion behind his delivery. Only a few tracks kick into high gear, including first single "Hay Amores Que Matan," which could just as easily have been recorded by Mana. The album's second half is generally more effective, but it's ultimately not enough to save the album from some serious dust-gathering on your CD shelf.--Joey Guerra