Let's deal with the elephant the room first: of course this is not an original copy of the cassette. The hardcore purists - also known as "the snobs" - will all in unison grunt a collective "duh" and Captain Obvious will join in the smirking. I can't really blame them. Atropello!! is a hardcore punk tape compilation originally released in 1989 in Peru on a tiny label called Bakteria Tapes that only released two tapes and was probably run by a member from one of the bands called Cesar (thanks Discogs for that precious bit of trivia). The chance that a humble forty-something punk from Paris would own an original copy of the thing is therefore highly unlikely. But then haven't we all heard incredible tales of rare tape recordings somehow ending in the hands of an innocent, often undeserving but excited righteous youth? And I'm not just talking about the dusty practice tapes of your uncle Bob's shit prog band he did in high school (nope, it doesn't really count in this context), tapes he thought should be immortalised online and hope you'll take care of it. But after all, tape trading was all the rage in the 80's and it would not completely unlikely that a Lima punk sent a copy of Atropello!! to a similarly enthusiastic Paris punk (although I have trouble picturing what sort of hardcore tape he would have sent in return given the size of the hardcore scene at the time). Then this tape could have been gifted to me, after I showed credentials and was deemed worthy by the local High Punk Council and there could even have been a ceremony to mark this important passage. Right?
But no, of course not, I grabbed this unofficial reissue in Zagreb from the Doomtown Records distro table last year so it is quite obviously a homemade bootleg meant as a tribute to this very fine but largely unknown piece of punk history. Details about the 80's punk scene in Lima is relatively scarce although two documentaries actually exist (the first one being basically live videos) and can be seen on youtube (there was a short article published in 2012 in Maximum Rocknroll that you can find here) and you will be able to gather pieces of information here and there - which is of course something I love doing. This writeup doesn't claim to be a historical piece about the early Peruvian punk scene but it is still quite easy and fun to infer some elements. The scene very largely revolved around the capital Lima where about a third of Peruvians lived (the country being rather centralised), making the movement predominantly urban at that time. What better places for punk in the 80's than a South American capital? There was certainly no shortage of good reasons to get into it (poverty, political oppression, violence, corruption, you name it - like Autopsia did). Throughout this review, there will also be no shortage of wild guesses, potentially inaccurate assertions, erroneous data and gross misunderstandings, so feel free to correct me in the comments.
The early Latino hardcore scene has rightly become more documented in the past 10 years. Classic Mexican hardcore bands like MELI, Massacre 68, SS-20, Herejia, Atoxxxico or Histeria have all enjoyed reissues and the very noisy Medellin scene of the late 80's/early 90's is also starting to be resurrected, like the notably amazing reissue of Estamos en la Sima on FOAD Records (probably the best label when it comes to rerelease old materials because of the impressive care put into the booklet and the contextualisation). The old-school Brazilian scene has always been well documented and regularly reissued so I don't see it in the same light, contrary to the Peruvian scene that has remained rather in the shadow compared to DF or Medellin hardcore "de las ochentas". Yet, judging by the number of bands and the dynamism and energy of the music, it can be said that Lima was one hotspots of hardcore punk on the continent at that point in time (or perhaps I am also guilty of projecting too much and I just want it to be too hard). Since I bumped into 80's Peruvian hardcore, I have always had a soft spot for the sound and the scene, as short-lived as it might have been then - most bands did not make it to 1990 - certainly had its fair share of quality raw and pissed hardcore bands that were every bits as good as other Spanish-speaking contemporary acts and resonate meaningfully with the current tupa-tupa punk fashion.
If you have never heard of the Lima punk scene and never listened to an old-school hardcore band from Lima, Atropello!! is the ideal starting point as it includes 9 bands and 28 songs: one hour of genuine RAW PUNK. The most significant missing early Peruvian punk bands here would be Narcosis (whose '85 demo Primera Dosis is something of a cult snotty punk recording) and Leuzemia (class '77 style band with a contagious energy and brilliant tunes) but since Atropello!! claims to be a hardcore compilation it is not too surprising (second "duh" of the writeup). The Lima-based bands included were around for a short period of time - 80's bands often were anyway - during the second part of the decade and could all be said to be influenced not just by American hardcore, but also UK82, Italian as well as Brazilian hardcore and I suppose the classics of Spanish punk (RIP for example). At the end of the day, it sounds exactly like it should: angry teens trying to play fast punk music. Let's have it!
The first band on the tape is called Kaos General (!) with 5 songs (their whole '88 demo in fact), one of my favourite here. They play raw rabioso urgent hardcore punk, not far from the Mexican classics or a more primitive take on Anti-Dogmatikss and IV Reich, but you can also tell that they played a lot of US hardcore (on that level you've got to love the introduction to "Permanecermos hasta el final" that was liberally borrowed from Minor Threat) and I love the angry and easy to sing along chorus. The eponymous song "Kaos general" sums up what 80's raw punk was all about and is an instant classic. There is no official reissue yet but I hope it's just a matter of time. Next up are Panico and we are in even rawer territory. The tone is more melodic and slower, the first song being basically a crude adaptation of 4-Skins' "Chaos" with a lot of heart and energy while the second one is a simple but effective tupa-tupa number with a good tune. Probably more UK82 than properly hardcore I suppose but I like it. Just two songs for Panico but a demo was recorded in 1985 with 4 more songs on it that was reissued on Ep in 2012.
The next band is Ataque Frontal, undoubtedly the most famous Peruvian hardcore band on the tape and in general. This is the first 80's punk band from Peru that I heard of, not a massive feat since their legendary 1988 Ep was released on a Paris label called New Wave Records that was also responsible for putting out a couple of records in the 80's from the likes of Abaddon, Heïmat-Los or Agent Orange and whose founder was apparently in touch with some punks in Lima. This Ep can be said to be one of the best Latino hardcore punk records from the 80's and the three songs on the tape are absolutely ferocious. Ataque Frontal were once known as Guerrilla Urbana, probably the first hardcore band in the country (their first gig apparently ended with shots from the police, a legend-creating moment), whose first demo was released as a split tape with HHH on another Paris label called Jungle Hop (not sure what the Paris-Lima connection was all about but I should ask). The songs "Sobreviviré" and "Memorias" were actually originally written under the name Guerrilla Urbana. The production here is, obviously, raw but if anything it highlights the anger and the urgency. You can tell it's the late 80's and some moments remind me of Negazione or even Heresy, although Ataque Frontal were punkier and closer to Massacre 68 or MELI. Hardcore aficionados must know them already but if you do not the Ep has been reissued. Brilliant shit.
The following orchestra is Kaos. Now with a name like this you would expect a particularly chaotic and spontaneous affair full of teenage energy and angst that would somehow make out for the general lack of musicianship. You would not be wrong. I am pretty sure every country has its own punk band called "chaos" and Atropellos!! includes no less than 3 songs from the band, all live recordings so you better get prepared. The result is of course rough, direct and punk-as-fuck with that distinctive original tupa-tupa style, far from all the contemporary wannabes. I love the vocals and how angry the vocals sounds like as he is really screaming his head off. Kaos even have a song entitled "No!!!" that has too many "oi! oi!" and ends up in some sort of proto-grindcore anarchy which is quite something. The band has actually been reissued several times and some of the demos are genuine Latino raw punk gems that stand as Peruvian hardcore at its most rabid, the kind that kill posers.
The next band G3 almost sounds pop after that and indeed they are possibly the most skilled band here. They were formed by ex members of Autopsia (who are also on the compilation) and even won fourth place in a Non-Professional Rock contest. I'd be proud and I'm sure they were. G3 were more influenced by the Boston hardcore scene than their comrades (rest assured that the sound is just as raw) and they played really fast with that typical flow and some great tunes. They were rather successful and even got to tour. The two songs on the first side were taken from a rather good-sounding (all things considered) live recording from 1989 while the other two are from a studio session from 1987. Not my favourite take on hardcore but still a very apt band with that instinctive USHC energy.
Next up are Curriculum Mortis are they are a massive kick up the arse. This long-haired punks are the only metallic band on the compilation and as such, proudly flying the crossover thrash flag, they do indulge in some cheesy 80's solos that are really quite fun. The classic 80's thrash metal bands must have been influences but I am hearing a lot of UKHC as well like Heresy, Concrete Sox or indeed early Napalm Death (possibly because I suck at crossover and these are my references). What I love here is how raw, primitive and just super punk Curriculum Mortis sound. They probably wanted to be the next Slayer but they ended up epitomising what skint punk teens listening to Slayer were able to produce in a DIY fashion. And personally I much prefer that second option. The band must have a quiet cult status since Nuclear War Now reissued their demo in 2022.
The following band is Autopsia, the only band along Ataque Frontal I was familiar with prior to coming across Atropello!!. Autopsia had some of their songs off their grandiose Sistema y Poder demo tape from 1985 reissued as an Ep which I knew entitled Poder, Represión Y Corrupción in 2006 (notably thanks to the Medellin label Sin Temores that also reissued the Panico demo as well other Peruvian classics like Maria T-T y el Empujon Brutal). The original recording is far longer and it is absolutely brilliant. Sistema y Poder exemplified the essence of raw tupa-tupa Latino hardcore punk, a unique sound specific to a time and place that cannot really be duplicated - although Ignorantes arguably come close. The vocals are gruff and aggressive, you really have the impression that the singer is personally pissed at you and at the world and he probably was. The energy and the tension is impressive on the tree songs included on the tape and I strongly suggest you dive into into the whole recording. The parallel with classic Mexican hardcore is relevant but bands like Riot Squad or Ad'Nauseam are also points of comparison and perhaps some deutschpunk too? But in the end this stands as a sound-creating recording.
Sentido Común are next and, as I'm sure you have come to expect, play typical raw hardcore punk with a love for a particular binary beat. Only two songs (the band's discography is very limited) but they do the job in an aptly disorderly fashion and the chorus to "Con la violencia no!" is a high point of the whole compilation. The final band of Atropello!! is Descontrol, something of a cult band - deservedly - thanks to their excellent '87 demo Productos de las Circunstancias that was reissued last decade but is now about as affordable as a meal in London. However on the compilation only the song "Utopia" originally appeared on the demo, the other two numbers being live songs which account for the even rawer sound and how upfront the vocals are. Still the energy and impact are unbelievable and these three songs give a relevant glimpse at how furious Descontrol were. They cannot be said to be 100% from the tupa-tupa philosophy and I can hear a lot of Italian hardcore, like EU's Arse, Indigesti or Declino, and Spanish raw punk classics like IV Reich. As I said the two live songs are rough so I advise to go to the demo too. Top band who were apparently thrown away from a gig once by the Maoist party Sendero Luminoso for being an imperialist band playing music contaminated by foreign influences. That's pretty cool.
One cannot but assume that Atropello!! will enjoy an official reissue in the future (it will have to be a double Lp which may make labels hesitant) to allow the punk masses to discover a little-known scene and prove that hardcore is not synonymous with the US of A. I have read about a tape reissue from Helvetet Records but have never seen it advertised and it is not on the website so who knows.
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