''Puya'' is the self-titled debut album of the Puerto Rican

progressive metal Progressive metal (sometimes shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified guitar-driven sound of the former with the more experimental, cerebral ...

band of the same name, released in 1995 by the

Pompano Beach Pompano Beach ( ) is a city in Broward County, Florida, United States. It is located along the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, just north of Fort Lauderdale. The nearby Hillsboro Inlet forms part of the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. As of the 2020 ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

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Noiz Boiz.

Background

Puya formed in

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and unincorporated ...

as a

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog; sometimes conflated with art rock) is a broad genre of rock music that developed in the United Kingdom and United States through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early 1970s. In ...

combo under the name Whisker Biscuit in 1991. Upon relocating to Florida, the band changed its name to Puya, after a popular type of coffee. The band's self-titled debut album was released in 1995 by Noiz Boiz Records. A subsequent '' Billboard'' review identified the band as being unsigned as of 1996. The band's lineup on this album consisted of guitarist Ramon Ortiz and bassist

Harold Hopkins Miranda Harold Hopkins Miranda (born 1971 in San Juan, Puerto Rico is a Puerto Rican bass player, composer, director and founder of the progressive metal band Puya. Hopkins Miranda is largely responsible for creating Puya's style, a fusion of jazz, sals ...

. Following the release of the album, Sergio Curbelo became the band's lead singer in 1996.

Reception

The album received favorable notice from ''Billboard'' which described the band as "unpredictably compelling", and the song "Bembele" as containing "amazing leaps from percolating

Afro The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...

- Caribbean rock to crunching

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to syncopated blues-laced rock"

Track listing

# "Bembelé" 3:44 # "Aguaje" 1:54 # "Down" 2:45 # "Siguelo Pa Llá" 2:47 # "Unión" 3:04 # "F.Y.F.A." 1:41 # "No Te Rajes" 2:43 # "Chisme" 3:06 # "Deficiente" 3:01 # "Contamination" 2:35 # "Quién Sufre Más" 3:14 # "Paco" 4:24 # "Puya" 2:57

Personnel

;Puya * Ramon Ortiz – guitars, cuatro *

– bass guitar, vocals ;Additional musicians * Sergio Curbelo - lead vocals, cabasa * Eguie Castrillo - percussion * Jeff Watkins - saxophone * Mike Smart - saxophone * Tyrone Jefferson - trombone * Todd Owens (trumpet on track 2)

References

{{Authority control 1995 debut albums Puya (band) albums