Puya is a 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. Formed in 1991, the band rose to prominence with their fusion of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: A ...

and heavy metal.

History

The band originally 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. I ...

combo, in 1991, under the name Whisker Biscuit. In 1992, the band added vocalist Sergio Curbelo and moved to

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County, Florida, Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 Unit ...

, where they created a mix of

and heavy metal with the assistance of Jeff Renza and the Noiz Boiz production studio. They adopted the name Puya in 1994, which is Spanish for "sharp point", but is also a popular type of Puerto Rican coffee. Puya was the first Puerto Rican rock band to achieve a high level of international success. In 1995, Puya released their self-titled debut album under the Noiz Boiz label, but did not sign with the label. There they also met producer

Gustavo Santaolalla Gustavo Alfredo Santaolalla (born 19 August 1951) is an Argentine musician, composer, and record producer. He is known for composing his film scores with his collaborator and acclaimed director Alejandro González Iñárritu, which composed the ...

who signed them to

MCA MCA may refer to: Astronomy * Mars-crossing asteroid, an asteroid whose orbit crosses that of Mars Aviation * Minimum crossing altitude, a minimum obstacle crossing altitude for fixes on published airways * Medium Combat Aircraft, a 5th gen ...

and in 1999 released their second album, '' Fundamental'', which received critical praise. This propelled the band to stardom even landing them in the second stage of Ozzfest where they shared the opening slot with Slipknot in 1999. In 2000, their song "Tírale" was included in the soundtrack of the movie '' Heavy Metal 2000'', and was the collection's only track with Spanish lyrics. The band opened for

Sepultura Sepultura (, "grave")Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 17. is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte. Formed in 1984 by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera,Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 16. the band was a major force in the groove metal, thra ...

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...

Pantera Pantera () is an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-known lineup cons ...

and

Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

. They also recorded a cover of

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. For most of their history the line-up consisted of primary songwriter Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion). The Polic ...

's " Spirits in the Material World" in Spanish, with the title "Almas en un mundo material". When sales of the band's 2001 album '' Union'' did not meet MCA's expectations, the label did not renew the band's contract. After a 2002 performance at Tito Puente Amphitheater in Puerto Rico (which was later released on DVD), Puya went on an extended hiatus. During this time Ramon Ortiz formed the band Ankla. In 2009, Puya reunited and performed in front of over 12,000 fans at Stereo Music Fest at the Puerto Rico Convention Center. The digital EP ''Areyto'' appeared on iTunes on August 27, 2010. The band has since continued on with a lighter touring schedule, focusing primarily on "special shows" like Cuba’s Patria Grande Festival in 2014. In 2018, Sergio Curbelo left the band. Diego Romero of Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico, replaced him and they released two singles together, "Súbele La Candela" whose lyrics speak about the protests held in Puerto Rico against former governor

Ricardo Rosselló Ricardo Antonio Rosselló Nevares (; born March 7, 1979) is a Puerto Rican politician who served as the governor of Puerto Rico from 2017 to 2019. He resigned on August 2, 2019, after protests related to the Telegramgate scandal. He is the s ...

and "Viento". In 2020, Puya announced that Diego was embarking upon a solo career and Sergio is returning to the band. Puya entered the studio in the summer of 2020 and teased a new song "Potencial" on the Puerto Rican digital radio station AZ Rock Radio.

Musical style and influences

Puya's music is defined by placing emphasis on heavy guitar grooves and percussive Latin rhythms, punctuated by

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s ...

horns, with composed melodies that lead into instrumental improvisation. Additionally, some of Puya's songs have also incorporated

rapping Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

. Puya's music draws from diverse styles, including

Cuban rumba Rumba is a secular genre of Cuban music involving dance, percussion, and song. It originated in the northern regions of Cuba, mainly in urban Havana and Matanzas, during the late 19th century. It is based on African music and dance traditions, ...

, bomba,

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commercial ...

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest ha ...

blues rock Blues rock is a fusion music genre that combines elements of blues and rock music. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electric blues and rock (electric guitar, electric bass guitar, and drums, sometimes w ...

, heavy metal,

and

. Puya was influenced by

, Rush, Fania All-Stars,

Fishbone Fishbone is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1979, that plays a fusion of ska, punk, funk, metal, reggae, and soul. AllMusic has described the group as "one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative rock bands of the lat ...

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped def ...

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...

and

. The band's music has been categorized as alternative rock, hardcore, hard rock, heavy metal,

Latin metal Latin metal (, ) is a subgenre of heavy metal music with Latin origins, influences, and instrumentation, such as Spanish vocals, Latin percussion and rhythm such as Salsa rhythm. Some South American bands also add influences and instrumentati ...

and rock en español. Though sometimes categorized as

nu metal Nu metal (sometimes stylized as nü-metal, sometimes called aggro-metal) is a subgenre of that combines elements of heavy metal music with elements of other music genres such as hip hop, alternative rock, funk, industrial, and grunge. Nu met ...

, this is contested by ''Latin Music: Musicians, Genres, and Themes'', which says that Puya is not a part of this genre and has its own style of music.

Band members

* Ramon Ortiz – guitar * Eduardo Paniagua – drums *

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 ...

– bass * Sergio Curbelo (1992–2018, 2020-present) – vocals

Former members

* Diego Romero (2018–2020) – vocals

Discography

Studio releases * ''

Puya Puya may refer to: * ''Puya'' (plant), in the family Bromeliaceae * Puya (river), in Russia * Puya, a variety of Guajillo chili * ''Puya'' (Meitei texts), traditional or mythological texts of the Meetei people * '' Culoepuya'' or ''Culo'e Puya'' ...

'' (1995) LP * '' Fundamental'' (1999) LP * ''Union'' (2001) LP * '' Areyto'' (2010) EP Live releases * ''Pa Ti En Vivo: Live In Puerto Rico'' (2006) DVD * ''Vital'' (2014) LP Singles * "Montate" (1998) * "Oasis" (1999) * "Sal Pa Fuera (Break It Up)" (1999) * "Ride"/"People"/"Numbed" (as ''Union 3 Song Sampler'') (2001) * "Pa'Ti Pa'Mí" (promotional video only) (2001) * "Subele la Candela" (2019)* * "Viento" (2020)* * "Potencial" (2021) _{with vocalist Diego Romero, not Sergio Curbelo/sub>

See also

* Puerto Rican rock

References

External links

Official website

Puya's official Facebook page

Puya's Myspace Website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Puya
American jazz-rock groups
Puerto Rican heavy metal musical groups
Musical quartets
Musical groups established in 1991
Musical groups disestablished in 2005
Musical groups reestablished in 2009
American progressive metal musical groups
Rock en Español music groups
Salsa music groups}