Massacre

Widely regarded as one of the pioneers of the Argentine skate-punk scene, Massacre formed in Buenos Aires in 1986. Even though their sound was initially inspired by the late '70s/early '80s West Coast hardcore punk scene, throughout their career they would go on to incorporate elements from Britpop, alternative rock, and psychedelic rock. Originally composed of guitarist Guillermo "Walas" Cidade, drummer Francisco "Paco" Ruiz Ferreyra, bassist José "Topo" Armetta, and lead singer Ricardo Serafini, they began performing under the name Massacre Palestina and released a self-titled EP in 1987. Following Serafini's departure in 1989, Walas took on vocal duties and his spot was filled in by guitarist Pablo Mondello, who would play a key role in the group's songwriting process in the following years. In 1992, the band released its studio debut Sol Lucet Omnibus and shortened its name to Massacre right after the terrorist attack on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires. Their musical evolution continued with releases like Galería Desesperanza (1994), L'Alma Occulta (1995), and Juguetes Para Olvidar (1996), their last album with founding member José Armetta. After recruiting guitarist Federico Piskorz and bass player Luciano Facio, Massacre dropped their fourth album Aerial (1998), followed by the EP Fue una Suerte... (2001) and the full-length 12 Nuevas Patologías in 2003. Featuring a more hi-fi sound that still managed to capture the band's raw live energy, their critically acclaimed fifth LP El Mamut (2007) was their first commercially successful album and appeared in several year-end lists. This pop-oriented approach to songwriting would also have a prominent role on the group's next album Ringo (2011), a tribute album to late boxer Oscar Bonavena that spawned the hit single "Tanto Amor." Biblia Ovni, their ninth full-length, appeared in 2015.