Almendra

Almendra formed in Buenos Aires in 1967 with Luis Alberto Spinetta on vocals and guitar, Edelmiro Molinari on guitar, Emilio del Guercio on bass, and Rodolfo García on drums. Their self-titled debut album came out in 1969, featuring songs like 'Muchacha (Ojos de Papel)' and 'A Estos Hombres Tristes.' The music pulled from folk and jazz as much as rock, with Spinetta's lyrics often turning inward.

A second album followed in 1970, which included 'Fermín' and 'Los Elefantes.' The band broke up the next year, in 1971. Each member went on to other projects, with Spinetta becoming a particularly noted figure in Argentine music.

Their recordings, especially the first album, are still treated as foundational pieces in Argentina. You hear it in the way later artists approached songwriting and arrangement, less in direct imitation than in a shared permission to be both melodic and searching.