If you were to fuse the vibes of Carlos Santana's guitar playing and the crunch of L.A.-based rap/metal outfit Rage Against The Machine's musical style, then you'd probably have a close idea to what Puerto Rican outfit Puya sound like on their MCA Records debut disc Fundamental. It's heavy, yet coated within a heavy groove.
Puya - consisting of singer Sergio Curbelo, guitarist Ramon Ortiz, drummer Eduardo Paniagua and bassist Harold Hopkins (plus all lend a hand for percussion duties) - are a strong outfit that manages to successfully mesh songs sung in Spanish and English throughout the disc without ever losing the listener. Songs like "Sal Pa' Fuera," "Montate", "Whatever" and "Keep It Simple" rock solid as the band dips and dives through a very cohesive array of material.
About the disc, bassist Harold Hopkins says, 
"We're very happy with the end result of the way Fundamental turned out. I mean we're not totally 100% happy with the record, 'cause there are certain things we wanted to do with the record but it's hard to get everyone's ideas on record. Sometimes you have to settle for the closest end result."
"This record came together very fast. We had attained a lot of interest from MCA Records a while back but we were involed in a bunch of legal bullshit with a small label we used to deal with called Noise Boys (based out of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida). It took a while to get that over with, and in the meantime we had so much material written and had rehearsed so much that when we went into record Fundamental it was done within a few days. It was great to choose the songs we wanted on the disc and go in have it completed so fast."
In terms of newer material they are working on, Hopkins says, "We are always taking in ideas and styles from bands we play with. Not stealing their sound, but respecting what they do. It's a great learning process to be out on the road with all of these bands and take in all their talent. We feed off other bands in terms of their vibes and we try to bring that into what Puya does. It's out of respect and really trying to make things work well."
One thing that is somewhat of an obstacle for the band is the fact that they are a Spanish speaking outfit trying to get airplay (or just noticed) in North America. Any plans to conquer the North American market?
"Yeah, lots of ideas!" laughs Hopkins. "No...we just have to really go out there and play hard. The music is what draws people into what bands play, regardless of if they sing in Spanish or English. I find that with hardcore music when it is sung in English it is a lot harder to understand then when it's sung in Spanish. I think it's mostly about the groove and the energy that attracts a lot of people to Puya. But still, fans of the band want to know where we are coming from which is why we included lyrics in English for some of the songs."
The band is currently on tour with hardcore heroes Hatebreed and jazz/hardcore outfit Candiria. How are they enjoying North America? "It is a lot of work touring with them, but it's great fun. When it stops being fun on the road we will stop doing Puya. That shouldn't be for a while 'cause we are set to play the second stage of the Ozz Fest tour this year. That is going to be a lot of fun. We can't wait."
"We're just working hard to stay out on the road," confirms Hopkins. "We played a couple of shows with Sepultura and they liked us a lot, so who knows? We may tour with them. We also want to try to get everywhere we can. We are working on getting over to South America too this year. We want a lot things to happen. Hopefully it does. We're ready for anything."
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