They are the Sons of Dominican Rock and Roll. The torchbearers of a rich musical history, in a country were Jimi Hendrix and a shoe shine boy are on equal footing, Toque Profundo has been the rebellious embodiment that is the Rock and Roll experience. Their sound, founded on the earlier works of artists such as the late Luis “El Terror” Dias, came to define a generation in the shadows of strong hand leader, Joaquin Balaguer.

Lead singer, Tony Almont, a tall, dark skinned rocker with dreadlocks, is the antithesis of what a Dominican “is” and “should” be. In a country were being black is a times considered a sin, and where police would throw you in jail for not wearing the proper clothes, Almont and TP reflected an ever growing rejection of the status quo. No longer were youth gingerly swaying to the jazzy sounds of big band merengue, rather defining themselves through this local incarnation of rock and roll.

TP’s lyrics became news reports on the ills that plagued their country, and the music represented the cultural backlash of a generation who had been forgotten by the revolutionaries of yesteryear.

Toque crashed on to the Dominican rock scene in 1989, after winning a battle of the bands against heavy favorites Arcangel. Their ability to infuse social commentary in radio friendly songs quickly launched the band into the local conscience.

Whether they wanted to, or not, TP would become the poster children of a burgeoning youth movement that had become accustomed to stinking their middle fingers up at the ruling oligarchy of the Dominican Republic. But TP’s impact extended beyond the borders of their country. The accessibility of their music expanded their fan base across Latin America and touched on the sensibilities of the “third world experience.” This sentiment was echoed in the lyrics of their 1996 classic, “El Viajero,”

Spanish:
Refugiado ciudadano de ningún lado
libre pero esclavo viajero
no importa donde vaya
siempre será extranjero

Translation:
Refugeed citizen from nowhere,
Free but still a slave
It doesn’t matter where I go,
I’ll still be a foreigner.

Tune your ears to right frequency and check out the sounds of Toque Profundo.