Thursday’s are preeeetty long in the office as we have to stay until the weekly paper is complete. This generally means putting in a 12 hour shift until around 10 p.m. (today, it was 11 p.m., the latest so far). So in order to stave off the boredom I’m going to use some of the down time on a Thursday afters’ to list top fives of the best things in Mexico. Let’s start with music.

1. Café Tacuba

Now known as “Café Tacvba” for legal reasons (I think), this band from Mexico City are blessed with the ability to somehow forge glorious pop songs out of a diverse blend of punk, ska, hip-hop, electronica and traditional Mexican folk and norteño. Here’s their best song:

2. Molotov

Mexico’s answer to Rage Against the Machine, Molotov combine rap and rock with politically conscious lyrics and a great deal more humour than their American counterparts. An unofficial national anthem, “Gimme tha Power” is probably their best loved and most vital song:

I was also recently advised to check out this very much NSFW video of theirs. Not one for those offended by the sight of lots of naked ladies.

3. Control Machete

A south-of-the-border Cypress Hill (the two groups actually collaborated together on one track), Control Machete were mid-1990s Mexican hip-hop pioneers from Monterrey. Last year I interviewed their cumbia-loving DJ, Toy Selectah, for a feature on Mexican music in Latino Life magazine. Their signature track “Si Señor” also features in the internationally acclaimed film, “Amores Perros”.

4. La Maldita Vecindad

Formed in Mexico City in the 1980s, La Maldita Vecindad were one of the first big Latin American rock bands. Their excellent 1991 album “Circu” is apparently known as “The Sergeant Pepper’s of Mexican Rock” by Latin music critics. And they have a song called “Crocodile”. This isn’t it:

5. Maná

A pop rock band from Guadalajara, Maná are hugely successful in the United States and have sold 25 million records worldwide. I’ve only ever listened to the album “¿Donde jugarán los niños?” but it has some big tunes on it, like this one: