La Ley-MTV Unplugged WEA International.

After more than 10 years together La Ley in September finally nabbed their first Latin Grammy for best rock album. Makers of punchy, electronic rock, the band has suffered criticism in the past for overproducing their music. So it was a surprise that their win in Los Angeles was for the MTV Unplugged series that champions simple acoustic arrangements.

Back in 1993 it was a whole different story. Seattle and grunge had exploded across the globe through the likes of Nirvana and Pearl Jam, spawning legions of shaggy-haired groups cranking up feedback to unbearable levels. Out of this rabble a young Chilean band hit the airwaves with their debut album "Doble Opuesto' The influence of grunge was unmistakable, but unfortunately the record came across as another addition to a burgeoning bandwagon. It wasn't until the release of their third album "Invisible," that La Ley found a more cohesive and individual voice. It put the band on the Latin map. All over the Americas tracks from "Invisible" were topping charts, and the band went into an exhausting promotional tour.

Of course as cliches go, La Ley invariably has matured with age. What started out as some noisy tribute to the grunge wave culminated last September with lead singer Beto Cuevas accepting a Latin Grammy for their sweetly rendered MTV Unplugged album. By putting together an ensemble of backup singers, percussionists and invited guests" La Ley--MTV Unplugged" charts the group's full discography. The marvel of the album is that past noisy hits have become soulful ballads.

A reworking of their 1995 smash "El Duelo" starts out as a mournful, slow melody until three quarters of the way through it suddenly bursts into racing guitars and sped up vocals. To top off a great track, Mexican singer Ely Guerra accompanies the band with her soaring voice and acoustic guitar.

Equally, "Intentar Amar" is an uplifting anthem about the difficulties of trying to love someone. Despite the usual fodder of pain and anguish, it's sung with genuine feeling and has a rousing chorus at the end. There's hardly a moment on the record where you're tempted to skip over, although Cuevas' foray into English on "The Corridor" smacks of horrible pretension. At least the band makes up for it with "Mentira." A lament on how lies and deceit plague relationships, the song definitely sums up the softer approach La Ley used in making this album.

The band should take note from the huge success of their MTV outing and the Latin Grammy sitting at home, that a bit less rock might bode well for the future.