by Richard FossHaving Adrian Belew produce a Caifanes album must have seemed like a great idea, since the Mexican band had a musical attack as accomplished and eclectic as Belew's own work. Unfortunately, the pairing just doesn't strike sparks here. Belew's influence shows up throughout the album, which has more jittery rhythms and odd dissonances than other albums by the band. This works fine on a few cuts, such as the lively "Nubes," but over the course of the album it is a distraction. That sense of musical clutter may also be due to the attempted expansion of the band -- Caifanes picked up two new members on this album. The experiment was evidently a failure, because both were gone by the time the band recorded their next album. It is notable that the most effective song, the spooky title track, is the one that has the simplest arrangement. "Vamos a Hacer un Silencio" is an unnerving and poetic attack on censorship, and is such a standout track that the songs before and after pale by comparison. El Silencio is worth having for the half of the CD when things come together, but it is not the best from Caifanes.