We Broke the Rules is the second studio album by the Dominican-American band Aventura, released on July 2, 2002, by Premium Latin music. On the album, Aventura incorporated elements of pop, hip hop, and R&B into bachata, giving what critics thought was a new flavor to the genre and extending its appeal to those who preferred urban music styles. This style of bachata was coined "the New York school", or "urban bachata", characterized by the inclusion of electric guitars instead of acoustic, and lyrics in Spanish and English instead of just Spanish. In addition, the singing style takes after R&B melodies. The album's themes mainly included heartbreak and melancholy, although it also included social themes like in "Amor de Madre", or "Mother's Love", which is a song describing the lifelong struggle of a prostitute and her son. The biggest hit of the album was the song "Obsesión" featuring Judy Santos. According to the article Aventura's Adventure, Aventura became "the first bachata act to land a No. 1 single, in Spanish, in virtually every European territory." The album sold around 1.5 million units internationally and remained in the number one position in the European charts in countries like Italy, France, Germany, and Norway for several weeks. "Obsesión" also remained in the number one position in the French top 100 singles charts for seven weeks, and at number one in the Italian top 50 singles chart for 16 weeks.
Cultural influence
Bachata music developed in the Dominican Republic during the 1960s and 1970s. It was a regional music primarily performed and heard by lower class males. The style is traditionally performed using acoustic guitars, bongos, and maracas. In the article review published in January 2005 called "Bachata: Music of the People", there is an important observation of the similarities between bachata and the blues. The article states: "Some have described Bachata music as the Dominican equivalent of blues music in the U.S. Both styles of music came out of struggling communities and gradually gained acceptance among middle and even upper classes." The album Bachata Rosa, released on December 11, 1990, by Juan Luis Guerra, marked the beginning of a new acceptance of bachata among the middle and high socio-economical classes. Almost ten years later, with the release of We Broke the Rules, Bachata became as internationally famous as merengue and even salsa. Despite Guerra's efforts, most Dominicans still thought of Bachata as music for illiterate, poor people from the rural areas of the Dominican Republic. Bachata also carried the stigma of being the preferred music in brothels, colmados, and cabarets, a connotation that kept bachata in the lowest level of all music genres in the Dominican Republic. In , Deborah Pacini Hernandez describes bachata as "the blacksheep of the country's music business". Aventura helped change the general opinion about bachata because as young and "hip" New Yorkers, they did not fit the stereotype of bachateros but embraced the genre and identified themselves with it anyway. Along with Monchy & Alexandra, Aventura put a fresh face on the genre and revitalized it. Besides altering bachata's sound, Aventura also changed its image. Aventura also influenced a new generation of urban bachateros, such as Prince Royce, Toby love, Xtreme, and Carlos y Alejandra, who sing, dress, and play in a similar style as Aventura.
The other contributors to the album We Broke the Rules include: musicians Miguel Echavarria ; audio mixer Monchy Jiminez; and photographer Manuel Sierra.
Legal Issues
Aventura and their label Premium Latin Music, Inc. were sued for $50,000 because of flipping the main melody of "Axel F" by Harold Faltermeyer in their song Perdi El Control. The issue was resolved by removing the song off the album, and replacing it with "Cuándo Volverás". The song is still available on original physical copies of the album.
Track listing
Sample credits
"Perdi El Control" samples "Axel F" by Harold Faltermeyer
"I Believe " contains an interpolation of "Smooth Criminal" by Michael Jackson
