Formed in 1968 by members of bands from Lima, Peru such Los Hang Ten’s and Los Mad’s and other musicians, Traffic Sound started as a covers band playing songs by The Doors, Cream and Jimi Hendrix. Their influences came from England and the US, and apart from some bossa nova played at rehearsals, Latin music didn’t feature in their repertoire. However, their origin and background could still be heard in their sound, something which they embraced even more after Santana’s success. Their first LP with self-written songs, Virgin (1969), is a masterpiece of Latin rock. In it, the band from Lima combined psychedelia, hard rock, a hint of progressive rock and a Latin tinge to create a personal, mighty sound full of details. The best example is ‘Meshkalina’, a track with references to Incan culture which became an anthem of the period and was heard all over Peru. The LP was a great success and even saw a US release. Traffic Sound would record another two albums (Traffic Sound and Lux) which took them to greater success and tours in Brazil and Argentina, before finally disbanding in 1972.