El Cuarteto de Nos is an Uruguayan alternative rock band formed in 1984 in … Read Full Bio ↴El Cuarteto de Nos is an Uruguayan alternative rock band formed in 1984 in Montevideo. The band was originally comprised of the Musso brothers (Roberto and Riki Musso) and Santiago Tavella, who they had met in high school. In 1984 they released their debut album, a split LP with uruguayan candombe musician Alberto Wolf under the Ayuí / Tacuabé label. Leonardo Baroncini was hired to be a guest drummer on the record.

In March 1987 they released Soy una arveja, an album which unlike their previous record featured dark, humorous and satirical lyrics based around characters from the city of Tajo, a fictional city (an inside-joke between the members). This would also be their first album to feature the drummer Álvaro Pintos.
They would later release Emilio Garcia in 1988 and Canciones del Corazon in 1991. However, in 1994 with the release of Otra navidad en las trincheras the band unexpectedly gained massive popularity in Uruguay and stopped being a cult band. This caused Otra navidad en las trincheras to become the #1 best selling album in the country for a long time.

After the success of their previous album they released Barranca Abajo, a concept album revolving around the life of a fictional character named José Barrancas created by the band. The next year El tren bala was released and generated controversy throughout the country due to the Ministry of Education and Culture's attempts to ban the album over the song "El dia que Artigas se emborracho" which made fun of uruguayan national hero José Gervasio Artigas. However, this only expanded the group's popularity. Afterwards Revista ¡¡Ésta!! was released in 1998.

Riki Musso temporarily left the band in 2000 before the release of Cortamambo due to differences with their label and bandmates about the album cover. However, his brother convinced him to stay. Their 2004 self-titled album was the first to feature Juan Campodonico who would later produce all of their post-Cortamambo discography including Raro, a power pop album which made the band well known in other countries, allowing them to tour through South America. Riki would leave the band a second time due to musical differences with Bipolar being his last contribution to El Cuarteto de Nos.

Gustavo Antuña replaced guitarist Riki Musso in 2010 and joined the band alongside keyboardist Santiago Marrero. The first album to feature them both was the more pop rock influenced Porfiado which won two latin grammy awards.

Me Hace Bien Me Hace Mal
El Cuarteto De Nos Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Todo lo que me gusta es pecado o hace mal
Todo lo que me gusta es muy caro o ilegal
Me mete en problemas que no tienen solución
Se me vuelve peligroso o trae una complicación

Y entonces no se nunca que tengo que hacer
Me pregunto y no me puedo responder
Porque si me hace bien

Porque si me hace bien
Me hace mal

Todo lo que me da placer es raro o inmoral
Todo lo que me da placer no se puede contar

Y ando haciendo cosas
Que no puedo impedir
Y a veces al despertarme
Me tuve que arrepentir

Y entonces no se nunca que tengo que hacer
Me pregunto y no me puedo responder
Porque si me hace bien
Porque si me hace bien
Me hace mal

Porque lo prohibido para mi es mejor
Pero después me hace sentir peor
Entonces no se nunca que tengo que hacer
Me pregunto y no me puedo responder
Porque si me hace bien
Porque si me hace bien
Me hace mal

Y como veo que ya es tarde para decidir
Me tomo el último trago y me acuesto a dormir

Overall Meaning

The song Me Hace Bien Me Hace Mal by El Cuarteto De Nos is a contemplation about how the things that bring us pleasure can also bring us pain, and how the things that are prohibited often hold greater appeal. The song acknowledges the contradictory nature of human desire and how it can lead to confusion and a lack of resolution. The lyrics suggest that there are often no easy answers when it comes to making choices that involve pleasure and risk, and that sometimes we make decisions without fully understanding the consequences. The song concludes with a bittersweet resignation that sometimes it's too late to make a decision, and all that's left is to take one last drink and go to sleep.

The song was released in 2010 as part of the album Porfiado, which won the Latin Grammy award for Best Rock Album in 2012. The album was produced by Juan Campodónico, who is also known for his work with the Uruguay-based music collective Bajofondo. Me Hace Bien Me Hace Mal is one of the most popular songs from the album, and it is frequently played on radio and television in Latin America.

Line by Line Meaning

Todo lo que me gusta es pecado o hace mal
Everything I like is either a sin or harmful.

Todo lo que me gusta es muy caro o ilegal
Everything I like is either expensive or forbidden by law.

Me mete en problemas que no tienen solución
It lands me in trouble that cannot be solved.

Se me vuelve peligroso o trae una complicación
It becomes dangerous for me or brings a complication.

Y entonces no se nunca que tengo que hacer
And then I never know what I should do.

Me pregunto y no me puedo responder
I ask myself but can't answer.

Porque si me hace bien
Because if it feels good,

Me hace mal
It hurts me.

Todo lo que me da placer es raro o inmoral
Everything that brings me pleasure is weird or immoral.

Todo lo que me da placer no se puede contar
Everything that brings me pleasure cannot be counted or shared.

Y ando haciendo cosas
And I keep doing things