Amid Blunt Message, a Poetic Tribute : *** 1/2, MALDITA VECINDAD “Mostros”, BMG

At the core of Maldita Vecindad’s latest album lies a slice of rock en espanol heaven titled “El Cocodrilo,” the most perfectly realized song the Mexican quintet has ever recorded.

Anyone familiar with the socially conscious, multiculturally influenced Maldita knows that subtlety was never its greatest strength. What is most surprising, then, about this song is the loving delicacy with which it’s been put together.

A signature Maldita hit such as “Pachuco” was all rage and energy in motion. “Cocodrilo” is an altogether different kind of song, with its heart-wrenching sax solo and poetic, salsa sort of keyboard line, courtesy of special guest Irving Lara.

Taking its name from the ‘50s Mexican moniker for taxis, “Cocodrilo” actually is an homage to that country’s Golden Age of Cinema, when frothy comedies were shot in lavish black and white and the films’ musical numbers were as important as the plot. The lyrics mention some of the era’s most endearing stars, from Juan Orol and Tongolele to the original mambo king, Perez Prado.

“It’s a song about the power of memory,” says lead singer Roco, one of the most articulate rock stars south of the border, “and about the possibility we have of reinventing and remembering our city and its stories just the way they were in the past. Musically, it’s an homage to the mambo and the cha-cha-cha, all the Afro-Cuban music that has been very present in the history of Mexico.”

The rest of “Mostros” covers more familiar territory, but with a renewed sense of maturity. There’s a hidden 12th track, “Sirena” (Mermaid)--in which the group confirms its passionate love affair with African rai music--and a new version of the corrido “El Barzon,” about a peasant’s decision to rebel against the exploitation of a greedy landowner.

The album was produced by Michael Brook, whose love for fusing disparate cultures certainly fits well with Maldita’s ambitious views of what “world music” should really sound like.

The band has the rare virtue of making music that retains the essence of Mexico while looking to the world with a joyous sense of lust for new, foreign sounds.

* Maldita Vecindad and Viva Malpache perform tonight at JC Fandango, 1086 N. State College Blvd., Anaheim. Doors open at 8 p.m. $20 (advance), $25 (at the door). (714) 758-1057.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).