Look Out in ‘93: 11 Locals to Watch

E clecticism is the keyword among the top 1992 freshmen of Southern California, where rap and retro, grunge and industrial, escapism and confrontation all coexist in a happily active melting pot. Here’s a look at the 11 new area acts who have made the biggest splash this year:

Brujeria: Death metal, the collision of squalling thrash and darkside sensibility, is something of a secret--the fans are mostly Latin American teen-agers, thus invisible to the media. On its first indie CD, Brujeria plays art-inflected Mexican death metal from deepest L.A., sung in Spanish, grinding guitars, offensive, apocalyptic imagery pumped up to the nth degree, intense enough almost to flip into camp. Awesome.

2nd II None: Some gangsta rappers think of themselves as beacons to a lost generation, prophetic and political in every scratch and cuss. Compton’s 2nd II None remembers that the stuff is supposed to be entertaining: bouncy, irresistible beats, clear, articulated rapping, catchy hooks and a bittersweet street sensibility that can mist you up when you least expect it.