THE ONE THE TWO THE THREE, LABORATORIES Gha-Ngha Records, Mexico Rating: 83 By Carlos Reyes
The One The Two The Three or one of those calculated sequences where art and science meet is a three-piece EP from Laboratories, a revealing electro act from Juarez, Mexico. Earlier this year the Mexican collective/shop Hupop released a compilation titled Recomienda Vol.1 where they included some very interesting emerging bands including Vicente Gayo and Duzna, nothing as compelling as the computerized and commanding world crafted by Laboratories. The concept: a persecution of space and time, or as better put in one of the album’s comic frames, “the sonic display and interpretation of human realities is quintessential entertainment upon the senses and subsequently the mind.”
Don’t get too serious by the premise or their name, this is fortunately not a sophisticated realm of scientists approaching new media but a disoriented fun experience by some kids “us kids we going crazy / us kids we born crazy.” The band allocates every single resource and distributes its scope in group-like anthems; this is clearly not the work of a single author but a collaborative shared vision in retro-leaning habitat. Laboratories set up some missions to resolve, some concern humanity and the future, but having fun it’s ultimately their priority.
There are so many words in each of the three songs that they become difficult to process, luckily they have included the lyrics in the file’s download. “The Scene Kids” is greatly choreographed, and actually, it sounds like they’re raping the words and letting the music carry the wavelengths. They deliver great lines with continuous phrasing such as “I’ll inhale the plant, the mystics of the soil, the land, the world, ninety-nine lives / Past, present, and future wives, an eternal high…” they’re as mystical as any of the songs from the critically acclaimed Ayrton Senna EP by Delorean. In the surface of “The Love” (Physical) it almost seems like they’re letting go some of their concept, they don’t, they’re just juxtaposing a one night stand as one of their missions, to “focus on the physical love” as a need and forget about the feeling.
“The Battles of us Fools” is a furious gala of colors and radiant machinery, guided by mind-blowing lyricism on the verge of detonating its political frustration. Laboratories host the most amazing party here, with lasers flying around clashing handclaps, drums, it is chaos and it is beautiful. I can only wish there were more tracks in here and perhaps some of them in Spanish (it would be nice); EPs with only three tracks are a hesitation when it comes to rating them, but along with The One The Two The Three this folder contains some awesome extras that would make an awesome booklet, including an action comic titled Refugees that rounds up the music perfectly, so there you go, this is an awesome treat.
ANTIAVENTURA, ANTI Federación de Universos Pop, Spain **** Rating: 84 By Carlos Reyes
Anti is the pseudonym of pop visionary Tito Pintado, a guy who has been around the industry for a while and who finally seems to find a receptive audience to consume his highly compound music. Antiaventura nourishes from the most insignificant things out there; it rolls around abandoned topics and distant compositions to command its instincts as a functional box of melodic experience. Hence the title, this is not your typical electropop album and definitely not a sonic adventure. It’s a collection of seductive episodes about love and despair (surprisingly not depressing). Fortunately, it’s generous to the adult ear, compassionate perhaps, on the verge of detonating light through its twelve pieces one can’t help but dance to.
Anti is teeming with ethereal pop and handling it with a precise scope that allows it to be right at the middle of the minimal pixel-driven tempo of Antiguo Automata Mexicano and the cheerful fury-driven timing of Friendly Fires. Assimilates space and tonal variations like very few albums this year. “Corazones Legendarios” is a shining indispensable marvel from start to finish. Unorthodox as any track from The Dirty Projectors’s Bitte Orca, the song is a grandiose statement of affiliation, either musically or by the heart. Collaborating with beautiful vocals is Teresa Iturrioz, one half of Single (the band) and who has great chemistry with Anti since he does the backup vocals at Single’s live shows. Anti’s voice isn’t necessarily great but he sure knows how to melt it to evoke/manipulate an emotion.
It’s strange but despite the reflective spirit, the album does profile a modern composer whose biggest strength are musical passages as proven in songs like “Festival” and “Diamantes”, if you like Nuuro’s All Clear & The Reddest Ruby you’ll get blown away by Anti’s creations. I’m especially excited about the references that may have influenced a track like “Iceberg”, particularly that rise and fall that makes this piece so special. “El Mago” has more of a structure, by far the only classicist track in the album, reminds me of the pre-Almodovar Spanish cinema. “Lovers Rock” is probably my favorite song, it’s soulful, it’s reggae, it really doesn’t know what it is except that it aspires to be some kind of eternal dream, pretentious but it does it! in chunks, what a charm!
Antiaventura isn’t as accessible as “Corazones Legendarios”, it’s takes a processes to even assimilate its climax. There are tracks surrounded by apparently thick layers, but if you approach them right (use headphones) you’ll burst in surprise on how outstanding these pieces really are. Like discovering the charm in melismatic tracks like “Los Colores de tu Mente” and “Las Maquinas.” While other tracks like “Eligeme” and “Hollywod Babilonia” are weekend-ready in their very own delirious way. By far one of the most convincing and strangest forms of pop I’ve encountered this year, it’s a rotating spectrum in search of grey souls.
MAS MEJOR, PIYAMA PARTY Independiente, Mexico **** Rating: 85 By Carlos Reyes
Piyama Party’s second LP comes in at full force to claim a spot as one of the year’s rock albums. In fact, I think this is my second favorite album ever included on the Delhotel Records catalog, after Los Gandharvas of course. It’s not as unexpected as one would think; their self-titled debut was a standout but it’s clear they have been polishing their craft capturing the scene around them, they’re also the first Mexican band to sound like Spain’s indie rock virtuosos, from Sr. Chinarro, AMA and very much the entire catalog from Gramaciones Grabofonicas and Producciones Doradas, with that said, this is an album mostly about stories, which requires lyrical efficiency and a ‘pure’ human touch that is able to keep these anecdotes (whether true or not) at bay. This is ultimately Piyama Party’s most attractive virtue; their songs are reachable without sounding less complex than the progressive-wall-of-sound acts around.
Someone not familiarized with the Mexican culture will not contemplate Mas Mejor at its fullest; it’s a lot more than a generalized survey, even the album’s title would be hard o swallow. Let’s not tag these songs as part of a subculture, they are part of the big picture outsiders hardly visualize and I get a feeling much of Mexico’s population would neglect too. Being part of the culture is the last thing on their mind, becoming part of a cult however is a consequence of their genuine pop and rock songs. So let’s get to it already. The opener “Nosotros Los Rockers” is a bittersweet manifesto to anyone who has been on a band; it really puts the audience at the same level by telling us about their bootleg disc by The Strokes and their need for guitars and a new amplifier. It really establishes an eye-level agreement that is respected all throughout the album. In the next track “Jesus en Las Vegas” they claim Jesus is at a box match, with Maria Magdalena toasting for world peace, love and rocanrol. First single “Solo te veo en bodas” handles its romance with prolific care, plus “quedate al menudo” (common dish the morning after a wedding) has to be one of the best lines of the year.
There’s humor in every song, fortunately they are no clowns but practitioners of self-destructive criticism and sarcasm, from “No Mas Pasteles” about an overweight issue, to the phenomenon of la “Frontera” which warns that the bridge is falling and ends up telling us the prices of meat at Ruteria La Hacienda. But there’s nothing like “Fan de Carcass”, I wouldn’t be scared to call it an immediate classic and one of the most alluring songs of the year. It’s the fable on how a guy became a hardcore fan of Carcass after listening to one of their cassettes, this encounter redefines him completely, and he goes dark! “dicen que son cosas del Diablo, por eso me gustan, por eso yo las prefiero.” They decide to skip purgatory in “Atajo al Infierno”, taking a shortcut by having more fun and less time for Church.
“Edecan” sounds quite dusty with its circular strings, it’s like a criminal poignant romance with some narco references hidden in there (or not). But the established practice doesn’t always work, “Olimpiadas Alveolares” and “Tocayo” drown around memorable songs and are even obstructive to the overall adventure. I was scared to hear how they would close this, the culminating “21 horas no son suficientes” is the most hormonal and effortlessly moving piece on the album. Mas Mejor needs some vocal dexterity here and there, perhaps fewer songs, but this is a material to hold on to. Piyama Party has found a way to keep a pedestrian sensitivity while sounding like rock stars; it comes in a folder with 17 tracks inside, a beautiful booklet (on PDF) and one of the most generous musical offerings 2009 keeps for us.
EL BOSQUE EN LLAMAS, PUMUKY Jabalina, Spain **** Rating: 85 By Carlos Reyes
El Bosque En Llamas is a musical storm with all the mystery to hold its name to any altitude. Somewhere in between Bigott, Nacho Vegas, Sr. Chinarro and Zurdok, Pumuky’s second album holds its melody with a terrific merge of obscure strings, powerful distressing lyrics and the night’s scary and heart-trenching roar, these are the signs and souls of loneliness and despair in search of salvation. The album opens with the dreamy and hard folky “El Innombrable”, our third encounter with purgatory this year after Veracruz’s “Odetta Satan’s Rum” and Hello Seahorse’s “Bestia.” This is not only about a forest in flames; it’s about ‘the man in the forest in flames’, I might not want to visit this bloodcurdling place myself but it sounds like a great place to get rid of fears or to get lost in from time to time. This is how Pumuky first introduces this place for escapism, “si desaparezco es porque ya no tiemblas cuando voy y te abrazo, y te beso por el cuello”; indifference does hurts like few things in life and it’s reason enough to dissapear and hide with the wolves and the wild horses as the album’s cover suggests.
It finds in nature an unwelcoming environment, but it’s obscure and isolated enough to cry in it, sometimes that’s the only way to find the precious peace. “Tu Marca” is painfully depressing and its deafening burst can alienate more than a few, but it plays as a key piece in the album because it complies into broader efforts than just giving continuation to a ‘lament’ album, it distorts and creates images that manage to filter any obtrusive dramatic echo for our advantage. “El Electrico Romance de Lev Termen y La Diva del Eter” it’s a moon-like sublimal trip that tries to reconcile the distorted idea of Russian inventor Leon Theremin, whose invention –Theremin- managed to “control electronic frequency and volume without contact from the player.” (Wikipedia) Like many avant-garde bands Pumuky utilizes it to polish its sound, but also extracts poetry from it as it believes in co-participation if either construction or reconciliation wants to be achieved.
“Los Enamorados” is a sweet tune that challenges the album’s biggest strengths and it turns victorious as it is the most memorable piece, it’s affectionate and holds a happy momentum, the album never goes back to this paradise and gets even darker, not losing a bit of magic even in the crying yells of “El Exilio de los Invisibles.” If Juan Son submerged himself in water in MermaidSashimi, Pumuky does that in El Bosque en Llamas. The band gets acquainted to the wild, uncompassionate and cold-hearted place, witnessing a fight in “Lobo Estepario Contra Caballos Desbocados”, a moment in the mirror in “El Hombre Bosque En Llamas”, and a metamorphosis in “La Metamorphosis”, pay close attention to the background layering and the narrative, it’s not an easy album whatsoever, I slept over it for many weeks not knowing what to do with it, it’s totally fine if it makes you sleepy or alienates the heck out of you, who says a forest on fire is a comfy place to witness? It’s hell.
"Matemos esas hormigas de la cocina, quitemos lo podrido del frutero, limpiemos la nevera, llenemosla, hagamos algo para enamorarnos ... otra vez. Gastemos el dinero que nos queda, en fuegos de articifia y chucherias, hagamos algo absurdo, amemonos, hagamos algo para enamorarnos ... otra vez."
CHORANDO APRENDESE, EMILIO JOSE Foehn, Spain ***** Rating: 95 By Carlos Reyes
My iPod just got a whole lot more interesting with the arrival of Chorando Aprendese; the bleakest, most complex and gorgeous breakthrough album this year has given us. Emilio Jose is an unbelievable revelation to keep an eye on; he is the owner of a graceful sense of melody and an out-of-this-world ambition that cements amazingly clever moments throughout a double album of 28 tracks total. But don’t let such big number scare you, he makes this voyage a precious moment of non-stop march-like protestation. In fact, get prepared to inhale various tricks, harmonies, and unexpected shifts within each song; he approaches ideas with adventurous aim, unrolling a diverse palette of genres that go from bossa nova to rap, going through Spain’s vanguard indiepop and gently sloping into classic stanza.
How ambitious is it? Let’s say that Chorando Aprendese is anti-folk, wants to be pop and once at it, it might just redefine Brazil’s over-inflated contemporary music. Emilio Jose ruthlessly sings in Portuguese, Spanish, English, Catalan, Gallego, French, Italian and I bet there’s more in there I didn’t quite get. Of course this is an excessive scheme, but before a bright writer, he is an originator and destroyer, he knows that such ambition can only be polished with even higher aspirations, and indeed, his musical composition surpasses any necessity of understanding words. Let’s dismiss any kind of encyclopedic reasoning; this is by all means the work of an author playing anti-hero, but it doesn’t stop him from trying to adjust the world by squishing it together or tilting music to uncommon places for that matter.
Disco Uno. There’s no definite division in concept or theme between the two discs, but the first side is clearly the point to meet, acclimate and discover. Through its piano-based melody and induction to group-vocals, the intro is a great example of how radical works are best portrayed by classicism rather than pure experientialism alone. “Atlantic City” literally spells out what the album is about or at least its structure; there is no base layer whatsoever, plenty of unexpected transitions, quick catchy choruses, and awesome samplings from speeches, movies and TV shows. In this particular track the inclusion of the Care Bears sing-along explodes charm into an already easy-listening track that nonetheless is one of the album’s most complex pieces. “Vodka” is what a creepy teenager who doesn’t like La Casa Azul or Cola Jet Set would probably listen to; it’s like the song matures within itself, going from a happy bright song of call-and-response and flourishing into a well cultivated adult folk.
Chorando Aprendese gets political in “Barack Obama”, although it does give reference to the American state of mind, what it really wants to do is to bring Madrid awareness of its countryside. The song breaks into a despaired rap as it realizes there isn’t much to be done for a conclusion. “Samba de Ines” was not that exciting at first, but it later turns into a musical rainbow that rotates, translates, and reflects. And let’s not forget the memorable “Son Gohan”, in reference to Dragon Ball of course, or the funky tongue-twisting “Astroturfing” which turns into a video game. The best track pops near the end with “Antigua”, questioning the mellowness of voters at the time of embracing a politician, and that baby gugu loop that follows is priceless.
Disco Dos. The other side is sweeter and very low-key, shorter in length and more instrumental. First, let me get something out of my system, “Ola!” has to be one of the most touching pieces of the year along with Nuuro’s “Coctachi” and Juan Son’s “Ana Paula.” It’s a heartbreaking remorseful song where a guy tries to win its love back; it gets some help from Dallas (the TV series), “I Apologize” (the classic hit by Billy Eckstine), a flashback in voice-off and a heart-trenching opera. “Ti” is the catchiest song in the whole album, it’s a vocal fest and utterly round. Other standouts on this side are “Febreiro” and “Parada de Sil”, both sounding very rural and gigantically reviving the wall of sound. Six short cuts give the album a concrete finale to an album that is close to a masterpiece, expect a lot of attention in the upcoming months or maybe years, it will travel and hopefully get its due.
HU HU HU, NATALIA LAFOURCADE Sony/BMG, Mexico ***** Rating: 95 by Andrew Casillas Masterpiece. As a music writer, you have to be very careful when using this term. It’s supposed to be saved for those rare works that change your perception of a style of art, or that serve as the culmination of an artist’s creative gestation. Masterpieces aren’t supposed to be entirely subjective—they must be illuminating to even the most casual of all audiences. That’s not to say that they must be flawless, but said flaws must attach themselves hand-in-hand with the best aspects of the work—giving the illusory effect that they’re supposed to be there in the first place. And even though it may be a stretch to ever call them “perfect,” these works can make you think, at least for one moment in time, that perfection is possible. Hu Hu Hu is one of those works.
The album begins with the most exhilarating 8-second sequence that you’ll hear open a record this year. The container song, “Cursis Melodías,” is a jaunty romp of mid-period Beatles proportions. Utilizing pounding pianos, steady guitar accents, big band horn riffs, and every piece of percussion in her arsenal, the track sets the tone for the elaborate and detailed instrumentation to follow. It’s as if this record is putting it’s foot down so you don’t let Lafourcade’s vocal similarity to other pop tarts like Lily Allen fool you—this isn’t going to be a passive listen.
From there follows “No Viniste,” which sounds like the best song the Concretes never made, and may in-fact be better than any Concretes song that they actually have made. The switch from the upbeat opener to this forlorn lament may seem puzzling, but you won’t even notice the change in tone. Instead, you’ll be sucked into the sea of overdubbed keyboards, sharp percussion, slow-burning accordion, and, um, glocking glockenspiel that gradually builds more forceful without losing its delicate quality. The next track, “Siempre Prisa,” is very robust, and could easily be mistaken for a lost single off of Juana Molina’s Segundo. Accompanied only by an acoustic guitar for almost two minutes, the song eventually is enveloped with dueling background vocals, throbbing deep bass lines, atmospheric electronic textures, chiming guitars and rampant percussion until it sounds almost tribal.
After this rousing 1-2-3 punch, the next two songs, “Tiempo al Viento” and “Let’s Get Out,” are almost welcome relief. However, saying that these are the most conventional songs on the first half of Hu Hu Hu is like hearing a sports anchor talk about the most conventional LeBron James (or should I be saying Dwight Howard?) dunks—two points are two points. “Let’s Get Out” in particular is vintage Natalia Lafourcade: joyous, rollicking, and super-fun. This is by far the best of the album’s three English-songs.
This stretch is followed by the album’s title track, a duet with Julieta Venegas. Effectively an interlude track, the song is a harbinger of what’s to follow on the album’s second-half, but not before one last bit of fun: the immediate, and downright fantastic, “Ella es Bonita.” (Writer’s Note: Notice how the opening horns sound EXACTLY like the opening bassline of Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me.” Isn’t that the greatest thing, like, ever??)
After the last note of “Ella es Bonita” is extinguished, the next sound you hear is that of chirping crickets at nightfall—a theme that continues through the rest of the record. The second half opens with “Niño Hojas,” which confirms Natalia Lafourcade’s statements that Hu Hu Hu was a companion piece to her classical record Las 4 Estaciones del Amor. However, as with that record, she’s not reinventing the wheel of orchestral pop music, rather, this is the best parts of Peter & the Wolf seen through the lens of adolescence. This is followed by the oldest song on the record, the solely acoustic “Running Too Fast,” which is also the first song that Lafourcade wrote in English. Personally, I’ve never been a real big fan of this song, and for the most part, it doesn’t work well in isolation, but in the context of the rest of the album, it works as an impressive supplement.
The next song is album’s centerpiece, and my favorite track of the year so far, “Azul.” Beginning as simple piano pop akin to Regina Spektor, the song eventually explodes into a monster of Sufjan Stevens-indebted indie rock. An ambitious and powerful celebration of a song, there’s a veritable treasure chest of instruments that hit your ears: piano, glockenspiel, flute, clarinet, guitar, marching percussion, bells, even tape loops, and that’s not even including the touching and heartening second half.
If “Azul” is the climax of Hu Hu Hu, the last three tracks serve as a remarkable, and effective, denouement. “Hora de Compartir” is an uplifting piece of Nellie McKay-like throwback pop, without the Nellie McKay-like irony. The album ends with the more conventional “Un Lugar Para Renacer” and the Juan Son-assisted closer, “Look Outside.” (Writer’s Note: Don’t worry, aside from a few obtuse background vocals, Juan Son leaves his baroque playbook at home) While not one of the more direct hits on the album, “Look Outside” works remarkably well as a closer, with tropicalia guitars, blanketed instrumentation and cathartic background vocals that harkens back to other songs on the record—almost like a curtain call at the end of a musical.
In fact, it’s not too much of a stretch to compare Hu Hu Hu to a great play. Lafourcade has finally created a record with a singular vision aside from mere genre exercise. While her music could easily appeal to children, she dials down the precociousness and plain pathos to focus on that post-adolescent feeling of insecurity and confusion. Like Brian Wilson, Lafourcade focuses on characters that certainly aren’t defeated, but a bit out of place from how they perceive the rest of the world. Lafourcade doesn’t hide this facet of her music: the first two singles (“Ella es Bonita” and “Azul”) are two of the album’s more direct examples of this. The album’s “transition” from daytime to nightfall explicitly makes this clear, as does the general deliberate tone of the second half. More implicit are the shades and nooks that this album invites you to explore through repeated listens. Lafourcade may be a promising songwriter, but it’s her phrasing that really sells these songs: You don’t have to understand what “Mama esperame! Alejate de mi! Dejame caerme! Dejame salir!” means, you just have to hear her sing the words to get the effect of what she’s trying to express. For someone who’s never been the most remarkable singer, her mastery of this technique cannot be overstated. And like with every great play, there’s an ebb-and-flow to the entire experience, playing more like a 13-song suite than a pop record.
People will think up many comparisons of Hu Hu Hu’s sound: Sufjan Stevens, Andrew Bird, Bat for Lashes, St. Vincent, Regina Spektor, Matthew Herbert, etc. This is only natural when you want to explain what you’ve just heard, but completely wrong: it “sounds” like a thousand artists, but it doesn’t sound like anyone. What makes this album great is that it’s distinctively of the past, from the present, and guides towards the future. This is an album full of heart, sweat, and originality. An album that will slowly develop a set of followers who will someday speak of its impact and legacy. An album that lives within you, even when you think that you’ve forgotten about it. A pop masterpiece in any language.
BESTIA, HELLO SEAHORSE! MUN, México ****1/2 Rating: 90 By Carlos Reyes
Through the enigmatic summit of ghostly beauty, the third album by Hello Seahorse! discharges some of the most precious moments music will give us this year, Bestia is the consolidation of the trio as a major enforcement in Mexico’s indie. A significant step forward to their previous works; their charmingly twee first album …And the Jellyfish Parade and the magical sleeper-hit Hoy a las Ocho EP sound captivatingly conflicted to the much darker and bolder Bestia. The animalistic and monstrous introduction of the leading single “Bestia” serve as the connecting loop as we enter a space of shadows that is both enchanting and destructive, and best of all, it’s furiously dualistic and fully aware of its skill.
Although their single “Bestia” is this year’s indie hit and they’re breaking into a larger range of followers, this is their least immediate and accessible moment yet. It’s a full investment on their art, and to our surprise, all the songs are in Spanish. The single is a marvelous piece; I’m almost convinced my interpretation of the song is far away from the original idea, but I like my romanticized view on “Bestia” as a song about the desire for salvation and the fear to confront light, like a man taking the easy route walking with the beast and now comes back in redemption, facing the lion’s roar and finding out shame has taken his voice as punishment. Later on the album “El Segundo” picks up the defeatist scar, through sublime instrumentation and angelical vocals, the trio duels a demon and triumphs with the help of visionary producer Yamil Rezc.
The second single “Despues” is a piece on the ambiguous attractiveness of the unknown and the clumsy outcomes that result when trying to make sense of it. Also already familiar “Universo 2”, which was included in the U.S. edition of Hoy a las Ocho released by Magic Maker last year, a piece about the mystical escape of two lovers in search of the details that make up a predestinate universe in which their love would flourish. Hello Seahorse! isn’t necessarily a more mature band, we still want to see the uplifting sprit of “Won’t say anything”, but they’re showing another dimension that feels more personal. In a song like “Criminal” they’re no longer talking about communal secrets, it’s about the measure of sacrifice. Other highlights include “Miercoles” and “Siberia”, in collaboration with Chetes.
Bestia remains brilliant all throughout; it really is an imaginative voyage although once you get to “Oso Polar” it’s hard to continue before replaying the song over and over, certainly the album’s best piece and it might just be their best song yet period. A vulnerable polar bear walking through the streets looking for his home becomes part of a hide and seek afternoon; it incorporates the child game as the music alternates firm predatory drums and warmer delicate passages of a targeted pray. It’s a complex narrative that even advices those playing the game to beware of power and sizes, “no seas idiota, te crees mas grande que el, mira sus garras, te pueden matar tambien.” Certainly one of the year’s most precious albums, we’re hoping for a U.S. release to come our way very soon.
ROBA ORGON DE PLANTAS Y ANIMALES, PEPEPE The Poni Republic, Mexico **** Rating: 80 By Carlos Reyes
If we were to hand-cut a bunch of little pieces of sound from the stuff around us, even those we can’t quite see on the eye, and try to give them some form while keeping a heterogeneous base, they would sound like Pepepe’s latest EP, his finest and most inspired moment yet. This is a conceptual piece that although seems like a collage of sounds on the surface, is a round stimulating experience on nature, its species and their creations. Pepepe is also the mind behind Pesina Siller and Los Amparito, and somehow all three projects make an appearance here; sometimes in dualistic encounters but most of the time working together in molding atmosphere, noise, and even more thrilling, its skill to build silent and impassive moments. Considering he is one of the only Mexican acts to actually get his remixes featured into actual releases, let it not be a surprise that the opening track here is a remix. Pepepe remixes Unsexy Nerd Ponies; “1986 Valerie” gets pixel congestion but rather than abusing it, it refines it. “Jacinto Cenobio” is an original track by Amparo Ochoa, a traditional music performer who would probably never imagined one of her songs to show up on a modern electropop album. “Sleep with You” brings a sense of nostalgia that is heart-trenching, very industrial and carrying a miserable vibe along. Cyane collaborates with beautiful vocals throughout the album, and is a pleasure to hear bites of a dazzling voice show up unexpectedly. It’s hard not to think of Animal Collective’s Strawberry Jam in one of the ultimate highlights, the almost motionless piece “Mirar a los ojos es de mal gusto.” Roba Orgon de Plantas y Animales is like Goku’s Genki Dama, except that it doesn’t ask for permission, it steals things.
FIN, BIGOTT Grabaciones en el Mar, Spain Rating: 83 By Carlos Reyes
Somewhere in between the upfront vocal solidness of Beirut and the background textures of Iron and Wine, Bigott’s follow up to his remarkable What a lovely day today proves to be one of Spain’s most prolific artists and one of their best kept secrets. Although he alienates himself from the indiepop scene that invades that country (leaded by Guille Milkyway) and the edgier dramatic suburb (leaded by El Guincho), Bigott sounds more Spaniard than all of them, even singing in English. In full command of his folk, Bigott adds the strings of the Spanish guitar, brings roots from traditional music and as if it wasn’t fascinating enough, he brings that thespian pessimism making an album as if it really was his last one, it’s raw and deadly, and a victory too. From its creative album cover, where an open coffin embrace the joy of a couple surrounded by the most beautiful flowers, more vivid than ever, it’s a moment at the beach celebrating redemption. “Afrodita Carambolo” sparks the bittersweet festivity as a singed confession, not in a religious approach but a down-to-earth affirmation of his passion. “She’s my man” is a piece of absolute trust, and its condescending response “Trois Je t’aime” which is a moment of total demoralization. Things get more radical with “New York’s Eveille”, a fast tune among dark harmonies; it’s the one song that could break him into international proportions, close to the city vibe The National is known and celebrated for. Clarice Carnicer collaborates on almost the entire album, adding a dualistic feminine glare to Bigott’s stiffness. The highlights among these collaborations include the folksy “Walk the ufo” that tells his lover that she can’t support his fears, a ballad to shoot for the stars “The Party” and in “Algora Campeon”, the album’s shiniest piece. This piece gives me shivers, although it probably shouldn’t as it is a gigantic jaw-dropping song about inner war “play one more hit and dance with me." These are songs tough to sell, and as cheesy as it might sound, the feelings coming out of them are universal.
AY AY AY. Matias Aguayo (Kompakt Germany, Chile/Argentina) Chile’s Matias Aguayo has delivered not just one of the best techno records of the year, but one of the best records of the year period. Ay Ay Ay continues the evolution of one of today’s most unconventional and unpredictable producers. For 11 charming and breathless tracks, Aguayo seemingly deconstructs minimal techno into a schizophrenic street party of his own creation. MP3: “Ritmo Juarez” Review
GOODBYE VICTORIAN HOUSES. Antoine Reverb (Happy Garlic, Mexico) Well, to paint a quick picture, I might have to resort to another tool that I usually hate: comparison. Think of Broken Social Scene inviting the guys from Belle and Sebastian to work on an old bunch of songs that Billy Corgan wrote with Brian Wilson… and then keep in mind that Antoine Reverb sounds exactly like none of the above. They sound like kids of the age of global inspiration. MP3: “Fantastic” Review
VALENTINA FEL. Valentina Fel (Independiente, Chile) “Valentina Fel is like a hyperbole of music’s very own fetishism; her powerful funky voice literally devours any beat coming her way, it’s erotic, wacky, fascinating, and at the end, very pleasurable. Valentina Fel sounds gigantic; it’s the realm of pop on the verge of detonation. Valentina treats music as the vein that projects her own wisdom.” MP3: “Sin control mi diversión” Review
THE ONE THE TWO THE THREE. Laboratories (Gha-Ngha Records, Mexico) “The One The Two The Three or one of those calculated sequences where art and science meet. The concept: a persecution of space and time, or as better put in one of the album’s comic frames, “the sonic display and interpretation of human realities is quintessential entertainment upon the senses and subsequently the mind.” MP3: “The Battle of Us Fools” Review
ALMISMOTIEMPO, Camila Moreno (Sello Azul, Chile) “A showcase of pop and folk in the lines of Gepe and Lisandro Aristimuño, but more earthly in its approach to command multi-dimensional songs that are not necessarily trying to escape from Latin-American folk as the world knows it, but definitely sounds too personal to fall into epic or protestant guidelines.” MP3: “Millones” Review
EMPACHO DIGITAL. Villa Diamante (ZZK Records, Argentina) “Empacho Digital is a filthy, messy, exuberant if not impossible beautiful album of strange musical complication, reconciliation, and above all, discussion. It’s not just another cumbia mashup; it’s a progression of all sorts and an improvised connection of Latin-American pop.” MP3: “Chancha Villa Circuit vs Lil’ Mama” Review
ANTIAVENTURA. Anti (Federacion de Universos Pop, Spain) “Hence the title, this is not your typical electropop album and definitely not a sonic adventure. It’s a collection of seductive episodes about love and despair (surprisingly not depressing). Fortunately, it’s generous to the adult ear, compassionate perhaps, on the verge of detonating light through its twelve pieces one can’t help but dance to.” MP3: “Corazones Legendarios” Review
MAS MEJOR. Piyama Party (Independiente, Mexico) “An album mostly about stories, which requires lyrical efficiency and a ‘pure’ human touch that is able to keep these anecdotes (whether true or not) at bay. This is ultimately Piyama Party’s most attractive virtue; their songs are reachable without sounding less complex than the progressive-wall-of-sound acts around.” MP3: “Fan de Carcass” Review
PEDROPIEDRA. Pedropiedra (Oveja Negra, Chile) “¿Qué le pasa a Pedro? ¿what’s wrong with him? Well, judging by his debut solo album, I could offer three answers. Número uno: not one thing. Número dos: a worrying lot (of tragic proportions). & número tres: just enough for him to be able to write his way successfully into the high realm of enduring songwriters.” MP3: “Sol Mayor” Review
SELMA OXOR. Selma Oxor (Nene Records, México) “In its brainstorm of sound we could compare them with Bam Bam of course, but also Sonic Youth, White Denim, Jessy Bulbo and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, all which I find very accessible but flourish in rock’s advancement. Selma Oxor is the vindication of a blasted youth that has fun exploring rock, techno and pop, an all-in-one much distorted vision that according to their MySpace sounds like a cow giving birth.” MP3: “Memo El Gremlin” Review
EL BOSQUE EN LLAMAS. Pumuky (Jabalina, Spain) “El Bosque En Llamas is a musical storm with all the mystery to hold its name to any altitude. Somewhere in between Bigott, Nacho Vegas, Sr. Chinarro and Zurdok, Pumuky’s second album holds its melody with a terrific merge of obscure strings, powerful distressing lyrics and the night’s scary and heart-trenching roar, these are the signs and souls of loneliness and despair in search of salvation. MP3: “Los Enamorados” Review
PORQUE NO ME DAS TU DINERO. Klaus & Kinski (Jabalina, Spain) “Spain’s Klaus & Kinski released a remarkable debut LP last year, definitely the sleeper hit of 2008 which earned them a ‘band to watch’ status, some publications have gone further enough to call them the missing foot of Spain’s indiepop. Five tracks that ideally should keep the momentum rolling and catch plenty of new fans along.” MP3: “Nunca estas a la altura” Review
HU HU HU. Natalia Lafourcade (Sony/BMG, Mexico) “In fact, it’s not too much of a stretch to compare Hu Hu Hu to a great play. Lafourcade has finally created a record with a singular vision aside from mere genre exercise. While her music could easily appeal to children, she dials down the preociousness and plain pathos to focus on that post-adolescent feeling of insecurity and confusion.” Review
COMERCIAL, Los Amigos Invisibles (Nacional Records, Venezuela) “You gotta give it to them; Los Amigos Invisibles have earned themselves a spot as a major transcendental band that goes beyond playing ‘Latin rhythms’, they’re Venezuela’s most predominant asset and their sixth studio album is more than a continuum to a healthy career with plenty to say and breath.” MP3: “Vivire Para Ti” Review
CHORANDO APRENDESE, Emilio Jose (Foehn, Spain) “Emilio Jose is an unbelievable revelation to keep an eye on; he is the owner of a graceful sense of melody and an out-of-this-world ambition that cements amazingly clever moments throughout a double album of 28 tracks total. But don’t let such big number scare you, he makes this voyage a precious moment of non-stop march-like protestation.” MP3: “Antigua” Review
BESTIA. Hello Seahorse! (MUN, Mexico) “Through the enigmatic summit of ghostly beauty, the third album by Hello Seahorse! discharges some of the most precious moments music will give us this year, Bestia is the consolidation of the trio as a major enforcement in Mexico’s indie.” MP3: “Universo 2” Review
ROBA ORGON DE PLANTAS Y ANIMALES. Pepepe (The Poni Republic, México) “If we were to hand-cut a bunch of little pieces of sound from the stuff around us, even those we can’t quite see on the eye, and try to give them some form while keeping a heterogeneous base, they would sound like Pepepe’s latest EP, his finest and most inspired moment yet. Roba Orgon de Plantas y Animales is like Goku’s Genki Dama” MP3: “Jacinto Cenobio” Review
FIN. Bigott (Grabaciones en el Mar, Spain) “Proves to be one of Spain’s most prolific artists and one of their best kept secrets. In full command of his folk, Bigott adds the strings of the Spanish guitar, brings roots from traditional music and as if it wasn’t fascinating enough, he brings that thespian pessimism making an album as if it really was his last one, it’s raw and deadly, and a victory too.” MP3: “Algora Campeon” Review
CUMBIA LULU EP. Los Labios (Independiente, Argentina) “Los Labios has this pedestrian vibe and immediate charm to spice up anyone’s misfortune. Cumbia Lulu consists of five irresistible pieces, they’re all mellow anthems about love, but don’t let them scare you so quickly, this is where unpretentiousness pays off, resulting in pure genuine and sincere music.” MP3: “Bus Estacion” Review
VERACRUZ. Veracruz (Yo-Yo Industrias, Spain) “The band has no regret sounding plainly rude with their ambient rock, they’re pleasantly vulnerable to get rushed by the urgency of its core, and yet delicate while constructing the noisy patterns that make this sophomore production a success and one of the year’s best rock albums.” MP3: “Odetta Satan’s Rum” Review
SOY SAUCE. Mexican Institute of Sound (Nacional Records, Mexico) “Instituto Mexicano del Sonido’s third feature is a monument of musical festivity; let it be for its complex production or funky catch tunes, but especially for its multi-layered sound that elapses time and conjuncts the diverse musical palette and periods of Mexico’s alter melodic spirit.” MP3: “Reventon” Review
EL PRIMERO ERA MEJOR. Manos de Topo (Sones, Spain) “El Primero Era Mejor is erratic, bizarre, dramatic, unique and even pointless, Manos de Topo is a challenge, enter one of the most bizarre places Iberoamerican music has taken us, and that by itself is merit of recognition. MP3: “Ejercito Ruso” Review
THE REDDEST RUBY. Nuuro (The Poni Republic, Venezuela) “Olympian and astrological, it points to a bridge of humanistic renaissance visualized through modern musical echoes, mystifies its themes and makes them available, a daring colossal artistry like very few in electronic pop.” MP3: “Avila” Review
MERMAID SASHIMI. Juan Son (Universal Music, Mexico) “Mermaid Sashimi is Juan Son’s most beautiful creation; he finally reaches a point of musical freedom where pop is his biggest alia and he not only dresses up the music, but sharpens the needle to create his costumes.”Review
PIBE COSMO. El Remolón (ZZK Records, Argentina) “Designed as a bird’s journey throughout the American continent; a chromatic experience is built as one discovers the consequences of such trip. The creature brings a handful of beautiful memories translated into epically illuminating songs.” MP3: “Cumbia Bichera” Review
BAILAR Y LLORAR. Teleradio Donoso (Oveja Negra, Chile) “Bailar y Llorar is ultimately resonant to the idealism of gender and its urgent collision with age. The album gives plenty of chances to exhilarate your pain or happiness, but most especially, it whispers into the ear that it is perfectly okay to let those feelings invade the body and soul.” MP3: “Granada” Review
ALIDA ST. Y La Bamba (Gypsy Pop, USA) “This is an astonishingly confident breakthrough with a precise scope in its angelical vocals and the revelatory lyricism which is evocative and religiously codified, an album that should be able to overpass its folk and break into the pastoral side of the melodramatic popular song.” MP3: “Alida St.”
(Delhotel, Mexico) “Katy brings the very best of alternative pop, if that musical field exists at all. The album moves on fluently, in a revelatory phase that unfolds itself with much sympathy, one of the first high quality albums of the year.” MP3: “Ferry 3”
CUMBIA LULU
VERACRUZ. 
SOY SAUCE. 
EL PRIMERO ERA MEJOR. 
THE REDDEST RUBY. 
MERMAID SASHIMI. 
PIBE COSMO. 
BAILAR Y LLORAR. 
