Reviews

Discos Corrosivos

Bacteria Trizas cassette

The ones that make you think are sometimes the best ones. The ones that make you stop and try to figure out what you’re hearing, those are the ones that grab you. Only five songs on Trizas, but Argentina’s BACTERIA delivers a couple of hardcore burners and some mid-tempo dark slogs, and I’m trying to figure out if I’m listening to a grunge band switching gears or a hardcore band exploring their options. The title track closes the tape with a gloriously dark two-riff groove (think WIPERS > GRAUZONE) and I found myself digging into their (extensive) back catalog before I listened a second time. 

Balacera Gafas demo cassette

“I already saw how I’m gonna end, dead in a shootout against officers of the law and assault weapons, and if this is my time…well, fuck it!”  This is a rough translation of the movie sample (I guess) that Argentina’s BALACERA uses at the beginning of their demo, an ultra-fun lo-fi affair that mixes a TALES OF TERROR approach to punk, as in the opener “Gafas” and “Confundido,” and straight doom metal, as in the bass riff that slowly builds itself into a full on thrasher in “Busted” that, by the way, sounds like Argentina’s own minimalist art-punkers DIOS being more into VENOM than British post-punk. The tape manipulation of the voice and their eerie use of keyboards all adds up to an extremely original sound with the low production values of the demo. Awesome, get it on cassette.

Cartones Sala De Espera cassette

Have you ever dreamed of a world where people love late-era RAMONES albums as much as you? A fantastical land where seemingly normal passersby on the street will shout lyrics to “I Believe in Miracles” at you while you walk past? I know it sounds almost too good to be true, but what if I told you that such a land exists?! A decade of the RAMONES touring South America from the late ’80s to the late ’90s left rioting fans thirsty for more, and from then on, the heavenly country of Argentina has been viewing the RAMONES as the pinnacle of pop music. Apparently that stance shows no signs of stopping. CARTONES are no exception to this notion that I’m gonna go ahead and say is a fact. No, this cassette does not sound exactly like the RAMONES. This is not a carbon copy by any means. What you have here are ten beautiful songs of pop music, the likes of which could only be written by individuals who, from a young age, grew up hearing the blown-out, sing-songy vocals of a nearing the end of his career Joey Ramone crooning to them from the radio. I swear I was going to make a comment expressing how CARTONES’ songwriting and harmonizing style reminded me of Argentina’s premiere RAMONES-worship band LOS EXPULSADOS until I saw in the track list that Sebastian Expulsado himself is featured on one of the songs. Sala De Espera is a lot of fun, and I highly recommend it if you have an appreciation for pop music, downstrokes, and a certain band that may have been mentioned a few times in this write-up.

Desborde Single 2021 cassette

Hard to describe how much territory DESORBE covers in just two tracks. Starting with a steady punk churn fronted by fierce high-end hardcore vocals, by the end of the first track it feels like you’re listening to an outtake from Panorama (the best record by the CARS)…and then the next cut launches shamelessly into a keyboard-driven hardcore freakout. After the first listen, I was confused. But the same two jammers are on the flip, and after the second listen…? I was in love.

Desborde Ya No Kiero Ser Parte De Este Mundo demo cassette

Buenos Aires band DESBORDE’s first release (although they put two of this tape’s seven songs on Bandcamp in March of this year, if you deem that to count) is being released by a ton of labels in different parts of the world, and I can only assume they all had much the same “woah!” reaction as I did on first hearing. It’s synth punk, but pretty far removed from the post-CONEHEADS/NWI scene egginess that seems to be the default style for that sound at present: it wouldn’t surprise me if none of DESBORDE’s five members owned any DEVO albums. Instead, it’s super catchy, mid-paced street punk-adjacent stuff with sing-along choruses (if you know Spanish) and groovy keyboard fizz—the juxtaposition is kinda similar to NACHTHEXEN, although DESBORDE is on closer terms with punk orthodoxy, sound-wise. Gotta imagine this band would be amazing to see live where most people in the room knew the songs back to front.

Emboscada Demo 2020 cassette

Gruesome vocals from Argentina reminiscent of BLAZING EYE, SODOM, ELECTROCUTIONER; things of a gruesome metallic punk nature. I love that the first song is “No!” and the last song is “Nada.” Otherwise, I’m picking up “my head” and “your house;” songs seething in melodic aggression. The construct feels derived from ’80s Latin American hardcore in its diminutive distortion, with some aspects of ’80s US hardcore in the more anthemic upbeats. This contrast, plus the vocals (some femme vocals), the production, and the various tones, all create a unique demo. Long enough to be interesting, short enough to be wanting more.

Fastidio Fastidio cassette

Dreamy, drum-machine-powered post-punk from Argentina. I imagine a lot of JESUS AND MARY CHAIN and SUICIDE worship with this duo. The synth has moments of “Cheree” and “Dream Baby Dream,” and the “Just Like Honey” drum sound gets a go-round, but I prefer when the band programs a more danceable beat like on “La Antena,” or something harder and more synthetic like on “Tifus.” They win points with a SERGE GAINSBOURG cover, and if you’re in the mood for the gloomy, swoony, and reverb-drenched, FASTIDIO may fulfill your needs.

Fogueo Sesion Ao vivo en Le Studio cassette

FOGUEO, oh FOGUEO, wherefore art thou, FOGUEO? “Argentina!,” they replied between violent bursts of rockin’ hardcore. The band dabbles in various styles, with the vocals being particularly schizophrenic. They start off with shouted battle cries on the opening track before switching to a sinister, crusty growl on “Armas,” interspersed noisy whispers on “Figuritas,” and clean, plain singing on some of the songs. It sounds like they had fun making this.

Las Partes Faltantes Las Partes Faltantes cassette

Buenos Aires foursome with their debut release, an experimental mixture of math rock and hardcore(ish?). The opener “Campana Zarate” has a heavy breakdown near the end that finishes with a college jam band bubbly guitar solo (trust me, I got dragged to see too many of those). And while this jammy thing continues throughout the album, what those college bands were missing is made up here in the heavier, technical rests and tempo changes (read: math rock), that are paired with yelling and super soft near-aria vocals—a good example of this duality is on “Ghosteas”. Check it out for something different.

Peste Negra Orquest(a) Los Rebrotes cassette

Argentinian cassette domination continues with this bizarre dose of freak wave and/or synth punk from the PESTE NEGRA ORQUEST(A). Harnessing the primitive melodic punk of early ’80s Latin America and injecting healthy doses of space sounds, they create a vibe on Los Rebrotes that makes these ears yearn for (more) punk that makes you move instead of punks rehashing second-rate darkwave. By the time I got to the middle of this tape, I couldn’t even think straight—it’s that good…and no matter how I tried, I wasn’t able to make it loud enough. Because I just wanted more.

V.D.I. Idem cassette

Fast hardcore punk from Argentina. V.D.I has a very memorable quality to their songs, as if I have heard a number of them before but can’t quite pinpoint where. Most of the songs on this nine-song cassette are ripped through in the faster realm of mid-tempo speeds, tight stops and starts really accenting and keeping your attention. The only song that really breaks the mold that they’ve set is “Pogo Reliyon,” which is slower, catchier, and more sing-songy. I would have sworn it was a LOS EXPULSADOS cover were it not for the drastic speed-up ending of the song.

V.D.I. Naces, Vives, Mueres cassette

Excellent catchy, bouncy hardcore punk from Argentina (I think, as I couldn’t dig up much about them on the internet). The guitar is buzzsaw as fuck like on that LOS VIOLATORES song on the Peace/War comp, but maybe that’s a cheap comparison to use fellow countrymates. I’m feeling a lot of SoCal’s RAYOS X and POLISKITZO here, as well as some classic Oi! like Barcelona’s DECIBELIOS. Really, really good. Hopefully I’ll know more about them soon and so will you.

V/A No Sabiamos Como Hacerlo, Pero Lo Estamos Haciendo: Zc Hardcorepunx Review 2010/2020 cassette + zine

Comps rule. Regional comps rule. Retrospective comps that capture a scene rule. This Hardcorepunx Review is all of this and more, with a zine and cassette that captures the scene in Campana (just north from Buenos Aires) through the last decade. Over 40 tracks ranging from disjointed punk (RATAS, FUCK DA KIDZ), noisy garage HC (BARDO, AUTOAGRESION, AMENAZA), ripping fastcore (MATA 7, LOS CAIDOS, THUMBARRANCHXS, SUGGESTION), mosh-heavy HC (NO CALLES NUNCA, SIN RETORNO, VENOSO), crust (DETTONACION), grind (KUSH)…you see where I’m going here, but I’m not finished. And neither are the folks at Discos Corrosivos. Lo-fi punk (GODZILAS, LXS ABATIDXS, PERIFERIA), chaotic punk (BALACERA), powerviolence (HOT BURRITO), a couple of passionate (almost emo?) tracks from LAS PARTES FALTANTES, and a dark shoegaze departure from PESTE NEGRA ORQESTRA. It’s a truly excellent collection of sounds even without the context, but to capture a time and a place so well is truly awesome. Highest recommendation.

Venosa Decapitado de Nacimiento cassette

There isn’t much you can get from an internet search for these guys and sometimes that is a great feeling because you can fill in the gaps yourself, like back in the day when you didn’t have any info other than what was found on the records or in zines. The only thing I could find was that VENOSA comes from Argentina. They play a furious brand of thrashy hardcore, fast and vicious, not quite thrashcore but almost there. I would dare to say that they almost sound a bit like Italian hardcore due to their chaotic nature. Decapitado de Nacimiento offers fifteen tracks that ooze aggression and discontent.