Reviews

Estaría Chido Poder Volar

Farmaco Hasta Que Valga La Pena Vivir 7″ flexi

This four-song demo flexi from FARMACO (“Drug”) from Argentina trawls mid-tempo hardcore, somewhere in between the fist-pumping of EXIT ORDER and classic Eastern Euro slow-burn marathon rampaging, with just enough tried ’n’ true crustcore metallic riffage and a pinch of moody Japanese-style guitar flair. Female vocals pierce over top with haunting efficiency; the lyrics are in Spanish but song titles translating to “Everything Dies,” “Failures,” “Future” stage a bleak enough picture. The final track is a more upbeat cover of the opening track of the Argentinan band SOBERANÁA PERSONAL’s 1988 cassette album Lider, which is more dialed in but maybe loses a little without its charming original sloppiness. Great debut!!! Limed to 110 copies.

Jenny Driver El Rock De La Década 7″ flexi

A fucking cool seven-song EP from Mexico City, claiming inspiration from REVOLUCION X, BIKINI KILL, TERVEET KÄDET, ATOXXXICO and BROWN SUGAR, and to be honest those are fine comparisons! The juxtaposition of thrashing hardcore and pop/melody is magical, and sort of mirrors the nihilistic DIY-punk party aesthetic. “Long live anarchy! Long live anarchy! Fuck Marx! Fuck Marx…” is a bit confusing, but maybe I’m not supposed to be taking it too seriously? The last track “Perreocore” sounds like a mix of lo-fi reggaeton and children doing karaoke. The recording is lo-fi and it’s pressed onto a shitty flexi so it’s thin and scratchy sounding. As a product the photocopied sleeve and lyric sheet have drool-worthy presentation, I just wish it was pressed onto harder plastic because it would sound a lot better and I wouldn’t have to make adjustments to the weight on my tonearm to get it to play properly. But don’t let my flexi-hatred outweigh my recommendation because this rules!