Anger as an energy. Le Butcherettes, a Mexican Punk Rock band, (that's the only way to properly describe them although they now live in California), have just released their fourth album bi/MENTAL produced by former Modern Lover and Talking Head Jerry Harrison.
It's defiantly bi. Every song has a dual title separated by a slash. the band are fronted by Teresa Suarez Cosio who adopts the very Punk rock stage name Teri Bender. She's generally decked out in Native American headgear and warpaint. If she didn't actually exist she would probably need to do so in fiction. You can read more about the backdrop to the storm they brew up in this Guardian article.
Endorsed by Iggy Pop and Jello Biafra both of whom have appeared on their records, Le Butcherettes nod vigorously to the past but generally manage to make their case for being taken seriously in the here and now. Cosio's vocals in turn reminded me of Hazel O'Connor, Karen O, Lene Lovich, Patti Smith and Corin Tucker. The band meanwhile tend towards Rage Against the Machine and Jane's Addiction. Each song on bi/MENTAL is something of a howl into the void, some of them edging rather too close to a parody of 1980 for my liking. I'd probably love them unconditionally if I was sixteen but I'm certainly not sixteen any more.
When they get it right though they're really pretty good. Often bridging the gap between Punk and AOR New Wave, the kind of trick bands like The Motels managed to pull off in the late Seventies and early Eighties, they've definitely got a fighting chance in the marketplace. If only half of bi/MENTAL really floated my boat I'm fully aware that I'm not really the band's target consumer and their gigs must truly be something to witness. They're playing in Mexico City tonight if you happen to be there.
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