LISASINSON "Un Año De Cambios" Album LP/CD

Listening to LISASINSON is like getting a shot of youthful insolence, and that's why they are one of the key names in the Spanish punk-rock and riot grrrl scene right now. They made it clear from their first single, "Barakaldo", and they confirmed it with their first Mini-LP, "Perdona Mamá" (now a collector's item): great melodies, furious guitars, highly effective epic choruses, and that unprejudiced, unabashedly vital attitude, free of complexes. With an infectious freshness when it comes to talking about love and spite, instant crushes and incurable disappointments.

To call a first album “Un Año De Cambios” is in and of itself an example of how fast things move. And somehow that’s how LISASINSON’s trajectory has been, both personally and professionally: singles, EPs, tours, collaborations, side projects, changes in line-up… That’s how Míriam and Paula’s world has been spinning up to this album, a debut that already shows maturity. A word that feels a bit inappropriate for a post-millennial punk pop album. But in terms of sound and intelligence in songwriting, it’s well-deserved. And in terms of energy, we don’t even really need to say it, it is overflowing with uncontrollable juvenile electricity.

From the “Intro”, a greeting in the tone of bedroom pop (remember that Míriam has that marvelous side project along these lines with LABORDE) that quickly bursts into distortion and speed. And that final voice message, “Ya tía, si es que esto no ha sido nada fácil, pero bueno, lo teníamos que hacer por nosotras” (I know, girl, this hasn’t been easy, but, we had to do it, for ourselves). And “Se Me Ha Muerto Una Flor” justifies what we were saying about maturity. The strength of the guitars, the winks in the songs, the melodic richness, the flow when they’re singing. Because listening to “Últimamente” and that final line “Sería genial / Volverte a besar” (It would be great / To kiss you again), after having cursed everything, it makes us feel like we want to feel those feelings again, with all its destructive intensity, and that final explosion reinforces it. “Mochi” is capital P pop, the kind that made LOS PLANETAS and JUNIPER MOON great, and even CARIÑO and NOSOTRÄSH. “Quiero que estés a mi lado / Cuando el verano se acabe / y tenga ganas de llorar” (I want you to be by my side / When summer ends / And I feel like crying). Our hearts swell. “Turquesa Marquesa” is another of the songs that you hadn’t heard yet. And another hit. Indisputable. Highly hummable. Didn’t you know that LISASINSON’s concerts were exercises in moshing, shouting, and exaltations to friendship and excessive affection. With this repertoire it couldn’t be any other way. “Canción De Entretiempo” opens the door to the appealing and the costumbrist with a certain air of the sixties (and that JOY DIVISION bass), while “Mira Chico” lets us know that these girls aren’t letting anything slide, they aim high and this is a vindicative anthem that describes the sad reality they still have to face. Epic, solid, unquestionable songs. And then there’s release with “Los Que Se Pelean No Se Desean”, pure, hardcore punk, full of rage, urgent, demanding. Ladies and gentlemen, we are warning you: this album cannot be listened to sitting down.

The final stretch begins with “No Sé Muy Bien”, a new demonstration of there being a certain influence from the music of the girl groups from the 50s when it comes to building vocal lines, with fun rhymes and witty lines like “Ya no quiero ser moderna / Ahora paso del post punk / No me invites a tu puta fiesta / No soy parte de ese club” (I don’t want to be a hipster anymore / I’m over post punk / Don’t invite me to your stupid party / I’m not a member of that club). So, there’s that. “Ya Me Da Igual” and “Cuchillos” once again make it clear that Míriam and Paula know perfectly well what they’re doing. And just like it started with a fitting welcome, it closes with “Todo Mal”. The most pessimistic and heavy tone of the album, not exempt from that electric exorcism they use so well, cleansing almost, even in the darkest moments, and in this case, shoegazing. Does everything end badly, like the song says? Impossible with an album like this.

“Un Año De Cambios” is an album produced and mastered by Carlos Hernández (CAROLINA DURANTE, AXOLOTES MEXICANOS, AIKO EL GRUPO, TRIÁNGULO DE AMOR BIZARRO) that gives it that push of power in the sound that has worked so well for LISASINSON, and that has also made it possible to develop all the nuances of an album that transcends riot grrrl based punk-pop. Because the songs are what talk here. Solid, immense. Twelve anthems, all equally great. Made from a place of the most direct honesty and assertiveness. Like the great debut albums. The kind that lasts beyond their years.

**The cover photo is taken by Neelam Khan Vela and Boo Studio designed the album artwork.

TRACKLIST: 01 Intro  02 Se Me Ha Muerto Una Flor  03 Últimamente  04 Mochi  05 Turquesa Marquesa  06 Canción De Entretiempo 07 Mira Chico  08 Los Que Se Pelean No Se Desean  09 No Sé Muy Bien  10 Ya Me Da Igual  11 Cuchillos  12 Todo Mal