☆2024 HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH☆

It’s Hispanic Heritage month, and down at KCSB the music department has been putting together a playlist to showcase the wonderful and unique music that’s come out of many different Spanish-speaking countries! There’s so much music to cover and this list is by no means comprehensive, these are just some cool and interesting cuts we found in our digging. We hope you enjoy it!

 

PARKER’S RECS 

• “Solar” by Resplandor

– Resplandor are a group of Peruvian shoegazers operating in a genre uncommonly found in South America. Their 2008 release Pleamar is filled to the brim with fuzzy guitars and soaring synths, and I’m particularly fond of the sonar-like percussion found in the beginning of the opening track “Solar”. In more recent years Resplandor have gained more attention from the global alternative scene, with Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins mixing the tracks on a 2021 remaster of Pleamar and goth titans The Cure inviting them to join as openers on their 2023 tour. This album is a great listen for fans of sounds both moody and heavenly. 

 

• “Esfumados Sueños” by Euroshima

– Euroshima’s Gala is both hauntingly beautiful and danceable. The band was formed in 1986 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and released their one and only album a year later. Unfortunately, the release didn’t see much attention outside of South America and remains a cult classic for fans of the darkwave genre. The sixth track “Esfumados Sueños” is dark and brooding, with a synth bassline that makes you want to move your body.

 

 

• “Bien Colocados” by Quemarlo Todo Por Error

– Coming from Colombia instead of the American Midwest, Quemarlo Todo Por Error put their own unique spin on Midwest emo with their 2018 album Cuánto Más Hemos Perdido…(yo ya perdí la cuenta). “Bien Colocados” is a favorite track of mine, the guitars and bass have an overwhelmingly warm atmosphere to them. The vocals don’t come in till the second half of the song, giving the guitarist room to show off some fantastic playing. The guitars and bass layer over each other in a very beautiful way, creating this cool tunnel of sound. 

 

 

• “Olvido” by La Hermanastra más Fea

– La Hermanastra más Fea take an angrier and louder approach to Colombian emo on this track from their 2019 release Entrada y Salida de Volquetas. The guitars and drums fall in the punk/hardcore vein of emo, and singer Gabriel Ferro provides aggressive yet melodic lyrics describing nihilism and being left behind. “Dios dejó todo al olvido!” he shouts. 

 

• “Nada Cambia” by Autopsia

– “Nada Cambia” is rough and grimy. Formed in Lima, Peru in 1984, Autopsia combined the European/American post-punk and hardcore sounds of the time to create their own dark and distorted noise. In 1985 they released their demo Sistema y poder, and disbanded shortly afterwards. I’m a big fan of the bass tone heard at the beginning of the song, and I love how brutal and lo-fi the recording quality is. 

 

MAYA’S RECS

• “Pobre De Ti” by Tijuana No!

– Tijuana No! are a very influential band in the realm of Mexican Ska, addressing politics and social issues through their music. Ceci Bastida, the founding keyboardist, grew up in Tijuana and later moved to LA, giving her a comprehensive outlook on the politics of immigration, a topic frequently addressed in their music. Their second album, Contra Revolucion Avenue, was dedicated to the Zapatistas, a group combining elements of Mayan tradition with Catholic liberation theology and Marxism.

 

• “Ceniza Plateada” by Daga Voladora

–  Under the Daga Voladora moniker, singer Cristina Plaza’s album Los Manantiales was influenced by the urban cityscapes of Madrid, the album coming to her while in a “moldy basement with a jack hammer drilling in my ear.” Influenced by bands like Stereolab, Silver Apples, and Galaxie 500, the album’s candidness in its inspirations translates to a melting pot of sound, with psychedelic pop, ballads, and existentialism woven into the sound, Los Manantiales has something for everyone.

 

• “Tierra de Nadie” by Grito Exclamac!on

– Born from a desire to carve out space for genuine self-expression amidst the chaos of modern life, Grito Exclamac!on merges a variety of influences – from post-punk to Latin American protest music – to create a soundscape that is at once cathartic and confrontational. Their single “Tierra de Nadie,” with Nana Pank’s visceral vocals cutting through angular guitars, electric rhythms, and melodic baselines, the track is an anthem of disillusionment and defiance. It invites listeners into a raw and unfiltered reflection on alienation and resistance.

 

• “la piedad” by unperro andaluz

– From the sprawling urban landscape of Escatepec, Mexico and the restless isolation of the pandemic, unperro andaluz’s music screams its desire for escape. Their latest release, “la piedad,” binds together the hypnotic rhythms of krautrock, thumping garage rock, and a penchant for experimentation, similar to bands like Can and The Velvet Underground. The lyrics are laden with surrealist imagery, existential longing, and melancholic introspection. With metronomic beats and distorted guitars, “la piedad” envelops listeners in a haze of sound that is both meditative and disorienting. 

 

• “Outro” by Diles Que No Me Maten

– Mexico City’s experimental psych band Diles Que No Me Maten brings a hypnotic blend of post-punk, krautrock, and abstract landscapes, enveloping listeners in an atmosphere of nocturnal introspection. Their track “outro” from the album Obrigaggi carries a meditative, almost trance-like quality, with lyrical themes that delve into alienation, perception, and the beauty found in darkness. Recorded in an eccentric house in Xalapa, the song features the band’s signature mix of deep, pulsating rhythms, ethereal guitars, and echoing vocals. The song is a slow-burning journey, layering repetition and sparse instrumentation to make you feel like you’re floating through time.

 

• “El Algún Punto” by Sonic Emerson

– Rooted in Mexico City’s underground, Sebastian Neyra’s debut album Si Tan Solo Supiera Por Que Estoy Aqui was born out of late-night musings and existential questioning. With echoes of krautrock and modern psychedelia, El Algun Punto showcases a hypnotic blend of rhythmic baselines, reverb heavy guitars, and spaced-out production, drawing clear lines to acts like King Gizzard and TOY. Recorded in the intimacy of Neyra’s San Miguel Chapultepec apartment, El Algun Punto channels the restless energy of sleepless nights into the mesmerizing swirl of psych-infused noise.

 

• “Cerca” by Monotonía

– Hailing from Orizaba and Córdoba, Veracruz, Monotonía taps into the rawness of human existence with their hypnotic track Cerca. With their jam based approach, the band constructs a repetitive, minimalist rhythm that slowly crescendos in intensity, creating a space where subtle changes in texture and dynamics become the main focus. The spoken word verses, a meditation on the idea that “existence precedes essence,” guide us through a psychedelic journey that explodes into a frenzy of sound and emotion. Much like the music of Thee Oh Sees and Spacemen 3, Cerca thrives on subtle variations within a looping, trance-inducing rhythm.