If you read enough press releases, you start questioning if you even know what genre names mean. Post-punk has been one of the most abused terms of the past 2-3 years and it seems to mean wildly different things to different people. To me, it’s always meant an ear for angular guitars and noise atop more traditional song concepts. 1186 follows this path of angular guitars and hypnotic rhythms. It can sound dystopian at times, like trying to find a human element in those maze-like sci-fi movies we grew up on: eerie and cold on the surface, but with depth of heart underneath.
Histeria, at roughly 20 minutes, takes this core feeling, giving a similar tone through 8 songs that sound similar enough to unify the album, yet different enough to stand alone as singles. The guitar leads on “Encerrados,” for example, are metallic in style. “Fracaso Molecular” has a punk urgency, “Hoy” is a perfect middle point between so-called punk and so-called post-punk: haunting, but also angry -- it would fit on a mixtape between Black Flag and Gang Of Four. “25 de Enero” is haunting but forward-moving, with the drumming pushing the record in a new direction. Overall, I think this record flows in a movement, with the drums starting out more hypnotic, but breaking free and adding a steadily uplifting experience as the record finishes. While I call it “forward-moving,” it certainly doesn’t feel like a happy denouement, but more like a the completion of a cycle or a calendar.
It’s easy to get lost the rhythms, with prominent bass and driving drums, but it’s really the varied guitar movements and vocals that give the emotion, taking surprise twists and turns through the maze as we try to find our way out of this dystopian world we currently live in. While the trajectory and concept feel complex, the songs remain short and to the point. I find the natural rhythms of the Spanish language to fit the mood really well.
Members also play in Ataque Zero, Trampa, and Fatal, and there are influences from deathrock, goth, and other styles sneak into the overall experience.
