Aug 13 2009 5:32 pm,
Mariachi El Bronx
‘El Bronx’
(Wichita)
Punk band The Bronx aren’t fans of the word ‘conventional’. So much so, that instead of following up 2008’s third eponymous record with another slice of hardcore vitriol, they’ve gone all mariachi on us. ‘El Bronx’ attempts to bring the Central American genre to the masses; laid-back traditional Mexican beats are given a punchy twist, frontman Matt Caughthran never misses a Latino note, even the band’s Charro outfits are more kitsch than crass. On ‘Cell Mates’, the modern mash-up prevails, but ‘Clown Powder’ is more comedy side project than punk hiatus, while ‘Holy’ sounds like Tarantino’s been on the phone and he wants his soundtrack back. A brave and infectious diversion, in an Um Bongo advert kind of way.
Laura Davies
