A country best known to clueless tourists for donkeys, luchadores, mustached men, mariachis, serenading lovers, Telenovela style soaps and spicy food (candy too!), you can probably guess that Mexico should have some really, really interesting music. Oh, and I forgot they also paint their donkeys like zebras in Tijuana if you ever wondered what Mexican donkeys look like and if you have ever wondered what Mexican bands sounds like check out Zoé and Quiero Club.
Zoé
From México D.F
Genres: Alternative rock, Experimental, Psychedelic Rock, Shoegaze
Undoubtly one of Mexico’s most popular indie bands, Zoé released its fourth studio album Reptilectric (Noiselab/EMI, 2008) earlier this November to once again hit the shelves of Latin American and Mexican record stores by storm. The band which is already a veteran in the Mexican indie-scene has explored a diverse range of sounds and can be described (if at all) as a mix of a grunge, psychedelic rock and the dreamlike shoegaze (a genre defined by the drowning sound of distorted guitars). Transcending boundaries of musical genre or language Zoé has been known to largely experimental in their musical style and occasionally singing bilingually in both English and Spanish. 
Their newest release Reptilectric 40 year old virgin the divx movie online , although featuring no English-language tracks is a commitment to their “sound” that has been so easily recognizable all over the airwaves of Latin America. Like most of the records they have previously released it is possible to expect heavy guitars over light synthesized rhythms with frontman León Larregui’s soft and fantastical vocals. Listening to the title track Reptilectric or the tracks Nada or Neandertal almost gives you the idea you are floating in space; a statement the band would almost be guaranteed to appreciate since so many of their previous songs have galactic references. Other songs inspire different feelings such as the lighter campfire-guitar like Poli or the album closer Babilonia that from its beginning almost sounds like its going to be Satan-worshipping metal track before taking a dreamlike shoegazing sound. The record is overall a strong album with close to all the songs being hard-hitting tracks that are sure to getting you your head moving like a bobblehead. Unfortunately, despite all the good praise it is unfortunate that the album is too orientated on achieving the sound that “works” and has led to most of the record being so heavy and saturated from its distorted guitar sound that eventually the sound becomes dreary and almost tiresome. Nevertheless, Zoé has been a band that has always delivered and this record is no exception.
Recommended Tracks: Babilonia, Nada, Neandertal, Sombras
Also check out: sweet and lowdown online Ely Guerra, Fobia, Jumbo, Porter
Visit Zoé at:
Official Site – www.zoetheband.com
Myspace - www.myspace.com/zoeoficial
Quiero Club
From Monterrey, Nuevo León
Genres: download woods have eyes the divx Experimental Pop, New Rave, Synthpop
The Mexican north is an interesting place. Due its close proximity to the United States, this gives an identity that is almost too American to be Latin American and too Latin American to be American. Quiero Club is a band that makes this identity even more confusing. This oddball girl/boy quintet clad in overly camp vintage-80s neon clothing is setting a new frontier in Mexico’s indie-scene. Like many popular bands in the indie-scene, Quiero Club owes it popularity to their ever-so-popular myspace page for much of their publicity. The subsequent release of their debut LP WOF
(Happy-Fi, 2006) quickly established Quiero Club as Mexico’s answer to Cansei de ser Sexy (CSS) with their cheerful wordplay and wacky costumes and fast-paced corky synths. Also released this November, Nueva América (Happy-Fi, 2008) their sophomore release demonstrates Quiero Club’s dedication to maintain the band as Mexico’s quirkiest quintet. The band comes back this time a bit more beat-heavy than its predecessor and is helpful when the lyrics make little to no sense at all. Although their music is largely bilingual in English/Spanish, just because its lyrics are in English doesn’t mean you’ll understand a thing the band is saying. However this is what makes this band as delightful as it is. For example take the track Darwin Mustard. First of all the title makes no sense, secondly the song is exactly about what the title says – mustard and imagine all this but sung in a Madonna-esque tone over and incredibly quirky yet catchy repeating synth beat. Besides the nonsensical lyrics what makes this album admirable is the extensive sampling of synthesizers with different instrumentals. The sampling is diverse from the zany broken-beat saxophone instrumental solo in the title track It’s All About Dundun or the recorder-like flute and clarinet in Nueva América to the cowboy-getaway-like guitar-work in Fin de Semana sin Fin which features a generous amount of cowbell. Trippy, wild and adventurous and the only side-effect Is wanting to hear more or a sudden urge to buy a brightly-colored windbreaker from the 1980s and a pair of wayfarers to match.
Recommended Tracks: Darwin Mustard, Fin de Semana sin Fin, Minutos del Aire, Showtime
Also check out: Cansei de Ser Sexy, Javiera Mena, Maria Dainela y Su Sonido Lasser, Niña
Visit Quiero Club at:
Official Site – http://www.yotambienquieroclub.com/
Myspace - www.myspace.com/quieroclub