By DONNA BALANCIA
No matter how bad things devolve, signs of perseverance are all around us.
Take the new EP Don’t Bleed by Le Butcherettes. Due out February 14, Don’t Bleed is an inventive collection of emotive tunes, all experimental in nature and which uncannily capture precious moments in time.
Listeners should be grateful to bands like Le Butcherettes who are picking up the slack where the independent journalists of the world have left off. The new EP Don’t Bleed is yet another winning collection of meaningful works from our favorite musicians.
Don’t Bleed will be released February 14 on Rise Records.
Le Butcherettes continue to push on with their outstanding music, as songwriter and powerful frontgal Teri Gender Bender continues to put her heart and all her hard work out there. She and the band speak for those who can’t, or who are too afraid.
The emotional tone to the album gives the listener the impression there is still a long way to go for healing within all of us. But we can all take a lesson from this great Mexican-American group that continues to present immense range in its diversified approach. This record appeals to all tastes.
Teri said the album represents “a powerful double meaning of being told not to bleed as a woman and feeling shame of blossoming, so with time we are manipulated to hide in the darkness and our blood calls out to the forest creatures pulling them in closer to us for the hunt, even if we hide we are exposed.”
“Wounds Belong to Me” is an analogue retro-style bluesy snippet of a song that brings out the fun aspect of Teri’s personality. The track sounds like it was recorded through a gramophone, and it is dynamic in its simplicity, which is tough to pull off.
“Out For You,” by contrast, uses the richest in recording capabilities, with layers of dynamic sounds and a compelling 1980s throwback pop feel. The guitar work is outstanding and the bass-driven track is complimented by a relentlessly aggressive drum scheme. The track leaves the listener with a feeling of unhinged longing that won’t be satisfied in any simple manner.
“Don’t Bleed, You’re In The Middle Of The Forest” is a quasi-mystical song that has a haunting vocal track. It’s got a cool slithery beat that is reminiscent of a 1960s discotheque. But it is the sole definition of the double standard people must withstand.
“Now I Know” has got its very own style of groove, and what a ridiculous belief that anyone is better than anyone else today. There’s a cocky arrogance to the unnamed respondent on the receiving side of Teri’s words in this powerful track.
“Tunisia” is a consistent and interesting work with staccato fuzz and remarkable production. Ever-present in the tracks on the album is the feeling that a devil wants to coax us to some place we don’t want to be. But we need to be strong enough to get past the temptations.
“Love Someone” has the eerie tone of being lost in the crowd, searching for that relationship that may have disappeared or is about to. Do you take the chance on love or, as the perpetual question reverberates: “Is it better to have loved and lost than not at all?”
“Boom” is appropriately named. There is an avant-garde swagger to the track, with a synthetic and pathetic tone to a plea for help that never came. There is a deep background to the story here and it will be worked out.
The album was produced by a mysterious entity by the name of Violeta Félix, (ORL?), it was engineered by Jon Debaun and engineered and mixed by Chris Common. Le Butcherettes are Teri Gender Bender on vocals and keys, Riko Rodriguez-Lopez on guitar, synth and effects, Alejandra Robles Luna on drums and Marfred Rodriguez Lopez on bass. The credits also list Eureka the Butcher with photography by Maria Teresa Cosio.
