The Black Lips
Los Valientes Del Mundo Nuevo
Vice Recordings
By Mike Randall
In the middle of their first release for Vice Records, Black Lips singer Cole Alexander announces, “This is going to be the best live record of all time.” While the sarcasm in his voice is obvious, the one thing he might be able to say is this is the best live album ever to be recorded in Tijuana.
The setting (reportedly a mariachi club) couldn’t be more perfect for the Atlanta foursome. Notorious for their out-of-control stage antics that have seen them banned from several venues, Los Valientes del Mundo Nuevo (Spanish for The Brave Ones of the New World) sounds as if a riot is going to break out, both in the crowd and through the music.
Shattering bottles provide the backdrop as the Lips tear through 37 minutes of twangy-guitar garage punk. With only one previously unreleased song and 8 of the 12 tracks (not including the hidden track) from 2005’s In the Red Records release, Let It Bloom, it’s more of a retrospective than a proper new album. What it does, however, is showcase a band that made its name on the road, compiling some of their best work from their three small label records.
The Lips seem to pride themselves on their lack of musical proficiency, but they clearly pay attention to their arrangements, with their songs swinging in ways most punk doesn’t. It’s definitely ragged, but it’s not overly sloppy. “Sea of Blasphemy” demonstrates a Clash-like angst, while “Stranger” and “Not a Problem” are sleaze-era Stones gems that explode into punk firestorms.
They also don’t feel the need to keep the pedal pressed down the entire time, as evidenced during the unforgettable “Hippie, Hippie, Hooray” and the catchy rockabilly of “Boone.” The band even makes an attempt at punk sweetness with “Dirty Hands,” as Alexander sings, “Do you really wanna hold my dirty hands?”
The Black Lips are at the most memorable when Alexander’s beyond-his-years snarl is belting out lines like “They can’t tell me what I can and can’t do” (“Not a Problem”) or “My daddy has a gun/It’s not a toy but it’s loads of fun” (“Fairy Stories”). In “Buried Alive,” the lone unreleased track on the record, Alexander lets everyone know: “I’m sleeping in a box and I’m headed straight for hell.”
As Los Valientes signs off with the distorted sounds of drunkenness and mariachi horns, one is happy to be listening to the record, rather than in the middle of the crossfire. This is the rare album that will make you want to hose yourself down after listening, and that’s refreshing.
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