Ah Oh, Los BlendersIndependiente, México
Rating:76
by Carlos Reyes
“Los Blenders le robaron el peinado a tu papá, los calzones a tu mamá y el corazón a tu hermana.” That is the ass-kicking premise (which I won’t bother to translate) of D.F. newcomers, Los Blenders. They have one of those quirky appliance band names that are found all throughout the Vive Latino lineup, but they are far from the baffled surfers that occupy Foro Sol every year. Unattached to any of Mexico’s indie scenes (and unlike their compatriots Las Licuadoras) these youngsters might just bring the right amount of lo-fi saccharine (which they call “proto porn pop”) that Mexican rock has been craving for years.
Ah Oh is a two-track release that follows their criminally overlooked debut Oye EP. Los Blenders have an affair with surf music the same way you would expect a middle schooler to experience a first love–hyperbolized responses to the emotionally-wrenched flowering of the gonads. Truth is, Los Blenders are a lot of fun. “Ah Oh” is the steamrolling hit missing on our summer break playlists. Their delivery is nothing short of euphoric, blasting instruments and vocals devoid of generational connotations. B-side “Vacaciones” rides shotgun with little preoccupation with flashing back to any pop surf ensemble from their parents’ youth.
As a discovery of thrilling Spaniard blog Zumo en la Nevera, Los Blenders do sound more like the rising Spaniard tropi-punk acts (Kana Kapila, Los Claveles, Piñata) than any other act of this hemisphere (though it's perfectly ok to think of a noisier Dávila 666 at any time). They have very little invested and yet so much to offer. With the rise of like-minded bands Ave Negra or Hypnomango, the coming of tropical shoegazing seems to be rolling at a full throttle. Ah Oh is not even five minutes long, and it might be unfair to attempt to give it a rating, yet it's such a revelatory release that proves that, like Tajín Seasoning and Queso Cotija, pleasure does come from the little things in life.