Review Summary: "Captain, the ship is full of rats playing loud ass punk."
Nothing like nihilism to fend off narcissism. Rata Negra takes their motto to heart in
Justicia Cosmica , their second album, released this time through London-based label La vida es un mus. As murky and hostile as ever, the band born last year from two other projects, La USSR and Juanita y los Feos, strikes again with another short burst of unapologetic punk. The album ignites the fuse with “El chico de las estrellas”, a sort of angst post-punk homage to Ziggy Stardust, imagining him travelling to the suburbs of Madrid to become the scourge of the selfie culture. “Es Unica” follows suit, surprisingly unfolding into one of the best songs the band has created in their short but intense career.
Only two tracks in and it’s plain to see why the band sounds heavier, filthier and better than ever. Extensive touring has paid off, and trusting the helm to legendary producer Paco Loco (Bunbury, Australian Blonde, Hinds), albeit a risky move, has turned out pretty damn well for them. The band entered the studio hoping to sound like Nirvana, but ended up with a record that sounds like their 2017 debut, only a tad better. Layers and layers of identical guitar lines pile up forming a chunk of sound the band didn’t have in 2017's
Oido Absoluto. They later found out that every guitar take had been added instead of discarded by the widely known, eccentric producer.
“Verguenza” recalls the best years of the punk movement in 80s’ Madrid, recovering the magic of bands like Paralisis Permanente and evoking influences from Ramones to Killing Joke. “Nada va a permanecer dorado” marks a strange turn for the band. This is their take on a ballad, but the song is only slow in tempo. It’s still drenched in distortion, with Violeta’s distinct voice scarring the music like a sugar-coated chainsaw.
The second half of
Justicia Cosmica lacks the punch of the first half, mostly because the surprise factor at this point is gone. The filth starts to dilute although there are still remarkable tracks like “Mientes” or “En su boca el veneno”, where the bass climbs on top of the mix with unremitting picking. “Te Elevas” and closer "Sombras" almost intrude post-punk territory, with firm step, all things considered, but still feels like they are slightly off their element.
The Spanish underground punk scene has been steaming for a very long time, but Rata Negra might very well be leading the charge out of the sewers. They certainly sound like a band convinced of their potential and that shows in spades in
Justicia Cosmica. Long time followers of the band will feel at home with this new release, and those yet to be infested, well, you can’t run forever.
