Review Summary: In which Viva Belgrado decide to sound like Viva Belgrado.
I occupy an odd space in the world, I´d be the first one to acknowledge that; Born in a Spanish speaking country but being pushed hard to learn English since a young age due to our proximity to the US, A child of skramz, Black metal and Hardcore but with a deeply rooted Latinx sentimentality for romantic music, A man that opened up a business in a Latinx country where he interacts mostly with foreigners on a day to day basis yet gets bombarded by questions about my culture as a point of contact for people touching down here for the first time, I feel very split down the middle with my deep cultural identity and the one that rubs off on me from everything to daily interactions to my Partner herself.
Odd as it may be, I’m well aware I am not the only one.
Why is any of this relevant? Am I going on and on as I usually do in my reviews? Yes, and probably yes.
Enter Viva Belgrado, the Spanish skramz Quartet from Cordoba, or at least that’s what they were up until a few years ago, with releases like the “Invierno” EP and their debut full length “Flores, Carne” they were positively just a cookie-cutter band from the new wave of skramz from the school of Suis La Lune and Teenage Haze, it seems that the guys at some point took a hard look in the mirror and realized this dichotomy that lies within all musicians of Spanish speaking countries, the fact that we are constantly being split down the middle between our musical culture and our musical taste, one that pushes you to abandon singing your mother tongue to pursue an English speaking market, due to the scarcity of a strong musical scene of our favorite genders back home.
And up until a few years ago, this was the norm for this band as well, but then Bellavista happened.
Here I must interject that, I had only had contact with this band through the previous releases listed here, but lost track of them up to last year when they came to play in my home country, understanding that as most things in Latin America, you really shouldn’t miss the chance to see a foreigner band play due to the low volume of musicians going through the region (even less those of the underground type) I bought my ticket and was there when they rolled around.
Once at the venue I can safely say I was not prepared with the energy of this album, Bellavista finds a sort of charm in wearing their influences on their sleeve for all to see, From fast-paced and aggressive cuts like “Una Soga” or “Un Collar” to more Touché Amore inspired passages like the bridge in “Ikebukuro Sunshine” it is a wild ride, but a more toned down one, more restrained.
For this I must also give serious props to the Musicianship in here, although a more varied affair with throwing everything and the sink at it, they manage to craft a very smooth and dare I say melodramatic vibe to the album, while also remaining seriously cheeky and aggressive when the mood deems it necessary, Additionally, there is a very scarce use of screaming vocals, where Candido Galvez opts out for a more spoken/sang approach to the lyrics (all sung in Spanish), which I must give a serious commendation for the quality of it, especially verses in songs like Vicios:
Tengo preguntas porque no tengo respuestas
Si es tan obvio ¿por qué es tan dif*cil de entender?
Déjame repetir siempre los mismos errores
Exhibicionismo emocional como carrera
Y si mantengo algunos vicios es porque ellos me mantienen vivo
Porque ya nada me interesa, nada me impresiona
“I have questions but I have no answers
If it's so obvious ¿why is it so hard to understand?
let me make the same mistakes
Emotional Exibicionism as a Career
And if I keep some vices its cause they keep me alive
because nothing interests, nothing impresses me”
And Yet, there are songs like “Mas Triste Que Shinji Ikari” an all-out pop assault, with a borderline chill rap vibe and a strong pop sensibility, Viva Belgrado decide to break the mold of what is acceptable in a skramz album, and although a very short-lived concept within the album, it's one that shows just how willing this band is to push their own artistical view, be it by singing a predominantly English speaking genre in Spanish, or to break conventions of what a Skramz band is allowed to do within the album, it is this “throw caution to the wind” attitude that makes Bellavista an even more enjoyable affair
The album is a serious gem of simplicity, a band trying to write the album that they are, with all quirks to it, and nuisances that it could cause, but in the end, extremely faithful to themselves, and I, for one, really appreciate it.
