La Grieta - Hermana Hostia/Josetxo Grieta - Reminder of a Precious Life

w.m.o/r
25

I noticed there have been several films (most of them apparently pretty bad) titled “La Grieta”, generally translated to English as “The Rift”, name that would seem to be reasonably appropriate for this punkish-sounding group. However, the direct translation is “grin” which, given the cover image and its placement thereon, is more likely. “Hermana Hostia”, however—Sister Wafer? Perhaps I’m missing something—communion-related, maybe? In any case, such mysteries are probably best left unsolved, including exactly who’s in this band. Mattin, presumably, but I’m not at all certain who else or what is the relationship, if any, to Josetxo Grieta wherein personnel are given (Josetxo Anitua, vocals; Inigo Eguillor, percussion and Mattin).

The first three tracks from La Grieta are each about a minute long, ultra-grungy, resolutely lo-fi and quite crunchy, with a surprisingly strong and melodic bass and guitar lines carrying the weight of the muttering, snarled vocals. Kind of like DNA advanced a quarter century. Just as you’ve settled in for more of the same, “Porvenir Desierto” (Future Desert?) appears, all jazzy brushstrokes and enchantingly plucked and strummed bass and icicle guitar, languidly wallowing in place for some eight minutes accompanied by some babbling that comes across as a sarcastic take on beat singing and wears out its welcome after about 15 seconds, though when it coalesces into a quasi-melody at the end of the track it’s momentarily cool. “Craso Error” is an insinuating number that sounds like Nirvana on a good day. The next five cuts are shortish and in more or less the same zone as the first trio—catchy, sometimes dub-by bass, erratically pounding drums, lotsa fuzz and generally good ‘n’ chewy. The title track is something else again, some 16 minutes of electronics, feedback, semi-regularly tapped cymbal that begins fairly quietly, gradually building in volume and harshness until it’s become a smoking, hellish industrial landscape, all sprung guitar and metallic pounding; nicely done. As always, you can hear for yourself and it won’t cost you a dime: here

Audiobot
BOT 197

“Reminder of a Precious Life” isn’t entirely dissimilar, though with just four tracks the music wanders a bit closer to the longer cuts from “Hermano Hostia”. Again, I get a little bit of a sense of, if not DNA specifically, the sort of climate that existed in the late 70s-early 80s when some strains of punk began to mix with free jazz and improv elements. Eguillor’s drums do tend to keep to rhythms, fragmented though they may be and Anitua’s vocals usually lie somewhere on a continuum from Lindsay to, oh, Yamatsuka Eye. It’s really Mattin’s guitar and other noises that fill out the songs, providing what grist there is to be had. That said, the more lugubrious pacing in this set wears thin after a bit, reaching a low point on “Precious life #1”, where the repeated refrain, “even when the sun goes down”, is endlessly either warbled mock-falsetto or gargled, sounding somewhat like what I’d expect from the unearthly spawn of Diamanda Galas and Tiny Tim. The final track picks things up a bit with a good, steady throb and insistent beat but a little late. Of the two reviewed here, I’ll take the freebie.

Audiobot’s website is here though I see no mention of this recording at the moment.