Aztlán Review · 5:34am Apr 9th, 2022
I find it extremely cool how the album cover is an original oil painting by lead singer León Larregui.
Date Of Release: April 18, 2018
Zoè is a Grammy award winning Mexican alternative rock band that formed in Cuernavaca, Morelos, in 1994. The band's members consist of:
- León Larregui (Lead vocals, Guitar)
- Sergio Acosta (Lead guitar)
- Jesus Báez (Keyboards)
- Ángel Mosqueda (Bass)
- Rodrigo Guardiola (Drums)
During their early years Zoè were very self-reliant. Meaning they would hold self-organized concerts and release self-published demos, very similar to the punk rock movement of the 70's and 80's. They would also use the internet to help spread their music, eventually after much praise from fans, they managed to get the attention from Sony Music. Who would then produce their debut album.
Eventually they would leave Sony Music, work for a few years without a studio backing them up, and then settle with Capitol Latin in 2008, which they have remained with to this day. Zoè has achieved high success from most Spanish-speaking countries. Even winning 1 Grammy award and 2 Latin Grammy awards.
Zoé was another band I was introduced to by my dad. Unlike other bands though he only knew one song from them, that being a cover they did of a song by the band Morat tilted Labios Rotos (Broken Lips). I remember instantly falling in love with it the moment I heard it when I was in middle school. I loved the dark yet beautiful aura it gave off. Everytime I hear it I feel like I'm dreaming, it's truly magical.
Throughout the years that would be the only song I knew from them, well along with a few other hit songs like Luna (Moon), Nada (Nothing), and No Hay Mal Que Dure (There Is No Evil That Lasts). Just recently I finally remembered to take a shot at their discography. I started with their album Reptiletric and loved every minute of it. It's an album that has a nice balance between instruments and electronic parts. The electronics on this album are used sparingly, unlike the album I'll be reviewing today.
That brings us to today's review, Aztlán an album that focuses heavily on space rock and neo-psychedlia. Which means this album is electronic and synthesizer heavy, even more so than any of their other albums. This album is full of "feel good" songs, If that makes any sense. I can honestly say I haven't heard anything like it.
Songs
Venus
Venus starts the album off in a nice and chill manner. Right off the bat you'll notice how audible the bass line is. It's an easy going and catchy line that shines when the synthesizers are paired up with it. There's also a constant echoing of knocking that gives off a nice beat throughout the song. The vocals are very soothing and honestly just make me relax. Overall a very laid back song.
Azul (Blue)
Next on up is my personal favorite song off the album. Azul has a cool start by opening up with a drum roll and the electric guitars playing a catchy and soft sounding riff. The main reason I favorite this song is due to it's catchy and beautiful chorus. León's vocals at the chorus pack a serious punch and make me feel like I'm levitating.
Lyrically this song is about a guy experiencing difficult feelings for his ex girlfriend. He continues to love her yet she forgot about him and has already moved on to another guy. The following verses perfectly capture this, "I'm falling to pieces over your absence and the worst part is I never want to see you ever. I'm drowning in the habit of loving you, but you already forgot about me"
No Hay Mal Que Dure (There Is No Evil That Lasts)
This next song is very much like a synthwave song, it's one of the most electronic songs off the album. The keyboard at the beginning of the song is awesome and does a nice job of setting the tone. The bass line is also a highlight of this song, it's very groovy. There's even some light chip tune inserted into the song. The acoustic guitar that's played at certain times doesn't feel off in the slightest. Around the halfway point there's a part where all the instruments disappear except for the keyboard, synthesizers, and drums, that sounds very cool. Lyrically this song is about not letting yourself be upset over people who hate on you for being different. Another one of my favorites off the album.
Al Final (In The End)
The beginning of this song sounds a lot like bossa nova. You have a ukulele and an acoustic guitar strumming their peaceful chords while a steady beat is playing. Shortly after the bass joins in and the tempo of the song increases slightly, while synthesizers go off in the distance. Around the halfway point the song just explodes and it's completely taken over by synthesizers and electronic effects before settling back down. Overall a beautiful song.
Hielo (Ice)
Keeping up with tradition, synthesizers start this song off along with drums and stays like that for a little while. After which the bass joins in and starts playing a catchy and groovy bass line. Apart from the bass and drums, synthesizers and keyboards make up the bulk of the song, all of which sounds cool and sort of icy in a way. León kills it on vocals in this track too.
Lyrically this song is about a guy who parts ways with his selfish girlfriend and bids farewell to their disastrous relationship. He says how she was only with him for self interest and despite knowing the pain she'll cause him, she does it anyways. To which he tells her to put some ice on her heart lol.
Luci
Dialing back on the electronics, Luci features the less amount of synths and electronics out of the whole album. This song is a slow burner that utilizes the ukulele once again for the first half of the song. Which is shortly joined by the bass and drums. Occasionally throughout the song synthesizers will join in. Not much else to say here, this song is probably my least favorite of the album.
Aztlán
We've made it to the title track. One unique feature of this song is the snapping at the beginning. This song leads you on into believing it's a slow burner before subverting your expectations and completely changing everything up. The bass line is killer on this song. The drumming doesn't fall behind either. The song has nice ending as well.
Lyrically this song is about the migration of the Aztec or Mexica people from Aztlán, their homeland (which would be the present day states of California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, Texas, and part of Colorado) to Tenochtitlan (which is present day Mexico City). Essentially the retelling of the famous legend of how Mexico was founded.
Temor Y Temblor (Fear And Quakes)
Starting off this song has a nice synth wave of audio that carries on throughout the song. The bass line for this song is simple yet catchy. Temor y Temblor gives off britpop waves as well. Towards the ending of the song there's a part that sounds very Egyptian and fits the song extremely well. When listening to this song I can picture myself walking in a futuristic city at night. Overall a very atmospheric song.
Renacer (Reborn)
This song has a steady, moderate tempo throughout. I feel like you could throw this song on and just lose yourself to whatever and have good time without paying much attention to it. The bass is hypnotic and burrows into your head. The synthesizers sound especially beautiful on this song. For the most part it's uneventful but I'm ok with that. There's just this lovely feeling it gives off that makes me feel so much better.
Lyrically this song is about finding that special someone in your life that compliments your existence. The lines, "I want to find you. Maybe we've crossed paths. I want to kiss you. I only have my imagination. There's something about your lips, my love", just make this song all the more lovely.
Ella Es Magia (She Is Magic)
Taking up a much quicker tempo, Ella Es Magia is such a fun song. In the beginning and in the end there's some studio banter which makes this song sound like they're playing it live and having a blast doing so. This song starts off with an awesome drum roll and all the instruments coming in. The lyrics aren't deep and thought provoking but instead simple and straightforward to better fit the song, which I can totally dig.
León's vocals are very lively on this song too, which is not to say he sounds dead on the other songs but on here it sounds especially great. Lyrically this song is about a guy being shy and all his senses clouding up around a girl he likes, describing her as magic. As well as listing off everything he likes about her. Definitely one of my favorites off the album.
Oropel (Tinsel)
Keeping up with the same tempo as the previous song. Oropel's drumming and keyboards are king on this track. The synthesizers on this song are pretty awesome as well, probably the coolest out of all songs. The bass is phenomenal and probably is the best out of all the other songs on here as well. This is a very fun song overall.
Clarividad (Clarity)
The final song of the album, Clarividad starts off with satellite sounds among light drumming and the bass guitar. Later on some awesome striking of the drums lifts off the moody atmosphere it had created and picks up the tempo, before going back on the atmosphere. This song does a fun little back and forth with what I just described. After which it ends on a high note. Overall it was an alright way to end the album off.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion Aztlán by Zoé was a fantastic and fun album to listen to! The synth and electronica heavy focus was a cool direction to go in and they pulled it off amazingly well. Between this and their other album Reptiletric I'm confident in saying I'm gonna be loving this band even more.
I'd recommend this album to fans of Rock en Español, Electronica, and psychedelic music. I also think fans of Tame Impala would find this enjoyable, as many of their songs remind me of them. This is totally worth the listen if you're feeling up to it and don't mind lyrics in another language. Awesome album!
If I Had To Rate It Out Of 10: 9/10
Songs I Liked:
- Venus
- Azul (Blue)
- No Hay Mal Que Dure (There Is No Evil That Lasts)
- Al Final (In The End)
- Hielo (Ice)
- Aztlán
- Temor Y Temblor (Fear And Quakes)
- Renacer (Reborn)
- Ella Es Magia (She Is Magic)
- Oropel (Tinsel)
Songs I Disliked:
- Luci
For Those Interested In Checking It Out Here's A Preview Song:
