Mala Reputación
Ansiedad

The Mala Reputación are a relatively unknown punk rock band founded in 1995 in Asturias, Spain. What they offer is quite different from the label they often give themselves; theirs is, in fact, a mix between hc melodic punk and the more classic, simple rock (something vaguely comparable to Agent 51, if we absolutely have to find similarities with more established bands).

But Mala Reputación are anything but established, with very few visits to their Myspace (even emo girls with bathroom selfies have more, I swear), not many significant gigs (their tours almost never go beyond their homeland), few users on the official forum, and zero reviews/deep dives online. Yet, they know what they're doing, and to be honest, this lack of notoriety also has its advantages. It's clear, in fact, how a project that ends up commercializing itself (especially in such a genre) easily loses credibility, and above all (either to comply with specific record standards or to please a pseudo slice of listeners), quality, generating the so-called and sadly known "constructed/commercial product." It's well known that they couldn't care less about all that, as supported by the fact that they self-produce (after 2 albums on the decent Santo Grial), then dropped it to release on their own Kangurin Records with which they currently continue to publish, opting thus for entirely autonomous management, production, and distribution.

It was in 2000 on Santo Grial, supported by a contract offered by the boss Jorge Alvarez-Nava, who noticed them, that they released their debut album "Ansiedad" (already played, produced, and financed before the signing), a work that highlights all the potential of this band, offering an interesting mix of punk rock and rock, with rare insertions of some unusual instruments for the genre, such as mandolins and violins, played by the singer David Rodriguez himself, which lend a certain uniqueness to the record. The band's production inexperience is evident in a very lo-fi sound, and not outstanding production, as well as some naïve mixing mistakes. It should be clear, I'm rambling about a sound purist's perspective, the album is technically listenable, and all of this does not heavily impact the overall judgment, given and considering the other elements that make it a noteworthy product. Starting with David, who despite singing in Spanish (not exactly an appreciated or sonorous language for such genres), presents with an energetic and powerful tone, albeit with some forgivable off-key notes, like in the slow and whiny "Una Noche Más" (among the most rock-like), and the incisive "Un Lugar Llamado Milagro" (compensated by good accompaniments, excellent near-power riffs, and not least, great work from drummer Kiko Martinez, who although not extremely technical, performs very well on more than one occasion (see "Sueños De Libertad", which besides the excellent rhythmic session is also strong with a fast and melodic arrangement, with great solos between verses.) These frequent solos, structured more towards a rock tradition, make this album a colorful and enjoyable product in a rather square genre; it must indeed be pointed out how guitarist Juan Santamaría proves to be a good added value, and besides the previously noted track, he demonstrates it in the decent solos of "Abre Los Ojos", "Un Soñador", and "Esperanza". The more intense moments ("Recuerdas", and the superb opener "Confuso") stand out fairly well, while the overall picture is completed with excellent ideas (like the unusual tropical-ragga bridge (!) in "Obligado") and indeed the violins and mandolins, which besides making an appearance on the only disappointing closing ballad "Bonus Track", also stand out in the splendid and fast title track "Ansiedad", which in fact is the strongest track of the lot: a very melodic tune (but never falling into the silly or banal) akin to Bad Religion, and a Rodriguez in fine form, keep the evaluation of this song high.

The band presents with a decent songwriting vaguely engaged and politicized (forget the silly Californian texts), sometimes not hesitating to plunge headfirst into nihilistic and resigned themes, but often fighting with this side and getting lost in trite "fuck-boycott" combos, and avoidable downright banal passages.

On the whole, it's difficult to categorize Mala Reputación into one genre; they define themselves as punk rock, but classic rock is ultimately the most present element in this work. The more hc fragments are not fully convincing, and unfortunately, (too often) influences traceable to more commercial bands are heard (but for heaven's sake, far from certain pop-punk blunders). Recommended for those eager to listen to something "new" and explore a landscape not exactly prolific (nor ever too qualitative) like the Spanish one.

An interesting album from many perspectives, worth a listen.