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Rating: The baddest and most foul-mouthed Mexicans in the world! With their corrosive lyrics and their explosive music! As far as I know, this is the band's first album, but it's already a masterpiece! Molotov might be the most original group trying to synthesize hard rock and hip hop. If you're thinking of duets between Aerosmith and Run DMC, Rage Against The Machine albums, or half a dozen Nu metal bands, well, then you're way off! But really off! Molotov sing stories of drug dealers, whores, and thieves, but not like those American rapper idiots: the crude, the violent, the rough, the rotten are narrated with such vitality that the bitter street life becomes a blend of colors. Molotov is like that, politically incorrect to the max! And so it may happen that in a song the guy in question curses because he got sick after being with a prostitute, but it can also happen that the guy in question cries out his anger at the world or that the people from the "ghetto" claim their dignity.
Provocation is standard for Molotov (after all, look at their name!) and I still fondly remember the beautiful music video of Rastaman-Dita, a video we'll never see on a music TV except late at night (nudity overload). And what about the music? The music is, broadly speaking, a very aggressive rap grafted onto a hard rock base (sometimes close to metal) dominated by a guitar that can remind you of the best Tom Morello at some points, but which is influenced by Latin sound in the style of Santana, making it special. There are numerous acoustic interludes (classical guitar lovers, incredible huh?) mostly inspired by folk music. Hip hop comes into play not just in the style of singing, because a man at the console is in charge of distributing scratches and electronic bases whenever the situation requires it (in fact, on this album, these types of interventions are very limited).
"Molotov Cocktail Party" is one of the many songs written in English (most, however, are in Spanish) and is structured around a couple of riffs that even Rage Against The Machine wouldn't have disdained (thank you, they are better than those they make!). A gritty track that captures the listener. Particularly cute is the collective yell that ends the chorus (with off-keyness from the tavern). In a snippet (but just a snippet huh!) they also bring to mind the Beastie Boys. Let's skip the sophisticated foul language of the band. Another memorable track is "Voto Latino," with percussion reminiscent of Santana's "3" album and a very Latin guitar that plays with the other instruments. Also reminiscent of Santana are the organ phrases. Here too, the melody is very cheerful, especially in the instrumental interlude placed almost two minutes into the track (a perfect melody for a Mexican "fiesta"). As in other tracks, here too the issue of racial discrimination and the cultural identity of peoples is touched upon, albeit briefly. "Chinga Tu Madre" is another slightly obscene song, also very energetic and captivating. But the highest point of the album is the poignant "Gimme The Power": guitars that recall certain old Cuban music, choirs permeated with sadness and anger, and lyrics that are nothing short of wonderful:
"La Policia te esta extorcionando (dinero) pero ellos viven de lo que tu estas pagando y si te tratan como a un delincuente (ladrón) no es tu culpa, dale gracias al regente hay que arrancar el problema de raiz (aha) y cambiar al gobierno de nuestro país a la gente que esta en la burocracia a esa gente que le gustan las migajas yo por eso me quejo y me quejo porque aqui es donde vivo y yo ya no soy un pendejo que no wachas los puestos del gobierno hay personas que se estan enriqueciendo gente que vive en la pobreza nadie hace nada porque a nadie le interesas la gente de arriba te detesta, hay más gente que quiere que caigan sus cabezas si le das mas poder al poder mas duro te van a venir a cojer porque fuimos potencia mundial somos pobres nos manejan mal dame dame dame dame todo el power para que te demos en la madre gimme gimme gimme gimme todo el poder so i can come around to joder. . . "
And the song continues in the same tone until it explodes with the shout "el pueblo unido jamás será vencido". Try it to believe it. "Mas vale cholo" is another terrific track with overwhelming riffs and crazy vocal parts, but "Use It Or Lose It" surprises with how it stands out from the other pieces. Initially, the melody is a bit reminiscent of Crazy Town but then transforms into a guitar strumming akin to the Specials yet bound to Molotov’s rhythms (with a Mexican brass ensemble in the background and some chromatic percussion I haven't quite identified). Towards the end, there's also room for a Led Zeppelin-esque digression. Another track worth noting is "¿Porqué no te haces para allá?. . . ál Mas Allá", sustained by a solid bass riff and embellished by the usual scratch and our guys' voices, who never feel like singing one at a time. In any case, here they flirt with metal sounds.
I know many of you hate "shopping lists," and indeed I've only described the most interesting tracks: I've left out at least 5 equally deserving ones. I also know that many of you hate long reviews... well, nobody's perfect! This review was written on a whim, not studied even a little, so I apologize if the syntax is a bit twisted or if the text doesn't flow naturally and smoothly. There might also be various typos, forgive me!
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