Bernays Propoganda – Zabraneta Planeta

So, in summary it’s attractive, tough, and uncompromising music. Well worth a spin. I suspect they are dynamite live.

http://moonleerecords.bandcamp.com/album/zabraneta-planeta

From what I know of Moonlee Records they stick out some right cracking releases. Repetitor’s last LP was one, and this new one by the restless Bernay’s Propoganda is no exception. The label’s motto is “the juice you need” and yes, I can dig into this idea. Zabraneta Planeta is a feisty and opinionated release, driven by some coruscating guitar lines and very powerful rhythmic propulsion. The fucker’s got a beat behind it, in other words.

It’s immediately apparent that the delivery of the vocals brings a lot to this band; they are at turns enticing, cooing and stroppy, the band’s sound seems to rest heavily on what mood the singer is in. In this way it’s incredibly reminiscent of the Sugarcubes, especially the title track, or Ordinary Toy. The singer is cocksure, too; she has a knack of timing which just can’t be learned, when to climb an octave, when to get add a strident note into the proceedings. As such you can imagine her to be an extremely effective propagandist, or public speaker, haranguing or pleading with her audience from a soap box. The music does get a bit of sway on tracks like the brilliant A Bone to The Dog or Čuvaj Se Od Tie Što Te Čuvaat, where the guitar is allowed to throw a melody line, or a riff or or two into the mix to great effect. Bar Kultura is another where a certain playfulness in the delivery balances the track’s inherent tensile strength.

But in the main, the songs on this album are tough creatures, almost like foot soldiers; not concerned with sounding nice or attractive, rather built to play live, built to do a job, and never suggesting anything other than the total mastery of the musicians playing them. Oh, and hardly an ounce of fat on them. So, in summary it’s attractive, tough, and uncompromising music. Well worth a spin. I suspect they are dynamite live.