This group is perhaps not the best to listen to post-New Year's Eve, nor is it whatever I had originally planned for today. If we were to go by iTunes reviews, Mexican group Allison (who don't really look like they do in that picture) seems to have been introduced to a lot of American students in Spanish class, and the fact that they like what they've heard might give you an idea of what they sound like. Comparisons tend to fly fast and furious--some people have said they sound like Blink 182, others like Fall Out Boy (neither of those comparisons are mine); if they were releasing in the UK, I'm sure they would draw Busted comparisons (though they're not as good and they don't have quite the same sound...Allison are maybe punkier or less exuberant or something, and the lead singer's voice is nothing like that of any of the Busted boys). There's at least one comparison that's probably apt, in at least one respect: lead single "Frágil" has a guitar line that sounds (as pointed out at Last.fm) ripped straight out of Good Charlotte's "I Heard You." That's not going to win them any points in terms of being a good, creative band, but I still prefer "Frágil" to "I Heard You." In terms of Allison itself, I couldn't tell you that much--I don't even know if the band has an official website (though they do have a MySpace; the Spanish Wikipedia lists this as their official site, and it probably is, but why don't all the links work and why do they have such an abundance of non-band related advertising on it? Pop-up ads on an official site?!); I can't even tell if they have three or four members--their MySpace lists four, but a lot of their promotional pictures (and even their album cover) only show three; I think one member may have just been added.Me Cambió--this song proves the power of "woah"'s (which are also used to great effect in the slightly less crazy but great "80s"). There are an awful lot of them in this song--heck, they're pretty much the entire chorus!--but they're also probably a good portion of the reason I enjoy this song. Think blazing guitars, catchiness, and punky energy to spare, all packed into under three minutes. Of course, given the "borrowing" from Good Charlotte in "Frágil" and the fact that a guitar part in another of their songs reminds me of part of Martin Stenmarck's "The Cure For You" (though I'd be surprised if that was intentional), it wouldn't surprise me if this song is...remiscent of others, but I don't know what those others are, if they exist. "Me Cambió" is a lot of fun, though.
Frágil--the lead single ("Me Cambió" hasn't been a single yet, I think, but it should be!). Sadly, fewer "whoa"'s, but an abudance of guitar riffs, and that main one--the one that sounds like the Good Charlotte one--is great. All the songs don't sound like this; there are some slower-paced songs on the album, and mid- to up-tempo songs that aren't full of shredding guitars. I do sometimes wonder if I'm less harsh on bands--especially slightly punky ones--that aren't American, but, after thinking about it a bit, both these songs are pretty good, maybe (especially in the case of "Me Cambió") even great.
And, for comparison purposes:
Good Charlotte - I Heard You
To buy Allison's debut album, Allison, go here (physical) or, if you live in the U.S., go to iTunes. It's no Busted album, but it is pretty enjoyable, and it'll be interesting to see where the band goes from here.
Next up: maybe more songs in Spanish, or songs from an American band.
