4

A talentless band operating in a pointless genre.

As a feminist, or just someone with a brain, it's difficult to have respect for a band who take their name from the Spanish word for "dirty bitch", even before they start playing. Add to that the knowledge that according to their press release the band do not have real names and are instead called The Dragon, The Big Slice, The Farmer and The Welshman and it becomes impossible not to expect immaturity.

Luckily, Sucioperro are just as dire as their name suggests, relieving one of feeling prejudiced again their band's name and their personal monikers. 'The Drop' opens with cheesy riffs, heavy drums and lyrics like 'time steals all negative memories' sung (and occasionally shouted) by one of the blandest, typically emo/rock voices imaginable. In 'Dead Leaf Echo' the band take a more laidback approach, attempting to create tension with a slightly offbeat bass line and drum beat. This might have worked fifteen years ago when Nirvana did it, but nowadays sounds dated and predictable, particularly when played by musicians with less than half of Nirvana's talent. The only blessing here is that the track does not grind along in this fashion (accompanied by more teen-angsty lyrics and occasional obligatory louder sections) for too long before coming to a welcome end.

'The Ruins' is even more downbeat, and slightly less annoying than its predecessors -if you can manage to ignore the lyrics. Here vocalist 'The Dragon' sings softly over a (shallow) sea of guitars, and one can imagine the drummer and bass player attempting to look serious, standing (or sitting, in the drummer's case) in the background with their heads bowed. 'The Ruins' cannot redeem this release however, and even if all tracks were of its calibre the single would only receive a 6 out of 13. Sucioperro sound like a hundred other support bands who may not be so awful to be booed off the stage, but offer nothing interesting either. A few teenagers may buy this single because it has guitars, drums and angsty lyrics; but even they should know that there is an array of bands out there who manage to pull off music better than Sucioperro, even within this largely pointless genre.