Née: Meche, Lola, Monse, Ana María
Raíces: San José, Costa Rica
Sounds like: Best Coast, Dum Dum Girls, Los Punsetes
You should listen to Las Robertas because…San José says so.
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If you think Costa Rica is too far to travel for a show, you might reconsider after getting into Las Robertas, the cutest young co-eds in noise rock out of sunny San José. Fortunately, 2011 will bring some U.S. tour dates, but Las Robertas’ mix of atmospherically bombinating dirges and decidedly un-shoegaze live shows may pique your interest even sooner. In the meantime, their brief yet direct first LP, Cry Out Loud, is available now.
Infusing their distortion-laced garage sound with youthful spirit, Las Robertas are bringing new life to noise rock with an optimism hardly gleaned, taking from heroes like Sonic Youth: their performances are “an explosion of joy… very spontaneous and really honest, that’s why we get a really good vibe with the audience,” says drummer Ana Maria. This starts to show on songs like “Street Feelings,” which buries its Motown yearnings with lots of droning guitar. Also look forward to a Spanish-language tune from the predominately English-singing band: “It’s hard to write a song in Spanish, so our song in Spanish came out naturally,” says singer Mercedes. For a band that was “friends first,” and is taking their time recording and playing the local circuits, this care for authenticity is fitting.
Will Las Robertas’ live show “make you sing, dance, and yell like a crazy cowboy” as they claim? That remains to be seen. Will Cry Out Loud make your dark days sunny and your bright days edgy?
Stream it and find out!
Download Cry Out Loud at 