MANIC HISPANIC
MIJO GOES TO JR. COLLEGE
BYO RECORDS
On their latest release, Mijo Goes to Jr. College, OC punk veterans Manic Hispanic continue their Huggy Boy-meets-Duane Peters shtick that has been cracking up punkers and Latinos alike for about a decade. But the album transcends their previous effort, The Recline of Mexican Civilization; it's quite possibly the greatest achievement in Mexican culture since the pyramids of Tenochitlán. It's not just the faithful Chicano-toned covers of punk classics such as the Clash's “Brand New Cadillac” (now “Brand New Impala”) or their retooling of the Vandals' spaghetti-drenched “Urban Struggle” (“I Want to be a Cholo”) or that lead warbler Gabby of the Cadillac Tramps sings with a larynx that smoked the same mota Cheech did back in his Chong days. ¡No mames güey! It's the little touches, like Manic Hispanic's shout-out to Orange's Tacos Jalisco on “Tio's Got a Secret” or how they pronounce “SanTana” just like the natives on the awesome/sad/hilarious “The INS Took My Novia Away” (you deserve to be deported if you have to ask what Ramones tune that covers). They even politicize their fun, remaking D.I.'s drug caution “Johnny's Got a Problem” into “My Homeboy Is a Joto” to comment on the disturbing homophobia amongst many Latino males with how-fucking-funny-is-that? lines like “Saturday night, and we're gonna go cruisin'/But his idea of cruisin' is different than mine.” Mijo Goes to Jr. College is sure to offend P.C. pendejoswho can't take a joke unless it bashes the bourgeoisie. All we can tell them is down a 40 y váyanse a la chingada.
Info: www.manichispanic.net.
Manic Hispanic perform with the Stitches at the House of Blues, 1530 S. Disneyland Dr., Anaheim, (714) 778-2583. Sat., 8 p.m. $15. All ages.
OC and Long Beach bands and musicians! Mail your CDs and tapes (along with your vital contact info, plus any impending performance dates) for possible review to: Locals Only,OC Weekly, P.O. Box 10788, Costa Mesa, CA 92627-0247.
2 Replies to “Brown and Down”