MANIC HISPANIC:
Mijo Goes to Jr. College: CD
A philosophical scenario popped into my head while listening to this. Gang life is a subculture that strays away from the mainstream. Punk is also a subculture. What if punk was started by Latino gangs back in the day? Like skinheads have skinhead music, street punks have street punk/oi, and so on. Music for their backyard gang parties played by gang members. Songs were ingrained in stone through the years and became standards through the years. Now those bands have disappeared through the years as time has passed. But the songs are still alive. Like a good Mariachi band, you book them for parties to play music you know. Manic Hispanic becomes that band that belts out the covers like it was their own. Every song that was a classic is now being re-introduced to a new set of gangsters. The legacy lives on. Well, that wasn’t the scenario. But they do take classic punk songs and make them their own. This time around, The Damned, The Clash, The Germs, NoFX, Stiff Little Fingers, Ramones, D.I., GBH, Sham 69, The Dickies, Misfits, TSOL and The Vandals get the Manic Hispanic treatment. After numerous listens, you would believe that cholos and vatos were responsible for these old school tracks. The tracks are so good by this assemblage of talented and veteran musicians that I sometimes forget that these are covers. You also need to see them live. They put on one of the best shows I’ve seen in years. –Donofthedead (BYO)