💽 shoelace and a knot by yungatita
After Will sent me this review I immediately went and listened to the album because I had never even heard of yungatita. And boy did it deliver. This album feels tailor made for me. I’ve written in the past of my love for Waxahatchee, Beach Bunny, Hope D, and others—this album shares some similarities to those artists, but with a much sharper punk-adjacent edge. It’s the kind of album where you can clearly hear the band having fun, which feels more and more rare these days.
Anyways, no one wants to read me talk about it, so here’s Will instead:
yungatita opens Shoelace and a Knot with “Poppy,” a bit of relaxing, cloudy dream pop. But don’t get too comfortable, it’s just a fake out that makes the bulk of the album’s tuneful grunge all the more headbangingly glorious. The multi-talented Valentina Zapata formed the band in their native Los Angeles; a west-coast strain of sunbaked malaise glows through these distortion-soaked verses. But the band cuts through haze with punchy, cathartic choruses.
We reach the first of those in “Reckless,” where the guitar’s double stomp notes hit with box-truck force only for Zapata to match the fury, belting,
It’s all your Faulllttt
At least that’s how it felt.
The music shrieks and snarls in response. yungatita nails the classic verse-chorus-verse structure, with ample solos, bridges, and refrains giving each song a unique character. It’s reminiscent of Pavement’s loopy noodlings, shot through with healthy bursts of riot grrrl energy.
Zapata’s honest, emotive lyrics form the heart of this record. With consistently clever twists of language, their words retain a stream of consciousness; pinpoint details and little surreal touches convey the strangeness of daily life.
Gotta work, gotta serve, gotta commit to the curse
A thought would only get in the way
Everything’s a joke, but thе bear has been poked
Leavе your pack on, we’re playing dead again
—they sing on standout track “Pick At Your Face.” For a debut full length record, Shoelace and a Knot, bares the chops and confidence of a mature band, while still preserving an unfettered, raw grace. In short, this band rocks.
One More Thing:
I’m currently obsessing over early videogames with a medieval setting. The interplay between maps and landscapes, and the micro and overarching narratives become more intriguing and charming in 8-bit. The graphics of say, King’s Quest, almost evoke stained glass and illuminated manuscripts of the medieval era.
Upcoming:
Bushwick apartment gallery, Bob’s, is presenting “Interwoven,” a second volume of their annual medium-specific ultra-stacked group show, this time focusing on textile art. For exhibitions in a living room, this project space still creates ambitious, high-quality installations that feel like an artist playground.
