Album Notes

It may not be a new phenomenon in the UK, but in Spain it’s unheard of for a debuting band to generate the kind of expectation that The Blows have achieved with the build up to their stormer of an album. Expectations that have been met and surpassed by what will undoubtedly go on to be one of the top albums of the year on the Spanish Indie scene. The Blows have arrived at gale force speed, to confirm that Vigo, a small town in Galicia, in the far north of Spain, is at the epicenter of the rock/post punk/new wave scene in Spain, recovering a legacy left over from the 80s. Paralelling northern England’s contribution to the annals of rock history due to the heady combination of grey, depressed, post industrial cities and the frustrations and dreams of those who grow up there, The Blows use their songs as an escape valve, a channel for their anger and their energy and a demand for validation.

“Upskirts” however, is more than just a fine young band\'s debut LP. It is a marking point, the first time that a Spanish band can truly claim to be contemporary to their British and American counterparts. Obvious comparisons are Libertines and The Strokes with a nod to those who led the way, such as Iggy and the Stooges and Talking Heads. Praise has come from no less than Alex Kapranos of Franz Ferdinand (who took the trouble to write an encouraging note on receiving a copy of the first demo) and, sharing a stage with Babyshambles at the Paredes de Coura Festival 2007 (The Blows are already so well known in Galicia and northern Portugal that they were invited prior to their debut LP even being released), Pete Docherty and fellow band members applauded wildly from the side of the stage.

Beyond the comparisons The Blows have such strength of character, despite their tender years (average age is 21) that they fought with producer Cristian Vogel, the genius behind remixes for the likes of Mäximo Park and Radiohead, refusing to accept some of his ‘final’ mixes. So convinced were they of the sound and concept they wanted for their first album that in preference and against all advice to the contrary they rerecorded and remixed several tracks themselves. The result? A devastatingly fine album that has shot into every major Spanish Indie DJs top ten and is being hailed as a masterpiece by all and sundry.

\"Sin City Lies\" opens proceedings with a declaration of intent, followed by \"Find Me and Satisfy Me\" with it’s perfect mix of teenage arrogance and desperate desire, clearly the result of a misspent youth spent soaking up Punk rock in whatever dive was hip at the time, then \"Damn 80s Hooker\", a story of how so many such nights end up. \"We Want You\" is, simply, a hit. \"Clint Eastwood\" defines a new genre perhaps? Western Rock? \"Disco\", the bastard mutant offspring of what was supposed to be a dance tune with Vogel at the controls. All sufficient ingredients to make The Blows this year’s band of the moment.