Running in hot with their second album, Talkie Talkie on City Slang Records, Los Bitchos sprinkle their joyful global sounds that would sit pretty anywhere from a wedding dance floor, a hike through a rainforest or a sunset pool party.
In an age of the profound “what does it all mean” lyric, a lot can be said for letting the music doing the talkie talkie as much as the walkie walkie, and apart from occasional peppering of euphoric chorus “Hey hey hey hey hey” etc. on La Bomba, the inviting “Hi!” on the opener Talkie Talkie, Charlie Charlie or my personal favourite “Suck on that one, bitch” on the same track, we are treated to a kaleidoscope of strutting guitar lines, delightful bass and simmering percussion and even little licks of synth. Don’t Change truly encapsulates the sound and vision of Los Bitchos as some kind of Technicolor bombastic party we’ve all been invited to.
The all female outfit is made up of lead guitarist Serra Petale, of Australian and Turkish heritage, Uruguayan synth and keytar player Agustina Ruiz, Swedish bassist Josefine Jonsson and British drummer Nic Crawshaw. And as we heard on their awesome 2022 debut Let the Festivities Begin, such pan-continentalism means this is a band firmly fixated on providing a world wide sound from Cumbia to Eastern European psychedelic rock and West coast surf pop.
The band cite the sound of the 80s as a big slice of their inspiration but the album feels vividly cinematic too. Kiki, You Complete Me sounds like an incredibly high budget Miami heist movie soundtrack but throughout Talkie Talkie you will want to doff your fedora to passers by in a small town you’ve never been to, on a horse you didn’t know you could ride especially on tracks like 1K! and Open the Bunny, Wasting My Time. A sci-fi Western with guitars for guns and bass for bullets.
Los Bitchos bring the joy and fun to what sounds like an intensive recording process, bashing out the record in just over a month at London’s RAK Studios and Lightship95 with producer Oli Barton-Wood (Wet Leg, Nilüfer Yanya). The growing consensus is that this is a record and a band you need to hear live. Fortunately for us, their massive European tour kicks off in Autumn this year.
Talkie Talkie may feel retro at times to some but honestly who gives a flying shimmering saucer when the vibe is this good? A perfect soundtrack to keep your summer adventure going after the credits have long rolled.
