Tasty + B Sides

Album Review

Mosaic rock en español duo Plastilina Mosh had a whopping three major-label albums to their name when, in true DJ style, they decided it was time to release the 2006 double-disc compilation Tasty + B Sides. This comes at a time when things have been quiet in the musical scene of all-over-the-map artists like Beck (who discovered the band at Austin's South by Southwest music festival). Fans will find more than table scraps with this release, however, as the first disc includes four new tracks in addition to its 11 previously released ones. The second disc's 14 B-sides could, for all intents and purposes, be considered a new studio album, as the band's frantically eclectic approach is a cohesive theme in and of itself, essentially making it irrelevant that the tracks were not originally recorded as a single record. If it weren't for the group's studio-savvy half, Alejandro Rosso, the record's consecutive and sometimes simultaneous uses of hip-hop, lo-fi, techno, punk, lounge, pop, rock, and Latin would be mush. It would be the coolest mush you'd ever heard, but mush nonetheless. As it stands, Tasty + B Sides is constructed so meticulously that listeners are free to rock out and groove with only select moments of fun, intentional confusion. Despite vocalist Jonas' enviable punk rock yowl and mighty rap delivery, the music that Plastilina Mosh creates on this release doesn't take itself too seriously; quirky lyrics, bouncing rhythms, and moments of endearing cultural self-parody (see "Alo" and "El Sirenito") keep the album approachable. This subtle sense of self-deprecation never becomes a cop-out; it just lets the Mosh boys level with the listener. They know what you're hearing is pretty out there and they're just inviting you along for the ride.