Bodega Satellite

Let’s give a warm, enthusiastic welcome to Bodega Satellite, an upstart New Jersey trio who are ostensibly here to inform us that a ‘90s angst-rawk revival might be lurking around the corner. Helmed by Alberto Rios, who usually opts to sing in his native Hispanic tongue, Bodega’s chunky riffola and sharp dynamics are just the musical components we’ve been hankering for to bring on the post-grunge headache that never quite dissipated for some of us. - Neal Agneta

Exploding from your speakers with a highly exciting blast of sheer go-for-it rip-roaring gusto, this 9 song album shakes and rattles up a fabulously ringing and tuneful storm from rousing start to thrilling finish. The raspy, yet smooth and spirited vocals glide over a fierce array of shreddin’ guitars, seething basslines, and relentless jackhammer drums. Although most of the lyrics are in Spanish, the music still manages to be quite infectious and enjoyable just the same. Which only goes to prove once again that music is a truly universal language that crosses all known racial and cultural boundaries. An excellent album.

Jersey Beat (Joe Wawrzyniak) - Joe Wawrzyniak

Exploding from your speakers with a highly exciting blast of sheer go-for-it rip-roaring gusto, this 9 song album shakes and rattles up a fabulously ringing and tuneful storm from rousing start to thrilling finish. The raspy, yet smooth and spirited vocals glide over a fierce array of shreddin’ guitars, seething basslines, and relentless jackhammer drums. Although most of the lyrics are in Spanish, the music still manages to be quite infectious and enjoyable just the same. Which only goes to prove once again that music is a truly universal language that crosses all known racial and cultural boundaries. An excellent album.

Jersey Beat (Joe Wawrzyniak) - Joe Wawrzyniak

Here’s something a bit outside the mainstream. The prickly, angular and aggressive trio from New Jersey sings en Español. Well, when there’s vocals, they do, anyway. Bassist Christopher Rousseau suggests the band sounds “a bit like the Pixies (if they sang in Spanish)”. It’s true that guitarist Alberto Rios does have a voice similar to Black Francis. Musically, the sounds on Bodega Satellite are well-textured, balancing a nasty sonic attack with just the right touch of melody. The melody of “Al Fin” swings, almost, but the heavy delivery keeps it firmly in rock territory. The changeups in meter on a few of the songs – see “Abrazame” for a prime example — suggest arty aspirations form this trio, but again the muscular playing keeps things firmly planted on the grimy street.

Musoscribe (Bill Kopp) - Bill Kopp

For those who love the Pixies and wish that Frank Black had spent more time screaming his conspiracy theories in Spanish, Bodega Satellite is your band. It is impossible to listen to their self-titled debut without being transported to those heady late-eighties days of early alternative rock.

These nine tracks - all but one of which is sung in Spanish - hold their own without sounding one bit retro. Bodega Satellite's jangly, angular guitars stand proudly alongside any of today's indie rock elite. There are enough rough punky edges and shimmery pop hooks to satisfy the ears of the masses.

Hailing from Woodbridge, NJ, and centered around Puerto Rico native singer/guitarist Alberto Rios, Bodega Satellite forego Latin rhythms in favor of their indie/alternative guitar rock sound while maintaining Alberto's Hispanic-ness through lyrics alone. It's a winning combination which may well earn them the status of indie rock darlings in the hipster wasteland of New York City and beyond.

Hybrid Magazine (George Dow) - George Dow

For those who love the Pixies and wish that Frank Black had spent more time screaming his conspiracy theories in Spanish, Bodega Satellite is your band. It is impossible to listen to their self-titled debut without being transported to those heady late-eighties days of early alternative rock.

These nine tracks - all but one of which is sung in Spanish - hold their own without sounding one bit retro. Bodega Satellite's jangly, angular guitars stand proudly alongside any of today's indie rock elite. There are enough rough punky edges and shimmery pop hooks to satisfy the ears of the masses.

Hailing from Woodbridge, NJ, and centered around Puerto Rico native singer/guitarist Alberto Rios, Bodega Satellite forego Latin rhythms in favor of their indie/alternative guitar rock sound while maintaining Alberto's Hispanic-ness through lyrics alone. It's a winning combination which may well earn them the status of indie rock darlings in the hipster wasteland of New York City and beyond.

Hybrid Magazine (George Dow) - George Dow