joliette

Joliette

Admittedly, I had never heard of this Joliette until I heard about their joint tour and also split Ep with Zaga Zaga. Only a few days before this show, I checked them out for the first time and really liked what I heard. They play Converge-like hardcore but seeing as I've never been that much of a converge fan, I have to add that this is much better, in my opinion.
From time to time, the band play similar crazy hardcore like Zaga Zaga, like on Pisca de Cotsco from their split Ep with said band and on Todos Odian from their Principia album. Even on both those songs, Joliette add a hint of melodic hardcore, sometimes similar to bands like Glassjaw and Finch, and even heavy beatdown bits to switch it all up and it sounds great. Il Yonzorno, from their split with LYED from Texas, is very melodic and diverse in its dynamics and thus my favourite from the set.
Just like Joliette during the Zaga Zaga set, Zaga Zaga and some others more familiar with the band were going nuts. At one point, Zaga Zaga drummer Heshbon got on stage and sang with them.
The band, like the others, are full of energy live. Bassist Gaston and guitarist Fernando give it everything, both vocally and physically. Other guitarist Juan also rocks out in the corner of the stage while drummer Gabo gives some of the best drumming I've ever seen. There were times when I was just totally mesmerised by his display of innovation.
When it comes to bands who play this sort of hardcore, I was definitely impressed by Joliette and hope they get more recognition. I hope they enjoyed their time out here, because we certainly did.

4.5/5 - Jonathan Miller

Joliette's Facebook page lists the band's genre as "post-everything." I've been trying to decide whether that means that their music contains elements of post-rock, post-metal, post-punk, and post-hardcore, or whether that means it's post-music in general. Maybe it has a post-apocalyptic sentiment to it. But with Principia (lit. "it begins"), I understand the band's desire to tag themselves as another genre; it's clear that Joliette doesn't fit a mold.

I was taken by surprise the first time I listened to "Quiral." The previous song had been a cool post-hardcore cut similar to their previous songs, but didn't particularly stand out. I expected the rest of the album to continue as such. Halfway through "Quiral," the band completely alters the song's frantic pace to a distant post-rock groove. As singer Fernando Obregón adds his painfully emotional screams, it becomes clear that Joliette is not aiming to make accessible music or follow a formula. While such a statement may seem redundant, the lengths at which the band goes to prove it make for a valid case.

The band continues to evolve its sound as the album progresses. The catchy choruses of "Czirros" and "Califonria Yisus" reflect a noticeable influence from post-hardcore contemporaries like Circa Survive and Glassjaw. Both would be worthy singles, but neither stands out on the album as much as the song between them, "Qúmulos." If there's any single one justification for Joliette to link themselves to post-rock, here it is. The dark ambience that the band summons for the first 3 minutes is quite impressive, featuring bassist Gastón Prado pushing along the soothing melody.

Perhaps the strongest element of Principia is Gabriel Mendoza's drumming. Between the varying time signatures and dynamics, his playing is oddly precise. He certainly contributes to album's overall feel of unpredictability, especially in "Norte y Bravo" and "Todos Odian." Also worth a specific mention is Fernando Obregón's vocal work. There's something unique about a vocalist that can scream and be understood clearly (the excellent production quality deserves some recognition for this). Even with my poor understanding of Spanish, I can understand more of the lyrics here than the average metalcore album.

What really defines Joliette's efforts with this release is defiance. With the abundance of music in the world today, it's tempting for bands to want to produce more accessible music and focus on advertising. In this case, accessibility and advertising are an afterthought. In Principia, the band leaves behind genre boundaries in search of something interesting. And somewhere in the dissonant, complex rhythms, they find it. - Alex Richmond

We’ve been having a blast over here listening to El Sonido and checking on how much people in the U.S, are digging these mexican bands you’ve been playing. All we can say is “thanks!” and I feel like it’s about time for me to show you three of the most outstanding names in the mexican under scene.

Yes, every single name I’ve wrote on these letters has made a great contribution to the music we’re listening nowadays in different venues and gigs, but I really believe that these three guys I’m about to show you have made a huge difference not only for us as fans, you know? They’ve proven to other bands that the winning formula to success is not in mainstream media or the hope of waiting for a big producer to come and find you, but in the hunger for playing in every fucking place they give you the chance to do it and pulling you heart out in every single show.

It’s not just about screaming and sweating all over the stage, is about the true emotions they send with every song they play because they are honest, hard work musicians that take shit from nobody and that also wait for no one to save their asses if things get rough. It’s funny that I am writing this letter for someone who lives in Seattle, a city that for us in México is the home of great bands and artists that resemble a lot to the way of live of Lng/SHT, Joliette and No Somos Marineros, the three recomendations from PLOP Radio this week.

If this picture doesn’t tell you anything man, I honestly don’t know what to say to you. Joliette is a straight hard punch to the face that will knock your teeth out and leave you kissing the floor. This is one of the most sincere and hard-working bands on the mexican music scenario nowadays. When SXSW didn’t book any gigs for them, they traveled to Austin anyways just to see if they could catch one. Can you imagine that? I guess you do cause there are a lot of bands in the US that do that, but here in México is pretty different because money is ALWAYS an issue. But hey! they did the travel even when nothing was confirmed, and after playing with No Somos Marineros in a lonely park in front of 7 or 8 people, someone thought “dude, we should totally give them a shot” and they rocked the place out.

Joliette is an impressive band becase eventhough they are pretty fast, loud and wild, they trully believe in what they do and after actually getting what they shout in their lyrics, you realized their songs are very deep. They don’t know how to say “NO” to a gig. If someone in Cuba, Canadá or USA tells them to go and play, they will withouth asking questions. Same here in México City. If you are a low budget colective but want them in your show, they will go and ask just for the minimum because they do it for the music, everything else is just an extra. - Erich E. Mendoza