Short songs to cope with a long quarantine. Garzomorphosis released his fourth album so far this year, Ánimo. The frontman of renowned Peruvian bands such as Metamorphosis and Plug Plug took advantage of the pandemic to revive his solo project, which was abandoned for a long time, and give it a new sound.

In this new chapter, Garzo moves away from the experimental electronic indie with which he debuted as a soloist, and explores the genres characteristic of his previous projects. So we can find melodies that bring to mind Metamorphosis, plug-plugian guitar scraps, a powerful energy like in Los Huaycos, and even cumbiero sounds, a clear influence of Garzo’s last project: Los Descuajeringados del Norte.

Lyrically, the album intends to show the emotions of day-to-day life, hence the name of the album, Ánimo [translating as Mood or Mindset]. The compositions are visceral, not reaching the point of being naive, but having the simplicity and honesty that characterises Garzo’s work.

“Adaptándome a este nuevo mundo / Adaptándome a este nuevo mundo / No soy esencial, nunca fui esencial” [“Adjusting to this new world / I am not essential / I was never essential”] are the lyrics of “No Soy Esencial”, the first song of the album. The first two sentences refer to the pandemic situation we are experiencing. But what does he mean by “No soy esencial / Nunca fui esencial”? Well, we learn in the penultimate song of the album, “Museum Cerrado”, that Garzo works in a museum that remains closed because of the pandemic and therefore he’s unemployed. Is it a hidden criticism of the little importance given to the culture sector?

“Feliz Cumpleaños” is one of those songs you can play for your hard rock friends without leaving aside the emotion that accompanies this special day. “Today is the birthday of the best person on the planet / Today is the birthday of the best human being in the world”.

On Ánimo we can also find short stories of Garzo, situations with his friends and family. Such is the case of “Marihuana” that narrates the gift he received from Mark and Renzo: a jar full of weed. “Qué Felicidad” shows the joy that Garzo has because his son Gohan is home studying at his house. Finally, we can highlight “Dragon Ball”, a song in which Garzo expresses the emotion he felt when he found people to talk about Dragon Ball with.

As I said at the beginning, this album shows a soloist view of Garzo’s previous projects. We can perceive the influence of Plug Plug on the melodic structure of “Safari Culari” and “En Conclusion”, both instrumental themes that could be a continuation of the 2014 EP The Tape. On the other hand, songs like “A Tiempo” and “Horizonte” reveal the noise and hardcore characteristic of Los Huaycos. https://www.sravni.ru/osago/rsa/

Ánimo is an album that perfectly summarises Garzo’s more than 20 year old musical career. It is a perfect presentation for new listeners to discover the music of the singer and gritante [screamer].

Ánimo is released by Antirudo Records

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