Campo-Formio's Spooky Fools piledrives the new year into oblivion.

Yes, this is another one. Fuck you.

There is something unabashedly sinister rising through the cracks, crumbling and annihilating any sort of anatomical order. It’s not the sequel to the Christmas Eve shakedown, it’s Campo-Formio’s latest release. “Spooky Fools”, the power trio’s latest extended-play (rocking under 20 mins.) installment to their canon of sonic chaos, is a little demonoid of caustic, and eclectic,  screwdriving rock n’ roll which will stuff you with delectable riffs,  if you weren’t stuffed enough from the holiday smorgasbord. And as if that wasn’t enough, the vinyl pressing ( a 10’ released on their own record label, “Dead Mofongo Records”) will be more than happy to work as a plate.

The record kicks out the jams with “Duende”, a snarling power punch to the gut that starts out unassumingly with instruments syncing up for the barrage, then moving into a manic drive through sweet licks and tight drumming before segueing into a sludgy breakdown. The rest of the track is a juggling act between sinister interludes and more upbeat crashes before finally shifting to an all-out garage-like blow-up. The lyrics epitomize the absurdly relentless challenge of the mythological beastie: “no hay una solución al problema” (“there is no solution to the problem”).

“Orgasmo Pixelado” follows with an angsty opening depicting a scene of marital infidelity. This torturous ( in the “rubs you in a good way” kind of way), angular and mathematical introduction makes a full 180 degrees turn promptly: instead of unleashing the structural violence which is expected out of such a cuckolded rendez-vous, it jumps into the foray of catchy phrases and riffs before transforming into a dreamy hypnotizing movement. The tracks kicks back into a traditional  Campo-Formio pulverizing cakewalk, with chants urging spiritual transcendence over the amorous turncoat maneuver saying “no te rindas mas” (“don’t give up anymore”), “aprende!” (“learn!”) and “tu puedes!” (“you can!”). This potential single represents a maturing of the band’s songwriting: exploring more subtle dynamics, using at their will ferocity with precociousness, textural distortion with chiming riffs.

The second side of the EP is more of experimental nature, exploring the aural tenets which the band is capable of. The first track, “Soundcheck”, is a mutating and evolving study on fuzz and feedback which gets into gear with revving vocals. Pounding drums and  punishing strings grow exponentially in the song (barely reaching the two minute mark) before the distortion caves in on itself, flowing into “The Xibalba Dance Proposal” a Casio-heavy composition (part of a dance piece co-written with Cristina Lugo)indulging everyone with vibrating synths galore. This odyssey into the Mayan underworld moves between the chambers of the spiritual world, exposing the adventurer to the trails of the beyond. The piece gravitates between the onerous and horrible, between a nightmare and a dream.

In terms of production, the record is decadently loud and lascivious. The trifecta-combo is mixed wonderfully. The bass and drums, courtesy of Ricardo Pérez and Diego Bernal respectively, set the foundation to all sound but are not limited to their wallflower demeanor, for they have ample elbow space and moments where they both bop and bump unto colorful and upbeat bass licks and thunderous drum rolls while Fernando Quintero’s guitar and synth playing add extra levels of depth and shining hooks to the savage mix. The vocal duties are split between the string section, complementing the dual singing with a playful relationship of brutality and joviality.

Vinyl pressing, by today’s standards is rare, but it’s slowly and begrudgingly to all tech nuts, making a comeback. The record sports a tasty golden transparent pressing and its cover is a beautiful technicolor bacchanalia (thanks to artists Javier Román) featuring an aging Fool (from the Tarot tradition) trotting on a treadmill-cum-conveyor belt which powers the torture of a cybernaut tied to the machine (while two other cyberpunks await to pummel the poor lad.) The elfish-ears on the mad Fool-doctor make him synonymous with the opening track’s protagonist, working furiously towards a non-existing goal or solution. For those without a record player, fear not, the album comes with a digital download.

“Spooky Fools” is clearly the year’s best local rock production, hands down (if they haven’t yet been chopped off because of the EP’s razor-sharp barrage). Cohesive, multi-facetious and most importantly, it’s explosive. The record takes you, tells you you’re a horrible person, then it’s an “I love you” then it leaves and does its own thing, and what’s great is that you go with it. Now what’s left is for the band to follow up this endeavor with a full-length release to take the stakes to a higher level.

Campo-Formio will be releasing “Spooky Fools” this Thursday at La Respuesta (Fernández Juncos Ave.) alongside the bands Los Petardos, Unidos NO, Tach. De.  The album will also available for purchase as a digital download at www.campoformio.bandcampo.com/album/spooky-fools.