Much in the way 2020 was a year in which political incompetence in the U.S. indirectly inspired some of the year’s best music—which otherwise wouldn’t have been made if a certain government wasn’t fumbling their response to a pandemic—self-taught multi-instrumentalist Alejandro Otero took advantage of music in the 2010s as a means of escaping the chaotic politics of his native Venezuela. Having since relocated to Madrid, Otero’s made quite a bit of progress on the musical front, with the release of his debut album slated for March 12.
He’s also made quite a bit of progress in terms of carving out his own sound—“Wasted Youth,” the latest track to be shared from None But Everyone, mixes guitar rock with disco drums, while sputtering electronics—and later an errant, feedback-heavy guitar—disrupts an otherwise tidy sound. Meanwhile his vocals reach an Animal Collective level of reverb (wonder if he ever runs into Panda Bear puttering around the Iberian Peninsula?).
“This is the first song I recorded from the album,” he notes. “It marks the transition in which I went from noisy tracks to attempting what for me felt like a better oriented approach to songwriting. I usually try not to make much sense with lyrics to avoid putting myself out there too much. Still, I always end up saying things I feel, subconsciously I guess. Looking back I realize this song is about time wasted while waiting for a change that won’t come.”
None But Everyone arrives March 12 on Babe City Records—pre-order it here.
