''A Raw Youth'' is the third album by

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

band

Le Butcherettes Le Butcherettes is a Mexican garage punk band formed in 2007 in Guadalajara by Teri Gender Bender. History Le Butcherettes was created by vocalist/guitarist Teri Gender Bender, who later recruited drummer Auryn Jolene to form a duo. Their liv ...

, released on September 18, 2015 via

Ipecac Recordings Ipecac Recordings is an independent record label based in California. It was founded on April 1, 1999 by Greg Werckman (ex-label manager of Alternative Tentacles, ex-lead singer of DUH, ex-employee of Mercury Records) and Mike Patton (Faith No M ...

Lyrics and themes

The album examines themes of personal and social oppression. "Shave the Pride" originated as a diatribe against Gender Bender's bearded lover hiding behind "masses of hair". After rewrites, the song's "outrage and frustration" became directed against society's "unwillingess to view all perceptions of story... hiding behind the mass media." "La Uva” uses a symbol of a grape to represent "a fragile being that can be stepped on. But, the ink from its body stains and is seen by other people." It was originally recorded by

Bosnian Rainbows Bosnian Rainbows was an American art rock band from El Paso, Texas, formed in 2012. The band consists of former the Mars Volta members Omar Rodríguez-López (guitar, backing vocals) and Deantoni Parks (drums, keyboards), alongside Le Butcherette ...

, but remained unreleased. The studio version by Le Butcherettes samples the Bosnian Rainbows version. "Sold Less Than Gold" was partially inspired by Gender Bender's trip to Iran. According to her, "the song was written with women from the Middle East in mind - women that were being sold from their family to strangers. Being raped and mutilated." It's about "women (...) sold into marriages or into sex slavery and how resilient their spirits are.” "The Hitch Hiker" plays out a call-and-response between a hitchhiker and the man who picks her up. The situation escalates into kidnapping and murder. "My Half" deals with "finding closure with the loss of an unjust death."

Reception

''A Raw Youth'' received generally favorable reviews. ''Consequence of Sounds Karen Gwee wrote that the album "marks Le Butcherettes’ triumphant entrance to the mainstream rock arena, accomplished with no compromise to their identity."

Track listing

All music and lyrics written by

Teri Gender Bender Teresa Suárez Cosío (born May 15, 1989), commonly known by her stage name Teri Gender Bender, is an American singer and musician, known primarily as the founding member, lead singer, and guitarist of Guadalajara-based rock band Le Butcherettes ...

Personnel

Le Butcherettes *

- vocals, guitar, keyboards * Chris Common - drums * Jamie Aaron Aux - bass Additional musicians *

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...

- guest vocals on "La Uva" *

John Frusciante John Anthony Frusciante (; born March 5, 1970) is an American musician, best known as the guitarist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers across three stints since 1988. He has released 11 solo albums and 7 EPs, ranging in style from acoustic guitar to e ...

- guitar & synth bass on "My Half" *

Deantoni Parks Deantoni Parks (born November 2, 1977) is an American new wave/avant-garde/experimental musician. He is the co-founder, co-producer and drummer of the New York band KUDU along with artist Sylvia Black, and one half of the writing duo We Are Dar ...

- verse drums on "La Uva" * Marcel Rodríguez-López - percussion & bass (Moog) synth on "Stab My Back" and "Lonely & Drunk" Production *

Omar Rodríguez-López Omar Alfredo Rodríguez-López (born September 1, 1975) is an American guitarist and songwriter. He has formed or played in several bands, including the Mars Volta, At the Drive-In, Antemasque, and Bosnian Rainbows. He was the bassist for the ...

- producer * Jon DeBaun, Joe Galdo & Hart Gunter - engineering * Chris Common - engineering, mixing and mastering * Mackie Osborne - design and layout

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raw Youth 2015 albums Le Butcherettes albums Ipecac Recordings albums Albums produced by Omar Rodríguez-López