BODEGA is a collective that might be just as vital to the New York scene as the small corner store/market they share their name with. Comprised of members Ben Hozie (conductor, vocals, guitar), Nikki Belfiglio (art director, vocals, samples, hi-hat), Heather Elle (bass), and Madison Velding Vandam (lead guitar, producer) and the recently recruited Tai Lee (percussion), BODEGA has stood out as one of the most compelling acts of the moment. The group channels the avant-garde, anti-conformist elements of post-punk with an excellency that’s unprecedented; with their sophomore record, Shiny New Model (released October 11th via What’s Your Rupture?), that fact is only further cemented.
The record’s eponymous single, “Shiny New Model,” was released on August 15th: with the holistic album considered, this is a strong opener, and it’s accompanying video — paper mache ATM and all — is a masterpiece.
BODEGA asks, “Tell, don’t you relate to the state of that silver sepulchre? Tell me, don’t you feel used?” mimicking the action of swiping one’s card for cash with swiping up and down someone’s chest—a transaction of intimacy. As this track describes, we’re constantly in competition with one another, unafraid to use others so that we can avoid being used ourselves, whether for sex, for networking, for information, or otherwise.
Even aside from simple human interactions and dating apps, though, the music industry mimics this sense of cutthroat behavior: as they describe, we’re constantly drawn to want the newest, the best, and the most cutting-edge; this rings true in terms of the debate between Apple and Android and stands true in terms of audience expectations from an artist standpoint. For bands on the come-up, audiences expect a “shiny new model” and if you’re not providing something new, something people haven’t seen before, something shocking, something worth talking about…then what’s the point? You’ll just get “swiped” on and completely forgotten about.
Throughout the rest of the record, BODEGA remains as compelling as ever, proving that if we abide by the ridiculous standards mentioned in the previous track, we should absolutely “swipe right.”
“Treasures Of the Ancient World,” a track that, for some reason, heavily reminds me of any number of tracks off of Nirvana’s Nevermind (1991) and evokes imagery of the 2001 Disney movie, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, is a more somber note. With a track, this heavily guitar-focused and bouncy, the band takes an introspective step back. “I’m searching for the scent of a secret,” Hozie whines. The question is: whose secret, and about what?
“Domesticated Animal” is one of the album’s most poignant tracks, and it’s executed masterfully. Opening with a simplistic, speak-singing style and synthetic drum-beat, Belfiglio describes an obsession with a ‘blue screen,’ a need to be “told what to think,” and a desire to be like the “women [she] desires.” She delves into the daily motions we fall into and the ridiculousness of it all: with today’s media- and image-obsessed vision, we’ve lost sight of how to be people, how to exist without constantly consuming content, how not to let the opinions of others affect the way we carry ourselves. In essence, part of becoming “domesticated” is getting used to the idea that the Internet is our metaphorical fifth limb; it’s something that we’ve become so used to having that imagining living without it, without the constant judgment that social media brings, is unfathomable.
“No Vanguard Revival” draws on the hallmark post-punk sound that one might expect out of the group, and despite it’s 1-minute running time, it’s energy-packed. Combining Hozie’s speak-sing style with Belfiglio’s assisting vocals chiming in from time-to-time, it’s decidedly a power anthem and adds to the album’s holistic diversity.
Belfiglio’s gritty, raw vocals continue to shine on tracks such as “Knife on the Platter.” Accompanied by Elle’s skillful bass-playing, sharp and clean, it’s a mix that makes me imagine a crowd dancing along like something out of a Charlie Brown Christmas special in response.
The record closes with two different versions of the track, “Truth is Not Punishment,” the Long and the Short (trimmed for radio). As described in the record’s press release, this two-version split occurred due to a desire to experiment: “The band has been using this song as a vehicle for extended live improvisation for a year and decided to use a day of the EP’s session to experiment with capturing live improvisation in the studio.” BODEGA’s greatness lies in their chemistry as a band: in their ability to be creative, to blow the lid off of conventions, and to not be defined by any genre. With a record such as this, a collection of tracks that each have something distinct to say, it’s clear that everything is deliberate, despite their underlying spontaneity. In essence, BODEGA has been able to take the idea of a jam band and completely spin it on its head.
Shiny New Model, in a word or two, is just plain excellent — and I can only imagine how it would be translated into a live atmosphere. BODEGA, 5-members strong, has capitalized on their ability to be different, and with their unique view on what the world needs in terms of sound today, one can only hope that they’ll be able to break through into the mainstream.
