“What was old is new again”… The old adage is so tired that nobody takes its proper measure: all people hear is the word “old”, when the important one is “new”. Making new things out of old things is an act of alchemy. You take rusted lead and transform it into sparkling gold… The Velvet Underground, The Stooges, The Standells and other garage heroes; Ennio Morricone, John Barry and 1960’s Italian songs; The Cramps, of course, Nick Cave, Gainsbourg and tonic psych rock: Lionel and Marie from the Limiñanas know them all by heart, they worship them. They drink from that well and, after a good kneading and pounding, they make something else out of it. “We don’t do revivalism”, states Lionel from behind his beard. “In fact, some purists are accusing us of selling out, which is a good sign”.
The proof is in this new album which is blown right open here and there by a few very contemporary guests. Their single ‘Istanbul is Sleepy ’ is a kind of seismic shock: the Imprimatur of Anton Newcombe of The Brian Jonestown Massacre is simply enormous.
The track “Nuit Fantôme”, with psych rock pads played backwards forming a vaporous song bathed in acoustic arpeggios : an electroshock in talk over. Then comes Emmanuelles Seigner’s super sexy tornado on Shadow People; the Limiñanas were already fans of her album with Ultra Orange.
The rock’n’roll epiphany continues. It belongs to those who will listen to their album and will doubtless feel the urge to plug a guitar into an amp.