The Linda Lindas – Growing Up (Bonus Edition) (Music Review)

The Linda Lindas – Growing Up (Bonus Edition) This album, by the American rock band, is the first studio album by The Linda Lindas. Epitaph Records released the album on 8 April 2022. It was produced by Carlos de la Garza, father of band members Lucia and Mila de la Garza. The recording sessions for Growing Up took place at Music Friends in Los Angeles from June to October 2021.

Growing Up is a punk rock album, but has also been classified under Pop Punk and Power Pop. Obviously, there’s a Riot Grrrl influence here, with lyrics that focus on themes of growing up, self-discovery and anxieties that arise in adolescence. The album was written during the COVID-19 pandemic, which limited the band’s ability to write together.

According to Wikipedia: ‘Growing Up received generally favourable reviews and appeared on several year-end lists in 2022. The album reached number 19 on Billboard’s US album sales chart. It also reached an international level, peaking at number 49 on Japan’s Oricon Albums Chart and number 4 on the UK Independent Album Breakers Chart. Ray Barbee and Bikini Kill Kathleen singer Hanna made cameos in the videos for the four singles released from the album, including ‘Nino’, ‘Growing Up’ and ‘Talking To Myself’.

To promote Growing Up, the Linda Lindas are embarking on a tour at the end of 2022, playing with two other bands I love: Japanese Breakfast and Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

This band are fans of and have done many covers of The Go-Go’s, Le Tigre, as well as Bikini Kill and The Muffs.

Punk rock isn’t dead and still has plenty of years ahead of it thanks to this kind of band who sing in three languages, mostly English, sometimes Spanish and the last song on the Bonus Edition album, Linda Linda, is in Japanese. In Spanish, the band is reminiscent of Killer Barbies, of course!

Racist, Sexist Boy is an anti-racist song. There are songs I like a bit less, like Fine, and others I particularly like, like Remember or the title track Growing Up. But on the whole, it’s very good work with a great infectious energy. I feel enthusiastic, fit and happy when I listen to this music.

My Rating