Cansado? Muy Cansado! | Electronic Press Kit

Where we come from.

Muy Cansado is a band made up of David Fine, Lisa Libera, and Chris Mulvey. Lisa and Dave met while studying music at UMass Lowell where the two became the best of friends and music co-conspirators. After graduating they moved to Somerville where they decided to form a band. That’s where they met Chris.

The three clicked over similar ideas about music. They played with several of Chris’ songs, and began to develop a sound. They took their name, Muy Cansado, from a patch of graffiti in their rehearsal space in Allston. It means “very tired.”

The band spent time developing a large catalogue of material and honing their sound while playing around the Northeast. They played popular Boston and New York clubs, biker bars, beaches, anywhere they could, gaining notoriety for their live chemistry. They recently recorded their debut album, Stars & Garters, at Q Division in Somerville. The album is set for release Summer 2008.

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CD Diguardia, Northeast Performer, June 2008

Muy Cansado isn’t offering any quick or easy hints into their sound. The group's name hints at some form of multi-nationalism; an odd play for a mostly Boston-based band. While the band’s sound occasionally wanders down dusty roads and past cacti and tumbleweeds, they are perfectly average-looking people completely opening themselves on the stage.

Vocalist/guitarist Chris Mulvey is one figurehead of the three-pronged attack, with his big, and seemingly never falling out of shape coif. Mulvey’s laid back, gentle and generally affable demeanor changes however as he picks up the guitar and steps up the microphone. He closes his eyes, tilts his head slightly to the side and doesn’t so much sing, as he lets the sound somehow escape his body. Mulvey's vocals, sometimes tortured, sometimes violent, sometimes beaten-down, always begs the question “What’s going on with these people?”

Theatrical vocals and scattershot guitar aside, Muy Cansado is rounded out with bassist Lisa Libera and drummer Dave Fine. Libera has the girl-next-door look down pat. One might expect her to have an excellent record collection or somehow know everyone on her block. It’s obvious, however, that she works the bass guitar with such proficiency and style as to be possibly one of the best bassists in town. Libera’s expressive bass parts often state the melody of the song and with melodies so thoughtful and expressive as any “lead” instrument could sound. The real highlight of Libera’s playing is not her technical wizardry, but her near-angelic smile that crosses her face as her fingers spider out seemingly impossible sounding bass parts. Watching her play bass could make the entire world want to play bass.

Dave Fine, formerly Libera’s roommate, moved to New York City, a move that usually spells band death. This would seem like a crushing blow for Muy Cansado, a band that dodged a bullet when Mulvey moved to Los Angeles for a few months. “We made him come back,” affirms Fine. While carving out a niche for himself in New York as a soundman, he still finds the time to come back to Boston for band practice or a show. “It averages out to about once every one and a half weeks,” he explains, barely batting an eyelash at the trip. Fine’s unique geographical situation enables the band to plant a foot in both major markets of New York and Boston. Sometimes Fine shuttles to Boston, sometimes Libera and Mulvey pack up and drive to New York. “We were concentrating on the recording for a while,” says Mulvey, “But now we’re ready to play.”

“It’s all right there, man,” shrugs Mulvey. “There,” according to Mulvey, is the group’s newest record, Stars and Garters, a follow-up to the late 2007 EP Amuses Bouche. “This has the songs from Amuses Bouche,” explains Mulvey, slightly stumbling over the term before Libera swoops in with the proper pronunciation (“A Moose-Boosh”). The songs are mostly the same between Amuses Bouche and Stars and Garters, but the production value has skyrocketed. Not content to simply recycle prior recordings, the trio went to Boston’s esteemed Q Division studio and re-recorded everything, lending new breath to songs such as “Soul Song” and “Stockholm Syndrome.”

Having spent the past autumn and winter in the studio, the trio looks forward to a spring and summer on the road and on the stage. Muy Cansado is here to play and only asks that everyone listen.

CD Diguardia, Northeast Performer, January 2008

Muy Cansado’s new EP Amuses Bouche starts with a display of guitar artillery that sounds like no less than 17 guitars rattling off the non-standard-yet-familiar chord changes of “Kiss the World.” Lead vocalist and guitarist Chris Mulvey rails on the microphone like a modern day, not-so-stoned Bob Dylan and bassist Lisa Libera chimes in with a decidedly more melodic counterpoint on back-up vocals.

The back-up vocals are an item of interest on Amuses Bouche; sometimes lead vocalist Mulvey is not singing a melody so much as hinting at one. Libera, on the other hand, has a highly musical voice and often finds herself acting as the song's melodic centerpiece. This vocal interplay creates an interesting vocal juxtaposition that teeters on the edge of harmony and discord. It is a fun exercise, switching listening concentration back and forth between the point/counterpoint of this wonderfully melodic record.

While Mulvey and Libera fuss back and forth on the vocals, drummer David Fine makes a non-vocal contribution to the record in the way of solid beats that keep things going. The trio really hits its stride on songs such as “The Other Night,”" a bumping one-two semi-shuffle; Fine rumbles along and keeps things interesting on the percussive side, while Mulvey stretches his voice to new lengths for the occasional refrain. The entire deal is also permeated—as is every other song— by the articulate bass work of Libera, a four-stringed force to be reckoned with. Her bass lines drive more than a few of the songs on Amuses Bouche, as the guitar performance is mainly centered on roiling chords. Libera’s bass provides a stable main riff over the distorted churn of Mulvey's guitar. The EP ends with “Soul Song,” a standout vocal performance by Mulvey demonstating his talent for writing subtly evocative lyrics and singing them with just the right amount of dynamic gusto. With an EP this good, one has to wonder what a full-length would sound like.

Joel Simches, The Noise, February 2008

“While evoking the obvious Pixies and Velvet Underground influences, Muy Cansado seems to throw a little Tex-Mex into the atmosphere with songs like The Other Night and Soul Song. There are flashes of high energy fun in the song Couldn’t Have Said it Better, but the sludgy low budget sound of this demo hardly does justice to the talent of this band. Fortunately the band is re-recording these tunes with the mighty Jon Lupfer and we’ll get to here how great these songs can really be. I certainly hope the new and improved recordings can capture the spontaneous fun this demo engenders.”

Aaron, Enough Cowbell, December 2007

“Three piece bands featuring a shirtless and shoeless drummer with dreads hanging down to his chest scare me. Luckily, I was entertained with a solid performance with absolutely no hints of that awful jam rock people so happily gobble up.

Muy Cansado draws little influence from the festering patchouli soaked swamps that are home to the likes of M.O.E., Widespread Panic, String Cheese Incident, State Radio and others but; rather, from the likes of the Pixies and Talking Heads. Their set even featured a cover of “Psycho Killer,” which was quite good. Although “Psycho Killer,” is one of the most approachable songs in the Talking Heads catalogue, any time a band can play a good Heads cover they instantly get my respect.

Muy Cansado definitely has a lot of potential and they are currently working on a full album. The songs they played live that were not on the EP were very strong so I’m looking forward to the LP’s release in early 2008. The recording quality can be a bit lacking so definitely check them out live before making a final judgement. Muy Cansado is certainly a local band to keep you eye (or ear, whichever is applicable here) on.”

Mike Mineo, Obscure Sound,November 2007

“Yo La Tengo had the grace and ability to demonstrate that even a band from central New Jersey founded by a bunch of white guys could pull off a Spanish name. Though it certainly helped that their name ("I have it") derived from the all-American game of baseball, the translated phrase of “very tired” for the up-and-coming trio Muy Cansado remains to be an aspect that we can all universally relate to: exhaustion. We all get it, especially this time of year. Mid-terms looming, the shopping rush, cold weather, holiday commercialization… the list goes on and on. Though the name does not roll off the tongue as smoothly as Yo La Tengo, Muy Cansado's music is just as enjoyably accessible. Ironically enough, the Massachusetts-based trio capitalizes on similar strengths to their bilingually named predecessors. With a knack for glimmering guitar hooks, dreamy melodies, and snarling vocals with ostensible angst, one might be reminded more of the Pixies when listening to Muy Cansado. Suitably enough, their MySpace lists their hometown as “Future City”. Though their influences from the past are shown aplenty, Muy Cansado's contemporary methods of production remain very noteworthy. If this is what the future sounds like, I'm in.

Like many bands I have come across, the three members in Muy Cansado met while studying at the same university. The two founding members, David Fine and Lisa Libera, ran into each other at the University of Massachussetts and immediately became best friends over a mutual love for music. As familiar as that seems, it often seems the formula for success. Bands founded by a natural bond for music is, in most cases, a resounding success. Wonder why boy bands only last a few months at most? Apart from generic songwriting, they are all bounded financially and chosen by top-tier executives. Natural pairing is what music was made for. It is always nice to see this ideology stay alive; it is one of the reasons why indie music continues to dominate in terms of innovation. As for the rest of Muy Cansado, the two ran into the third member, Chris Mulvey, when they made the move to Somerville (“Future City”?). Mulvey was a veteran of the Boston music scene and had plenty of experience to share with Fine and Libera, not to mention him being an impressive lead guitarist and vocalist. With Mulvey on guitar and vocals, Libera on bass and occasional vocals, and Fine handling the percussion, Muy Cansado's adept lineup was solidified last year.

Occasionally, when writing about a new artist, I find myself in a dilemma when attempting to choose which songs I should post. Considering that I never post something that I personally find to be lacking in quality, this is always a delightful situation. It applies to Muy Cansado; from their available songs, all are of equal complacency. Though the trio has yet to release an album or even an EP, they have five songs available as a free download on their web site. The band states that the songs available are merely demos and that they are now in the studio working on final versions for the majority of them. They are in the midst of a selection process for their currently untitled debut album, choosing which songs to include and improve upon. Judging by the consistency of their eight available songs (3 more are available on their MySpace), Muy Cansado's debut could be something special. Though I consider Riding High, The Other Night, and Erased to be the cream of the crop, Couldn't Have Said it Better and Soul Song are equally as good (both available exclusively via MySpace). Those two songs, The Other Night", and Kiss the World were included on a sampler collection, Amuses Bouche, that serves as an anticipation for their big full-length debut in 2008. Their band name is in Spanish and their releases (so far) are in French; it makes sense that their music is as open-minded as their global outlook.

To keep things somewhat straightforward, I usually post three songs per post. I had to make an exception with Muy Cansado though; I wanted to expose their cumulative stylistic diversity in three songs but it proved impossible. Though they stray on similar grounds of late '80s and early '90s college-rock and alternative, the influences are merely one of many factors as the vocal, rhythmic, and melodic presentations differ significantly in substance. The diversity is a breath of fresh air, especially with each song being of near equal quality. Riding High is definitely my favorite out of the bunch, with Pixies comparisons ringing prominently and proudly. Mulvey has a similar tone of snarling angst to Frank Black, with the tone and emotional output being eerily similar. Though it may sound bold, he pulls it off just as well. The chorus-led hook of the song is driven by a series of pulsating guitar riffs that are followed by an impressive solo, much like a more repetitive version of Sonic Youth or Yo La Tengo. In comparison, the catchy The Other Night is led by Mulvey's vocal melody and Libera's enthralling bass line. The guitar progression is touched with tinges of ska and reggae, though the Sublime comparisons are found primarily in the guitar's rhythmic pattern alone.

Soul Song is a very impressive effort, with the duet between Mulvey and Libera in the chorus serving as one of Muy Cansado's most touching moments. "You've got your soul and I ain't got no," they sing over an acoustic and electric guitar clashing simultaneously, with Mulvey letting out a perfectly timed melodic yelp as the bridge between the chorus and verse. Libera's vocal ability is further demonstrated in the woozy Erased. Though she ocassionally reaches an awkward off-key moment, her ardent clamors and howls during the song's chorus are excellent displays of her potential. It is nice to see Muy Cansado utilize the vocal collaboration between her and Mulvey. They are both quite talented in both their instrumental and vocal aspects, reminding me of the great Frank Black-Kim Deal duo in numerous ways. Let's not forget David Fine either; his percussion work in every song thus far is precise and near flawless. If Muy Cansado calls songs of these quality demos, I can't wait to hear the final versions. If they stay true to their tested approach, Muy Cansado's upcoming album should be outstanding.”

Three Imaginary Girls, May 2007

“Muy Cansado were well worth enduring the horrors of the previous act. A guitar-bass-drums trio, they played a long set with songs flavored by influences like The Pixies and David Bowie. Guitarist/vocalist Chris Mulvey sang passionately and fluidly while bassist Lisa Libera and drummer David Fine held down the rhythm. Libera’s left fingers were impressively nimble and she provided lead and backup vocals as well, visibly in a zone with a big smile on her face the whole time. They rocked exquisitely and had the room enchanted, securing a spot on my mental “bands to watch” list.”

C.D Di Guardia, Northeast Performer, February 2007

“After submitting to the Half-Nelsons, the Bulfinch Yacht Club crowd had a wholly different holiday present sitting under the two foot tall tree on the bar: the three members of Muy Cansado. Displaying an almost eerie calm Chris Mulvey, Lisa Libera, and David Fine took their places on the small stage; Fine behind The Half-Nelsons drum kit, Libera to the right side with her bass and Mulvey on the left on guitar. Mulvey is a normal looking fellow with an extraordinary voice—a strong and forceful call that seems to have its own built in reverb effect. He often closed his eyes tilted his head back and crooned effortlessly into the mic. In the end, Muy Cansado provided a satisfying payoff, transforming a downtown club into a dusty saloon.”

Dustin Lee, On Air DJ: WRBB, January 2007

“The thing about Muy Cansado is that you listen to them once and you get it, then you listen to them twice and you don’t get it, and then the third time… ah enlightenment.”

Jennifer Lord, MetroWest Daily News, October 2006

“Their name means ‘very tired,’ but Muy Cansado sounds wide awake. The three-piece rock band—Chris Mulvey on vocals and guitar, Lisa Libera on [vocals and] bass and David Fine on drums—got their start through an ad on Craig’s list. The group is tightly knit [and] influenced by The Pixies, The Talking Heads, The Beatles and Radiohead, with touches of Nirvana.”