Review Summary: "Somos Unos Animales" it's a bit of a letdown in comparison with their debut, but it contains enough Extremoduro classics to make it a worthy album!
After breaking up with their former company and gaining the status of a cult group in Extremadura, the region where all the members of Extremoduro originally hailed from, the group embarked on their second full-length album. Following the split from the Avispa label, with which they released their first album, they signed with another independent label called Area Creativa and recorded the album in Madrid in just two weeks. They enlisted the collaboration of a Spanish rock legend, Rosendo Mercado, who played guitar and sang in La Canción de los Oficios and only played guitar in Perro Callejero.
So, what do we find in "Somos Unos Animales"? In my opinion, it's an album where Roberto Iniesta (who composed all the songs) couldn't follow the excellent compositional path of "Tu en Tu Casa, Nosotros en La Hoguera", offering a series of slightly more conventional songs, anchored in the urban and street rock that was being made in Spain at that time. It slightly deviates from the themes of suffering love and raw romanticism prevalent in their first work.
However, to not be too negative, it must be acknowledged that the album sounds somewhat better than the previous one in terms of production. The group expanded their sound with the introduction of keyboards, female choruses, and even some wind instruments. Furthermore, even though the album cannot be considered excellent, it does offer three or four songs that can be considered authentic classics of the group, standing significantly above the rest, which I will highlight below.
Best Tracks: Tu Corazón (starts with a dark guitar and a heartbeat in the background, later offering a raw rock vibe and a fantastic lyric, very representative of Robe's way of writing, with an acceleration towards the end typical of Extremoduro's early period), Quemando tus Recuerdos (a very original pseudo-reggae start leads to intense phrases about lost love, a surprising chorus and all culminating again in another memorable final surge) and Necesito Droga y Amor (the best song of the album, offering a heavy and impressive Andalusian rock tune in just over three minutes, agan with outstanding lyrics)
Notable Mentions: Desidia (an optimistic and original guitar in the verses, and an almost disco-like ending once again showing Robe's progressive and innovative character when composing) and Resolución (Judas Priest influences for a song lacking a bit of catchiness and a better chorus).
Conclusion: With a slightly better sound than the previous album, this second work of Extremoduro showcased advancement in broadening the group's sonic range with the inclusion of female choruses, keyboards, and collaborations.
However, the compositional level of the album is somewhat uneven, offering some band classics like Tu Corazón, Quemando tus Recuerdos, and Necesito Droga y Amor, while also presenting completely forgettable tracks like La Canción de los Oficios, V Centenario, and J.D. la Central Nuclear, which indicate a certain lack of ideas and/or a rushed composition fo the songs.
Fortunately, on their third album, "Deltoya," things were about to improve... And by a lot!
