Kellies

In the tradition of riot grrrl and female post-punk, Las Kellies’ self-titled third album is a cute serving of ramshackle rock, dealt out by three Argentinian girls. Cibo Matto and Shonen Knife have a similar aesthetic to Las Kellies, as do the Slits and ESG (covered in a charming version of “Erase You”). The songs are rough and tumble, driven by bare-boned basslines and played with glee as Ceci Kelly, Betty Kelly, and Sil Kelly chatter and shout in broken English or six of their other languages, which include Portuguese, Catalan, Japanese, German, French, and Spanish. "Scotch Whisky" reads like a description on a bottle label ("Finest Scotch whisky...distilled and bottled in Edinburgh Scotland”), and the lyrics of “Hit It Off” are short and sweet: “Hit it off straight away/Aua aua/Hit hit hit hit.” Meanwhile, “Cous Cous,” “Adwenture,” and “Bife Dos” forgo words completely, as clubhouse instrumentals. Some of these tunes break stride into a slower, art-house dub vibe, but for the rest of the 35-minute playing time, Las Kellies is an elastic romp full of quick-spirited fun.