Angélica Garcia – “Gemini”
If you went to Stereogum’s Austin shows during SXSW, then you might’ve seen Angélica Garcia, the experimental pop artist from Los Angeles. Next month, Garcia will release Gemelo, the first album where she mostly sings in Spanish. Garcia recorded the LP in Virginia, with Chicano Batman multi-instrumentalist Carlos Arévalo producing. We’ve already posted first single “Color De Dolor,” and now Garcia has followed that track with an absolute banger.
You might as well throw the “experimental” tag in the trash, since Angélica Garcia’s new single “Gemini” is just a great pop song. It’s a big, shimmering groove, and Garcia throws herself into the track, wailing that she sees doubles everywhere she goes. Carlos Arévalo and his Chicano Batman bandmate Eduardo Arenas both play on thesong, and it reminds me of the circa-1990 moment when every song on the radio had a funky breakbeat. Here’s how Garcia describes the track:
Sometimes, I just want to be playful because so many things in the world feel simulated anyway. Choosing joy in the face of everything sometimes feels like rebellion. “Gemini” leans the most into the Chicano Batman influence. Carlos Arévalo and Eduardo Arenas both play on it. Our friend William Alexander did a live cut of the drums, and it’s the only song on the album where the drums weren’t processed like samples. A big part of “Gemini”‘s personality comes from the live feel.
Angélica Garcia co-directed the “Gemini” video with Carlos Garcia, and it follows her as she charismatically vamps her way through sunny Los Angeles. It’s a lot of fun to watch, and you can do that below.
Gemelo is out 6/7 on Partisan.