Indie Round-Up
for Feb 9 2006: Indiegrrl-apalooza February 09, 2006
Jon Sobel
Nuņez, Cry Mercy
Linda
Nuņez and her band make unabashed power-rock.
Inspired as much by 70’s icons Pat Benatar and Heart as by 90’s alternative bands like Live and Soundgarden, Nuņez
sings in an unstoppable belt that’s very refreshing in this age of little-girl voices. And it’s not just her singing
style and ballsy harmonies that evoke 70’s arena rock, it’s also her dramatic, sometimes deliciously over-the-top
songwriting. A touch of Latin flavor (as in "Havana") a soft underbelly ("Either Way") and
a proud but not heavy-handed gay identification give this artist plenty of crossover juice, too.
The best songs are up front: “Cry
Mercy” is a monster jam, and it’s hard to get the chorus of “Love In Pieces”
out of your head once you’ve heard it. “Yea” is a headbanger’s delight that Beavis
and Butthead would surely have labeled cool, and “That’s Where I Went Wrong” is a solid
power-pop anthem. The songs on the second half of the CD have less hit potential, but the power never lets up, and if you
like one Nuņez song, you’ll probably like the whole album. It has depth, and it rocks: two for two
in my book.
Jon Sobel
