25th July 2025
Hi everybody, I have a little update for you before I start the article proper. This will probably be the last post for a week or so, because on Monday I'm going on holiday to Spain! I'll get straight back to writing this blog when I get back. Due to travel times I will be updating the song of the week for the 28th on Sunday, because I may not have time to do so on Monday morning. As well as this, I will returning after the 1st of August so it may take a day or two for the video of the month to be updated. I hope you all don't mind. Anyway, with me going to Spain, I thought it would be fun to write about a Spainish band I've been enjoying lately. Happy reading :)
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I've been quite interested in tontipop recently. Tontipop was a Spainish scene which emerged in the 1990s, directly inspired by the twee bands of Britian at the time. It has a bit of a pop punk sound to it, similar to other movements like cuddlecore. Like with their twee forefathers, tontipop was originally used as a critical term by the press - the word "tonto" means silly or foolish in Spainish - but it was eventually reclaimed by the artists themselves. From 1996, one of the earliest examples of the genre was a little self released demo tape by a Barcelonan band called Los Fresones Rebeldes. As humble as La Venganza De Los Fresones Rebeldes (en: The Revenge of the Rebel Strawberries) was, the unassuming six track tape would later prove itself as one of the cornerstones of the tontipop genre.
Los Fresones Rebeldes was a six peice band from Catalonia formed in 1996, consisting of Cristina (bass, guitar, vocals), Inés (vocals), Cecilia (vocals), Felipe (drums), Eugènia (guitar, bass, vocals) and Miguel (keyboard, guitar). They were active until 2001, releasing a high number of singles, EPs and albums in that time mostly on Subterfuge Records. La Venganza De Los Fresones Rebeldes was their debut release. I'm not sure how many copies were produced, but as it was a self released tape I imagine it was not very many. The cassettes bouncy opening track, "Al Amanecer", seems unasuming at first. But, beleive it or not, this song is actually one of the most important songs for the entire genre. Al Amanecer was rerecorded a year later and released as a relatively successful CD single, one that would see much airtime on the radio and be the gateway for many into tontipop. The version that appears on this tape is definetly a bit more rough around the edges, but it's not too dissimilar from the final version. Al Amanecer is a fuzzy song, with upbeat vocals and an addictive nature. It's a summery sort of song, apt for a day at the beach with friends.
The following track, "Quiero Saber", slows things right down. This is when the keyboard comes into play, and I must admit it's a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine. I know some people don't like the use of keyboards, but I do think that the Casiotone really aids this tape. Quiero Saber feels almost bittersweet, like remembering a long lost childhood friend or something. I should state that I have no idea what the lyrics are saying because I don't speak Spainish so for all I know this could be the happiest song in the world. It does sound pretty sad though. I think it's the keyboards. Track three, "¡Es Que No Hay Manera!", makes things upbeat again. Despite this song being the namesake for Los Fresones Rebeldes' first full album, the song doesn't actually appear on that LP at all. It's a shame too, because this may be one of my favourite tracks on this tape (second only to that untouchable opener). Great bass work, addictive keyboards and a catchy chorus... pop goodness. That is apart from the last 20 seconds or so when the keyboard turns into what sounds like an emergency alert alarm for some reason. The rest is great though.
Flipping to the B-side, you're greeted with a song whose intro sounds like it has been taken from a spy movie. James Bond meets twee. "La Inocente" sounds almost like post-punk at times? Kinda? Not all of it of course, the main body of the song is as summery as the rest of the tape. Following this is "Por El Terraplén", a cover of a track by fellow Spainish twee giants La Buena Vida. It's a bouncy and cute song, but I feel it may be the weakest track here. Not to say that it's bad or anything, but Los Fresones Rebeldes seemed to be stronger when doing their own thing. It has great outro though. And then there's the closing track, "Esta Mañana". Another slower song with some great keyboards, although this time not as bittersweet. In contrast to the rest of the album, Esta Mañana feels kind of wintery? I didn't really expect to be saying that about a Spainsih indie pop song but here we are. It's a great closer.
La Venganza De Los Fresones Rebeldes is a short and sweet little EP. Suprisingly solid for its whole runtime, there's no misses. On its own it does not leave much of an impact, but when you consider that this would be one of the stepping stones towards forming an entire sub-genre, this little tape suddenly becomes much more important.
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