A Spanish Gothic Rock Christmas Carol

Las Novias: Diario De Navidad / Postales Envenenadas
(More Than Disc, MTD01, Spain, 2023)

In the year 2021, Las Novias, a gothic rock band from Zaragoza, Spain, were recording for their new album 'Detente Bala', which was to be released in 2022 on the band's own A La Inverse Records. The band felt that one of the songs they had been working on did not really fit in with the rest of the album. Instead of shelving it, Las Novia decided to turn it into a modern Christmas carol. Modern in the sense that it used images from the life of Jesus and put them in a new perspective using images from contemporary history. Just like in the old days, the poor still lack food and drink to forget their pitiful situation. Herod still wants to get Jesus and bombs Bethlehem. After the bombing, it smells of frankincense and myrrh, while the gold is gone. The entrance to the stable is on fire, there is no star but a rainbow. And later in his life, on the way to the scaffold, Jesus is still spat upon.

But 'Diario De Navidad' ('Christmas Diary') is also a song to remember all those "who are not with us today / but who travel / in our memory and our hearts". The song is divided into two parts. The first part, the somber carol, is accompanied by a tapestry of echoing guitars, and in the second part, introduced by church bells, sleigh bells give the music a lighter touch as lead singer Antonio Leza repeats 'En Navidad' ('At Christmastime') over and over. The bands end the song with the melody of 'Hark! The Herald Angels Sing'.

Diario De Nadividad' was released digitally in December 2021, accompanied by a lyric video. And now, in 2023, the new label More Than Disc released it as their first 7" release, along with 'Postales Envenenadas', a non-Christmas song that sounds even more like Gothic Rock than the A-side, with a typical postpunk bass sound and an almost mechanical sounding drumbeat.

Los Novias were formed in 1987 and signed to major label Mercury Records, who released the band's debut album in 1992. Their second album was released on their own A La Inverse Records. LAs Novias had some periods of inactivity in their career, but still has three original members in the band: besides lead singer Antonio Leza, guitarist Oskar Díez and bassist Pedro J.García F. The current drummer of the band is Germán Arenaz. This 7", that is limited to 350 copies, is the band's first vinyl release since 1994.

You watch the lyric video on Youtube:


Also the B-side is on Youtube”


El Genio Equivocado - La Botiga is, as far as I know, the only shop that sells this single and ships outside of Spain.