Bodega's fascination with, and often disdain for, many of the things that define our modern culture has been well-documented through their first two studio albums, and now they've released their satirical take on those issues. As if to prove that the skewering is even more serious than mere love, they have re-recorded their previous LPs released under the name BODEGA BAY. The original version of “Our Brand Could Be Yr Life” is over eight years old, but there's little need to drag it into the present, and the Brooklyn collective's 2016 musings on the commercialization of nearly everything were prescient. there were. At the time, they were recording records on his MacBook microphone in GarageBand. Now they've gone back and pruned their sprawling 33-track manifesto into a much tighter 15-track concept album that expertly utilizes the musical talent BODEGA has cultivated over the years since its inception. did.
Their observations remain astute. On rampant commodification (“ATM”), sex work (“GND”), and the dilutive effects of gentrification on the arts (the three-part epic “The Cultural Consumer”). Now, the rough-and-tumble of their youth has been replaced with the swish and crackle of a significant reworking that incorporates some of their most diverse sounds to date. Amidst the usual post-punk exuberance, there's hints of shoegaze, psychedelia, and, on the standout “Major Amberson,” melodic pop. Almost a decade after these songs were first written, BODEGA continues to significantly reduce its targets and stay on top of its game.