Las Sultanas – Haren EP – Styrofoam Drone

The Iberian Peninsula retains a diverse array of rich historical sights and sounds; homegrown aesthetics mesh with the internationally transposed. From the Costa Blanca, tucked away in the picturesque city of Alicante, a band called LAS SULTANAS beckons in sirenic fashion from the shore.

The Las Sultanas sound is one culmination of that regional history and outside influence, unfolding rhythmically in their debut release for Summer Bummer Records.

The quintet has refined four tracks for this extended play, culled from a set of demos, and spread them out over a two-sided 45 rpm 7″ record. Sepia-toned photography, transcontinental graphics, vintage font design and cleverly named “Ali” and “Baba” sides replace the traditional ‘A’ and ‘B’ and comprise the media layout.

Audibly, psychedelic and Mediterranean vibes are filtered through oil and dirt stained monitors – Spanish garage rock, it partially is. Listening to Las Sultanas, one’s mind might trip to an intricately patterned Moroccan Chakki, in Casablanca, sometime in the late 1960’s. Sitting weightlessly, electric guitar fades in over the beat of a tambourine. The smell of burnt incense hangs in the air and dissipates as a coastal breeze teases the curtains of an airy portico while a white sandy beach wraps in front. Vocals drone in and the hallucination that is Las Sultanas’ EP, Haren, unfolds.

“Hindi” is where the illusion begins. “Jezebel” is where the illusion grows. “Rober”, adapted from “Love Me Like Before” by Sam Sham & The Pharoahs, is where the illusion re-purposes and builds anew. “Come To Me” is where the illusion culminates before fading away. Taken together, the songs comprise a fun and cohesive group – something very representative of Las Sultanas themselves.

Buy a plane ticket, book a hostel, head to the airport and fly, surfboard-in-tow, to the Alboran Sea. Or, if in search of a more cost effective measure, surf on over to Summer Bummer and grip Las Sultanas’ Haren, close your eyes, and feel the ocean spray hit you in the face as Sandra, Ana, Iren, Berta, and Julia bring the experience to you.