As many times as we’ve heard Morrissey exclaim through multiple songs and various PETA campaigns that meat is, in fact, a murderous act, it’s hard to ignore how cool of a stage prop it can actually be. I mean, who doesn’t like a severed, bloody pig’s head in conjunction with their favorite band? Since 17, Teresa Suarez, aka Teri Gender Bender, founder and guitarist of Mexican garage Punk band, Le Butcherettes, has been using blood and gore for her live performances for reasons that extend far beyond the grotesque, and into the ideals and ethics of the importance of the feminist movement.

With Sylvia Plath, Kathleen Hanna, and Chilean musician and artist, Violeta Parra as ongoing influences. Teri, now 23, has evolved from her days as a teen armed with a guitar and a bloody apron, into a woman who refuses to lose that fiery, teenage angst that continues to spread the word of feminism to whomever is willing to give a shit. Having already completed her sophomore album with fellow band members Lia Braswell (drums), and bassist/The Mars Volta , At The Drive-In guitarist, Omar Rodriguez Lopez, Le Butcherettes’ newest record will be less blood on stage mixed with literary references musically than their debut, SIN SIN SIN, but more references and possible inspiration from living life in a new country on Cry Is For The Flies. We interviewed Teri to find out what’s what.

VICE: You recently played Coachella. How was it?
Teri Gender Bender: It was crazy. We played around 1:55 pm, so it was really hot. I think that the set went by swell. Lia [Braswell, drummer], and Omar [Rodriguez Lopez , who’s on bass now, were fine, the heat didn’t affect them, but the heat got to me. I had a migraine the whole festival and I couldn’t even watch any bands, I had to go lay down in the van and ended up throwing up the whole time, and it happened both weekends.The heat was just terrible. But it was great. I’m not complaining.

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Since their debut album Sin Sin Sin came out this year, L.A./Guadalajara garage rock band Le Butcherettes have been carving a niche for themselves on stages north and south of the border. Line-ups shift with this band but tempestuous frontwoman Teri Gender Bender (AKA Teresa Suaréz) is always front and center. In our exclusive live video with Le Butcherettes we captured her confrontational performance in New York City’s intimate Dominion NY.

The Mars Volta founder Omar Rodriguez-Lopez (who signed Le Butcherettes to his label) played bass, joined by Lia Braswell on drums, while Ms. Gender Bender channeled fearsome rock-eras from Patti Smith to Karen O. while peppering her lyrics with literary references. It was a Dia de Los Muertos to remember. - Above is an interview with Teri & Omar Rodriguez Lopez and below are three songs including : Sick Of You, Henry Don’t Got Love & All You See In Me Is Death.

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On May 10, the No. 1 act on this list officially released its new album. Not a day has gone by since when I didn’t listen to at least one song from that CD.That made picking a favorite release in 2011 a rather easy task, but what follows are 14 other albums I still can’t wait to hear again. There will be no extended essay or grand cultural commentary here, just some artists I hope some may believe are worth exploring.

No. 1. Le Butcherettes, ”Sin Sin Sin” (Rodriguez Lopez / Sargent House): Everything about this album screams now. Based in Los Angeles and formed in Mexico, this band delivers current-events hard rock that defies genre borders, and it’s led with fearless bravado by Teri “Gender Bender” Suarez. Whether it’s dead authors, poverty or social injustice, Le Butcherettes vamp, rant and howl, a reminder that only rock ‘n’ roll can have this much fun tackling big ideas. - Todd Martens

Click to See his full List

Teri Gender Bender of Le Butcherettes has undeniably become one of the most exciting performers in rock right now. Since winning both “Best New Artist” & “Best Punk Record” honors at Mexico’s Indie-O awards in 2009, Teri and Le Butcherettes have taken their butcher rock diatribe to new heights. Under the mentorship of Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, Le Butcherettes have tightened their sound into a full-bodied, well layered, distorted sound while maintaining Teri’s unbridled delivery and live stage presence which has earned the band rave reviews and almost unanimous acclaim.

Remezcla caught up with this rising star before taking the stage at The Warfield opening for Iggy & The Stooges in support of their latest album Sin, Sin, Sin.

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1. Le Butcherettes, Sin Sin Sin (Rodriguez Lopez Productions)

Smart, fierce, ferociously funny, and tremendously sexy, Mexico’s Teri Gender Bender, a.k.a. Teri Suarez, celebrates love, lust, and social justice while raging against gender inequality and every other tool that the powers that be would use to keep us down, in the process providing absolutely the most necessary, vital, and timely sounds of 2011.

Click to See Full List of Top 40 Albums

Le Butcherettes Cross the Border

TERI GENDER BENDER has a lot to talk about. On stage and on record, the vocalist/guitarist/keyboardist for Le Butcherettes is confrontational, imbued with a ferocious energy that’s reminiscent of punk’s aggressive tendencies. But instead of simply being blisteringly enraged, the music of Le Butcherettes is engaged and insatiably curious; in conversation, Gender Bender reveals herself to be as candid and self-reflective as her music is tumultuous.

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For some recording artists who are too young to remember literate and politically charged rockers such as Patti Smith, Dead Kennedys, or Gang of Four the first time around, the calendar ceases to exist past the apex of the punk era circa 1976. However, that is not necessarily a bad nor lazy means to make rock ‘n’ roll considering all the iconic records that were created when the average gallon of gas was $0.62 and President Jimmy Carter was trying in vain to tell America to get its shit together. Witness Le Butcherettes, a wild and crazy Tapatio (that’s slang for someone from Guadalajara) garage punk band led by charismatic and most explosive singer /songwriter / guitarist Teri Gender Bender (nee Teresa Suaréz) –who is a woman and looks like one too – her name refers to the blurred and oft misguided social roles that men and women assume in what passes for modern society these days. 

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Le Butcherettes’ “Sin Sin Sin” is Sinfully Good

More often than not, when an album review contains the words “album of the year”; it’s fairly obvious hyperbole. However, Le Butcherettes full length debut Sin Sin Sin represents the rare occasion when “album of the year” may just be an understatement. Yeah, it’s that good. Combining the do it yourself ethics and riotous energy with early punk acts like The Sex Pistols and The Clash with the paradoxical simultaneous strength and vulnerability of Amanda Palmer; front woman Teri Gender Bender is positively explosive as she delivers vocal performances that shift from soulful to rage fueled at a moment’s notice. The potential displayed on 2008’s Kiss & Kill EP is fully realized here, thanks in part to some brilliant production by Omar Rodriguez-Lopez who also contributed bass to the album. Constantly drifting between avant-garde post-punk to highly subversive pop rock, Le Butcherettes refuse to let you catch your bearings as they bombard your stereos with each massive track.


While the synth and brass in the opening of “Tonight” could be at home in a pop album, any commercially friendly delusions are quickly shattered as the bouncy riffs are replaced with chords that can only be described as the after affect of throwing a keyboard down the stairs only to quickly return to their former bouncy state. Teri’s voice takes an equally violent turn throughout the course of the track. “New York” is two minutes of loud, scary, sexy rock. Slow, methodical and relentless, this track gives the first taste of Teri’s ability to just grab a track and own it. 

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Most of Mexico is consumed by murder and mayhem. As more police quit to save their hides, drug lords are taking over the streets. And as more immigrants passing through Mexico to the U.S. are slaughtered, soldiers are losing ground to organized crime outfits. Through all the death and destruction, there holds steady a bright and shining light swinging from an open garage door in Guadalajara. The soundtrack for Mexico’s chaos reverberates between every note and chord of Le Butcherettes’ music. They are a four-piece punk ensemble fronted by a hot keyboardist-slash-vocal siren by the name of Teri Gender Bender.

Acts such as The Dead Weather and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs were using them as opening acts as they passed through Mexico on recent tours. In a time of utter disarray south of the border, Le Butcherettes grabbed its gear and headed to L.A. in ’09 to get their music out to the teeming masses in the good ol’ U.S. of A. This kick-ass quartet played the recent SXSW festival as well, receiving accolades for a job well done. Pats on the back and “atta boys” pale in comparison if one has never partaken in Le Butcherettes’ live music and stage presence.

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Le Butcherettes are on tour…”Until I crack. Open. Like an egg.” Interview with Teri Gender Bender

Lead singer of Le Butcherettes, Teri Gender Bender (Teri Suarez), is disarmingly enchanting with those bright red lips, commanding voice, and boundary pushing performances. Straightforward and unapologetic lyrics along with notorious stage performances have already made Le Butcherettes a force to be reckoned with. Regardless of if you get her of you don’t, one thing is for sure, Suarez’ sheer feminine/masculine energy and her on-stage use of blood, cuts of raw meat, pig heads, masks, and feather boas have left the Americas intrigued. The unabashed angst found on their debut EP, Kiss & Kill, hurled Le Butcherettes into the U.S. music market leaving music fans wondering if they were here to stay… well, if their new album, Sin Sin Sin, is any sign of their future, oh baby, they are here, they are ready to play and they aren’t going away anytime soon.

Le Butcherettes are young and have started off with a bang. Sin Sin Sin shows that they can do different things lyrically and instrumentally yet keep that same fire they had from Kiss & Kill. In a time where women flaunting their sex for the sake of making up for their lack of musicality, it is refreshing to have a band with a woman lead singer that has attitude, talent, and a message. Together with Suarez on guitar, keyboard and vocals, drummer, Normandi Heuxdaflo, and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez of The Mars Volta on bass, Le Butcherettes have created an album that is catchy, rollicking, rough and tender that will leave you in pieces and wondering how to put yourself back together.

Sin Sin Sin shows a more mature but just as exciting side of Le Butcherettes in which the passion to communicate through music remains but the in your face anger has been toned down significantly. The album weaves together stories of fictional characters and stories revolving around situations of so-called sin and basic moral dilemmas. The albums starts with “Tonight,” a song that reminisces a twisted fanfare singed with sex. Sung in a ferociously sweet drawl, “I’m Getting Sick of You” transitions from a minimalistic build up to a stronger more forceful anthem. My favorite song on the album is “Tainted in Sin” due to it’s droning, slightly psychedelic sound. The rhythmic tambourine carries Suarez’ chant-like lyrics broken up by a delicious wail of surrender.

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The most amazing act I caught at SXSW 2011—and one of the best I’ve seen by chance in a good long time, period—it was with some trepidation that I first spun Le Butcherettes’ first full album, recently released on the label started by Omar Rodriguez-Lopez (Mars Volta, At the Drive-In) and featuring his production and bass playing, lest the recording fail to live up to the take-no-prisoners live rock assault. But fear not: “Sin Sin Sin” is just as overwhelmingly powerful as the band’s stage show, and if you can’t revel in the spectacle of bandleader Teri Gender Bender, a.k.a. Teri Suarez, running rampant throughout the club on record, well, you do have the added bonus of being able to savor every subtle nuance she puts into spitting out her grrrl-power lyrics.

“All he needs is a piece of you and me/Honey,” Gender Bender growls in the ferocious opener, “Tonight,” riding a giddy New Wave keyboard groove punctuated by a rolling drum beat. “It’s sin tonight, honey/In my mouth/In my thigh/In my backside/In the middle of my sleep/Tonight!” And the charm of her delivery, in this song and throughout the album, is that it’s impossible to tell if she’s joyful about this or so angry that she’s ready to kill.

That ambiguity is what makes the group absolutely irresistible, recalling Polly Jean Harvey at her strongest and Courtney Love before she lost the plot, but ratcheted up a notch and with the added venom that comes from watching American excess and hubris from Mexico City and Guadalajara, where the band was based before recently relocating to Los Angeles. (Here is an excellent profile by Todd Martens of the Los Angeles Times, who first turned me on to the band.)

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Lead singer of Le Butcherettes, Teri Gender Bender (Teri Suarez), is disarmingly enchanting with those bright red lips, commanding voice, and boundary pushing performances. Straightforward and unapologetic lyrics along with notorious stage performances have already made Le Butcherettes a force to be reckoned with. Regardless of if you get her of you don’t, one thing is for sure, Suarez’ sheer feminine/masculine energy and her on-stage use of blood, cuts of raw meat, pig heads, masks, and feather boas have left the Americas intrigued. The unabashed angst found on their debut EP, Kiss & Kill, hurled Le Butcherettes into the U.S. music market leaving music fans wondering if they were here to stay… well, if their new album, Sin Sin Sin, is any sign of their future, oh baby, they are here, they are ready to play and they aren’t going away anytime soon.

Sin Sin Sin shows a more mature but just as exciting side of Le Butcherettes in which the passion to communicate through music remains but the in your face anger has been toned down significantly. The album weaves together stories of fictional characters and stories revolving around situations of so-called sin and basic moral dilemmas. The albums starts with “Tonight,” a song that reminisces a twisted fanfare singed with sex. Sung in a ferociously sweet drawl, “I’m Getting Sick of You” transitions from a minimalistic build up to a stronger more forceful anthem. My favorite song on the album is “Tainted in Sin” due to it’s droning, slightly psychedelic sound. The rhythmic tambourine carries Suarez’ chant-like lyrics broken up by a delicious wail of surrender.

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Down in Los Angeles working with the fine folks Sargenthouse on some upcoming video madness… Here is just a small taste of what is to come with Le Butcherettes… Don’t miss their record release show tonight in LA at the Bootleg Theater w/ Mike Watt + The Missingmen and Sacramento transplants Agent Ribbons… Le Butcherettes new album “Sin Sin Sin” came out yesterday, which you can pick up here. Take a sneak peek at scenes from yesterdays rehearsal session…

Le Butcherettes from TERROREYES.TV 

The singer taps her inexhaustible rage onstage. Offstage, she’s reflective as the band’s debut album ‘Sin Sin Sin’ lands Tuesday, with a Bootleg Theater gig following Wednesday.

When Teri Suaréz sings a line like “you take my pretty dress off,” consider it a gauntlet thrown. Not at men, but at any institution or societal norm that would stand in her way. Her 21 years split between Denver and Guadalajara, Mexico, she possesses a voice that needs few instrumental adornments. “Dress Off” is delivered only with a snarl and an intensely aggressive rhythm, and Suaréz’s vocals are full of bravado and cultural confusion.

“It’s a threat,” she said during a recent conversation. “I dare you to come here and make me yours. That’s not just directed toward a man. It’s directed toward anyone. I’m not trying to be sexy. It’s a dare — I dare you to try and screw with what I hold dear. So take my dress off.”

Suaréz is a literature fiend and left her philosophy studies for rock ’n’ roll. Le Butcherettes may have been born in Mexico, but the band is schooled in punk rock traditions. The act’s debut, “Sin Sin Sin,” will be issued Tuesday by local label Rodriguez Lopez Productions / Sargent House — and celebrated with a release show at the Bootleg Theater on Wednesday. With a rep for hectic live shows that border on performance art — Suaréz accessorizes with fake blood and views the whole venue as an extension of the stage — Le Butcherettes have already earned themselves a major support system.

“Sin Sin Sin” was championed by and recorded with Omar Rodriguez Lopez, an experimental artist known for his work in At the Drive-In and the Mars Volta. He connected Suaréz with drummer Gabe Serbian, who’s performed with the wide-ranging underground punk of San Diego’s the Locust, and last year Le Butcherettes signed a booking deal with William Morris Endeavor. A national tour supporting the Deftones will follow.

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Teri Gender Bender (Teri Suarez), the frontwoman, songwriter, and guitarist of Le Butcherettes is a young, literate, angry, and funny poet. The Denver-born, Mexican-bred founder and frontwoman of this trio (which has different studio and live incarnations), has plenty to say on Sin Sin Sin, the band’s debut long-player. In these 13 songs, she raggedly stitches together strands from obvious influences (PJ Harvey, the Kills, Blood Red Shoes, and Beck, to name a few), in a manner that’s entirely un-self-conscious and emotionally raw, with zig-zagging melody, chord, and riff changes that are as accessible as they are adventurous. Sin Sin Sin is 21st century punk rock by way of indie pop. Suarez’s guitar and keyboard lines create riffs and splintered melodies that her rhythm section — producerOmar Rodriguez-Lopez on bass, and Normandi Heuxdaflo on drums — expertly

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