AlphaWhores - siblings Massiel Pinzón (vocals/drums) and Juan Carlos García de Paredes (guitars/vocals) - have lived, loved, and learned.
The sister/brother duo from Panama City, both formerly members of Panamanian rockers Mabí, have been working together for over two decades, and they describe their current album, You Can Come Out Now, as "an emotionally charged journey through the fragile terrains of identity, mental health, betrayal, rage, and resilience."
"This isn’t music for the faint-hearted," they warn of a record which sounds like the best parts of the Seattle, Chicago, New York and Austin, Texas underground rock scenes shattered, crushed and remoulded. "It’s music for those who’ve been to the edge and came back louder."
Intrigued? Us too. So we got the duo to talk us through the record, track-by-track.
1. HOUSE OF DOOM
"House Of Doom comes from letting the worst side of you take over. When your emotional intelligence takes a hike and you cease to be cool, calm, and collected. When your claws come out and reason goes out the window, like turning into a werewolf against your good judgement. Not initially intended to be the album opener, this 6:13 long dread filled mood statement will most likely filter out casual listeners from like-minded ones. It opens with wild coyotes captured by an iPhone while visiting the Panamanian countryside on a day off from recording."
2. BLOODSPORT
"Bloodsport is a visceral exploration of the emotional battleground that unfolds when a rupture occurs between people who were once close. It captures the raw tension between guilt and righteousness - the duality of feeling remorse while also standing firm in your truth. The lyrics move through self-awareness, confrontation, and ultimately a plea: to be seen, to be understood, to be loved in full.
"We wanted to explore what happens when you know you’ve made mistakes but still feel like your truth deserves to be heard. It’s messy, it’s human - and writing it felt like winning a battle within ourselves."
3. PIRATE MODE
"Going into Pirate Mode involves thickening one’s skin to better withstand life’s harsher blows. It’s choosing to not care for the sake of your own survival. Selfish, sure, but vital, nonetheless.."
4. THE GLASS BETWEEN US
"A quiet reckoning. This song lives in the tension between desire and dignity, the painful clarity of knowing that some connections, no matter how deep, can never truly be yours. It’s about learning to walk away without pretending it didn’t mean something.
"A confession wrapped in restraint, The Glass Between Us explores the quiet agony of needing to let go, not because you want to, but because you finally know you have to."
5. SHOW ME YOUR TEETH
"Show Me Your Teeth captures the raw intensity of betrayal and the emotional aftermath of discovering that trust can be so easily shattered. The song delves into the complexities of human relationships, highlighting the brutal reality of how those closest to us can sometimes turn on us.
"It’s a reflection on the duality of love and destruction, and the struggle to remain resilient in the face of deception. The track embodies a sense of strength, of reclaiming power after being torn down."
6. T-REX MASSEUSE
"T-Rex Masseuse is a metaphor for pursuing a specific goal or dream, even if we are not the most naturally qualified, gifted or talented persons for the task. It’s persevering against all odds with a fierce, all hands-on deck approach fuelled by discipline and trial and error."
7. BEAUTIFUL MUSIC, AWFUL PERSON
"Wrapped in danceable swagger, Beautiful Music, Awful Person is a scathing takedown of the music scene’s parasites: those who chase shortcuts while real artists do the work. It features a riff that’d make Queens of the Stone Age nod in approval."
8. IMAGINARY ENEMIES
"Imaginary Enemies explores the quiet chaos that exists within a mind locked in its own cycles. The song delves into the internal conflict of navigating a world that seems normal on the surface, while feeling overwhelmed by unseen forces. It reflects on the tension between clarity and confusion, and the struggle to break free from patterns that control one’s thoughts. This track is a meditation on the complexities of the human mind and the invisible battles that many fight every day."
9. STAY NORMAL
"Stay Normal comes from feeling helpless while watching a loved one losing control of their life. Nothing to do but watch and wait for either tragedy or a miracle to happen, whichever comes first. This was the last song written for the album and at times it deviates from the usual AlphaWhores sound aesthetic, taking cues from bands like Faith No More or even Korn."
10. MOOD SETTER
"Mood Setter is a mission statement of sorts when it comes to our band. A pledge to one another to keep riding through dark and unknown territories without losing hope or stamina. We fall down, we get back up, dust ourselves off and keep moving forward, never backwards. It’s manifest destiny. This was always intended to be the album closer and it finishes open-ended, making way for a new story to emerge… on album three."
