Jaywalking To The Corner Store

Angelica Garcia “It Don’t Hinder Me”

The weight of “It Don’t Hinder Me” shifts around – a bit airy at the start, and stridently stomping in the more theatrical second half to emphasize the singer’s strength and pride. Angelica Garcia, a Southern Californian of Mexican and Salvadorian heritage, is singing about the cultural details of her youth that make her feel homesick, and the context that gives her a sense of self. There’s a vibrant specificity to her lyrics, particularly as she recalls bits of her past that weren’t exactly fun or glamorous. But she’s making a point of claiming it all, because every bit of it made her what she is, and this is a song about being proud. This sort of thing could easily be sentimental or tacky, but Garcia’s witty delivery and the punky bluntness of the rhythm keeps it all in check.

Buy it from Bandcamp.