There's something fitting about a band whose name translates to "Tell them not to kill me" resurrecting past work. Mexico City's Diles que no me maten just released a music video for their summer single "Tan Grande Nada" while simultaneously bringing two older albums back into circulation through physical reissues.

The timing makes sense when you consider how the band's been expanding beyond their local following. Since "Tan Grande Nada" appeared on Mexican Summer's Sitting on the Moon compilation, they've been reaching audiences who might've missed their earlier material. So here come physical editions of 2021's La vida de alguien más and 2023's Obrigaggi, both via label imprint Moonlight Activities.

La vida de alguien más tells the story of someone who "liberates themselves from personhood" and transforms completely. It features labelmate Mabe Fratti on cello, adding texture to what's already a conceptually dense project. Obrigaggi, a word the band invented themselves, takes a different approach. It's an intimate portrait recorded over a week in a jungle house in Veracruz, capturing the five-piece in a more spontaneous state.

The band's current lineup revolves around singer, poet, and flautist Jonás Dérbez, backed by brothers Raúl and Gerardo Ponce on drums and guitar, Jerónimo Elizondo-García handling guitar and clarinet, and Andrés Lupone on bass. That's a lot of instrumental possibilities, and "Tan Grande Nada" uses them. The track opens with fuzzy guitar and frantic jazz before vocals arrive in this half-sung, half-spoken style that doesn't make things easy for the listener. It's the kind of song that reveals more with each listen, layers peeling back if you're patient enough to stick with it.

They formed during Covid lockdown, which often meant bands working in isolation, but Diles que no me maten clearly weren't interested in straightforward pandemic bedroom pop. Their sound leans experimental, pulling from jazz and post-punk without settling comfortably into either. Now they're mid-tour through the US, testing whether American audiences will connect with music that doesn't hand over its meaning immediately.

The reissues give newer fans a chance to trace how this band got to where they are now. Sometimes looking backward is the best way to understand where a band's actually headed. You can connect with Diles que no me maten on Instagram.

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