La chusta nunca disgusta: taking the register of half the planet

Sergio, Martina, Elías, Iván. That's how it starts, with no further introduction, and that's how it carries on for the whole song: a list of names that never seems to end.

La chusta nunca disgusta (The Last Drag Never Disappoints) is probably the strangest lyric I've ever written, and that's why I'm so fond of it. There's no story, no characters in conflict, no ex to point at. There are names, one after another, in groups of four, with their rhyme and their recited rhythm, like when the teacher took the register on the first day of school. And between each block, the four-word chorus that gives everything its title.

What amuses me is how varied the corridor is. Alongside Carmen, Pedro or Lucía come Tenesoya, a name with Canarian roots, Kunal, Amir, Latoya, Edison or Jeremías. I like to think everyone fits in there, from anywhere, in the same row, and nobody is left out of the round.

A phrase that gets shared

The chusta, for those who don't know, is that last butt that gets passed from hand to hand at the end of the night. And the phrase «nunca disgusta» (never disappoints) has something of a street saying about it, the kind you say laughing on a park bench. Joined to such a long list of people, the song becomes a kind of endless huddle where each name waits its turn.

Some repetitions sneak in, like Sergio, Raúl or Mónica, who appear more than once, and I think that's perfect. In any big group there are always two with the same name and nobody quite knows which one is meant.

It's a song to listen to in a group and play at seeing who comes up. If your name appears, congratulations: you're already part of the huddle. If it doesn't, don't worry, the list has room for plenty more rounds and can always be stretched a bit further.

I'd put it on at a summer terrace with friends, when the conversation has lost its course and the only thing that matters is staying seated together a little longer.

The full lyrics are below. Listen on Spotify