By José Gandue @Gandour
2020. There have been so many hours of confinement that surely the time we've dedicated to Spotify, Netflix, and Stremio would have been enough to write a bad Bogota version of Anna Karenina. This has been a time to discover, listen repeatedly, and confirm what we're up to in terms of music around here.. And, in truth, with all the crises we already know, music has a lot to show on the independent side. Some will say that everything that happened brought to the surface very particular feelings, allowing us to hear sounds we didn't know existed. Others will say that what we see today was already part of a process that had been underway for quite some time. In any case, 2020, a strange, painful, and messed-up year, regardless of the circumstances, gave us the opportunity to enjoy varied albums, built with the most diverse textures, worthy of being listened to until exhaustion. Albums that will have a lasting impact and will continue to be admired thousands of days from now.
To deliver this selection, which will be offered in no particular order of preference, We have used a brief summary of texts already published in the reviews we wrote at the time of the premiere of each of these productions. Our intention is simply to tell you, as we do with our friends, that we thoroughly enjoyed these ten releases and that we would be delighted if you all listened to them with the same delight and pleasure we experienced from the first moment we encountered these wonderful pieces. Without further ado, Here are our favorite albums of this year, with music from Peru, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and Venezuela. Let's begin:
Lido Pimienta – Miss Colombia
«"Lido Pimienta, a musician from the Atlantic coast who has lived in Canada for several years, is a flamenco singer of the 21st century, a woman who knows how to use the vocal heritage of her predecessors from the region, but who manages to evolve her style beyond traditional brands and integrate herself into contemporary popular tastes.".
«"This may be, if not the best, one of the most remarkable albums made by any artist of Colombian origin in recent years. Now the writer must take responsibility for his words and justify this admiration to his readers. And I begin with a phrase I've only used once before on this page, more precisely when describing what listening to some of the songs from the first two albums by the Spanish artist Rosalía produced in me: Here is a beauty so powerful that it hurts, and more precisely in the pit of the stomach, which is where resonant beauty moves the most.
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/lido-pimienta-precioso-dolor-placentero/
Rita Indiana – Mandinga Times
«"Here we hear the original merengue at the absurd speeds of hard techno, hip hop as an invasive participant, oriental aromas that shake up the traditional flavor, symphonic strings that heighten the tension of the moment, and a western influence adding a tenderness that surprises even the most skeptical. Watch out, Everything is still Caribbean; there's no shame in one's origins here., But there is a general and effective questioning of identity as it was conceived from the beginning. No one denies where it all comes from, what their ancestry is, but from now on, Rita Indiana sets the direction she wants the sound to go, taking the helm of the ship herself.
Martín Buscaglia – Enough with the music
«"So much creative freedom can scare the fan, and that's understandable. Audiences often want to play it safe, to take a path where they don't feel uncomfortable, where they're treading on familiar ground. But, I tell you this with all due calm: Here we have a gem that you can't miss because It confronts (albeit tenderly) the listener and exposes them to a constant exercise in discovering new sonic possibilities. But, listen up, nobody is making them endure experimental industrial music. underground from Poland during the Iron Curtain era or anything like that: This is pop, real pop, but with a playful spirit. Here we have songs that shake us, move us, disorient us, but bring with them a warm reward for the soul.".
»"Anyway, Enough with the music It fully justifies the high expectations surrounding this production in the specialized media. We are facing... "An impressive album in its beauty, its originality, and the affection it contains and expresses.".
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/martin-buscaglia-canciones-juguetonas/
Blond – Black Mango
«"Let's start with the basics: Fran Straube still has the magic on his side, continuing to release exquisitely crafted songs with captivating melodies and a well-rounded result. That said, Black Mango It is more experimental, more meticulous, more mature. Let me explain: Fish, their previous album, is overwhelming, and we define it as an impeccable avant-garde work. Black Mango It is not simply a continuation of what was published in 2018, It is the reflection of previous learning plus the sum of confidence in the deeper search for textures, nuances, and risks., finding more certainty in the use of reverberations, with vocal play, with the digital editing of the songs.".
«"Black Mango" It is a beautiful work that, perhaps, the most unsuspecting, those who have not heard anything similar, will take a little while to understand. It's not an easy album, it's not a compilation of hits where Straube repeats the formula of his tunes played millions of times on digital platforms, And that makes this production even greater. This is a valuable collection of recordings that feel even more personal, avoiding the saccharine pandering to the audience that follows it.".
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/novedades/rubio-nueva-coleccion-de-joyas-sonoras/
Ela Minus – Acts of rebellion
«This is dark music made to thrill, reflect, and keep you dancing., It is music of resistance against all calamities, Here are twelve sound clips that become weapons against the unease and mediocrity that surrounds us.".
«"Each song is a flag that expresses discontent and dissatisfaction, Each tune is a statement against the established order, which, despite what potential detractors may think, still invites you to dance, because, and this becomes clear when you listen to this album repeatedly, In this case, movement is a valuable tool of rebellion.
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/feminas/ela-minus-las-maquinas-a-su-favor/
Tototomás – Dubai
«"This compilation of 10 songs and barely thirty minutes in length has many layers from different genres, and it feels fluid and completely free in its construction, But if we must imprudently name it to bring it closer to the curious listener without warning them beforehand, We could describe it under a label like "vibrant indie pop". »
«"This album is an effective musical antidepressant pill, with better results than any medication you can find at your favorite pharmacy.".
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/tototomas-excitantes-ruidos-festivos/
Hello Seahorse! – Stimulating disc
«Stimulating disc, the most recent album by the Mexican group Hello Seahorse!, It arrives in time to check something that needs to be corrected somehow, and that's it. It is clear that many of the best-developed projects in the musical field in Latin America, despite being popular in their country of origin, do not receive the attention they deserve in the rest of the continent. And what's even more incredible is what happens with this band, with singer Denise Gutiérrez at the helm, whose catalog of songs exceeds expectations with its sensitive compositional construction, its striking lyrics and the perfect balance they establish between sonic experimentation and the powerful pop result of their recordings.".
«Stimulating Disc It gives us the opportunity to reconcile ourselves with that risky facet of the Mexican music scene, which sometimes seems to rest on its commercial laurels, But luckily it contains happy moments of contradiction and experimentation like those that Hello Seahorse! brings on this occasion. »
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/hello-seahorse-elegancia-clasica-sonido-contemporaneo/
Perrosky – A real one
» Here you'll find shoegaze, blues, classic rock, country, and folk. Similarly, although it feels as if some tracks were recorded directly in the countryside, with the intervention of wind instruments, farm animals, and children's voices, and then the next moment you feel the pristine quality of the studio, The unit is preserved; everything is neatly tied together in one package. What makes this album so compact amidst its diversity? The answer lies in the artist's simple humor, his tenderness, and his honesty in the process. And that, my friends, is not easy to preserve in the music of this century.".
«"This is a fifty-minute journey where the artist does what he wants with what he has, and yet, It always convinces because it retains its spirit.»
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/novedades/perrosky-sencillo-y-verdadero/
The Fox Zapata – The Fox Zapata
«"This Peruvian artist achieves direct recordings, with simple elements that captivate within seconds of her performance, with a voice that we could not describe as the most outstanding in contemporary pop, but with enough tenderness and elegance to listen to and notice every word that comes out of her mouth, And believe everything he says. That's it, that kind of credibility, like the kind we expect from our friends and loved ones, to want to be happy or somehow endure this world. And for that, we don't need big recording studios, expensive instruments, or to dress up as superheroes or heroines to convince the audience watching us.".
«"Zorra Zapata has proven and confirmed herself to be an exciting artist who has been brave enough to, with her first whispers, mark her space and force us to pay attention to her in the coming years as she deserves.".
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/sonidos/discos/la-zorra-zapata-natural-e-incorregible/
The Girl – The She-Wolf
«The She-Wolf It's piano and singing. Yes, that's all. Sounds simple, doesn't it? No, don't be fooled. There may be few elements in the recording, but upon listening, everything is grand enough to embrace us in its grace. The Girl transforms at times into the choir of her own temple, He uses his hands to add additional resonances, and the piano, in its plowing work, makes itself present without exaggeration in its marking of the furrows where all the necessary herbs rest and grow to enhance this recording. This is by no means a conformist job. On the contrary, it is the raw, exposed portrait of an artist who lived through 2020 boldly battling the wave of personal and collective misfortunes and releasing one of the best albums of recent times.".
Full text: https://www.zonagirante.com/entrevistas/artistas/la-chica-defensa-de-la-diferencia/
