Unimaginable beauty, unparalleled charm, unbeatable eloquence, unrivalled everything. This record is something else!
'Son' is the brand new album from Argentinean goddess Juana Molina, and it's simply stunning. From her musical roots (her father teaching her to play the guitar when she was five), to her less musical uprooting and going to live in Paris, to coming back, getting sidelined and becoming one of the most celebrated Spanish-speaking TV comedians of her time, and seven years later recording her first album, Juana's had a pretty prolific life up until now.
But that doesn't make this release any less exciting. It's one of the freshest sounds you'll get out of your speakers this year, a collection of beautifully orchestrated acoustic wonders with a unique instrumentation that makes it stand out from anything else. Her voice is something to sit and marvel at, pore over, relish in: sublime. Imagine Björk in sunnier climes and you're getting close. The songs are produced magnificently and incorporated within their intricate structure is so much expert wizardry and magic; yet it all sounds as easy and as light as a breath of air.
Juana Molina is a genius when it comes to putting together a spellbinding song that sinks deep into your soul and massages it with a sunny phosphorescence. Just take opener 'Río Seco' for example, completely perfect, completely holy, the best summer's easy-afternoon listening you could possibly hope for: pull out your deckchair, your parasol, whatever you have to, and relax to this chilled piece of pure warmth.
The glorious 'No Seas Antipática' will get stuck in your head for aeons to come and as soon as it leaves you'll feel empty, you'll seek out 'Son', and get it stuck right back in there; this record seems faultless... Following that track is the absolutely beautiful 'Micael', with great metallic percussion appearing halfway through and pummelling a hypnotic rhythm into your mind and bones; this album feels almost otherworldly, yet it retains the mystique of the wonders that planet Earth has to offer...
Other standout tracks are 'Desordenado' and the epic ending triumph 'Hay Qui Ver Si Voy', which clocks in at over eight minutes. The music works so well at grabbing your attention, pricking your ears, gobbling up your concentration for its near-hour, and yet at the same time it lulls you into a dreamy coma in which you feel completely cleansed...
After the title track the album takes on a more translucent tone and you feel absolutely ready for ascension to wherever you're going to ascend to. It doesn't falter for a second throughout, really cementing itself as a record worthy of unparalleled acclaim. There is beauty, experimentalism, magic, mystique, outlandishness and coquettish charm all rolled into one package of sublime everlasting excellence. It has garnered my highest recommendation to you.