People shouldn’t be afraid of the language barrier, especially not when it comes to music. After all, when done well, vocals can be an instrument in their own right, and even though they might be in a language the listener doesn’t understand, it is their sonic feel and their emotional impact, rather than their direct communication, that is important. And that is certainly the case with Carmina Alegría, the latest album from Yo.
Carmina Alegría is essentially a concept album, an expression of feelings and thoughts David G. Borrero felt in the wake of his grandmother’s passing. But more than that, it is an outlet for the stages of grief, acceptance, resolve, and moving on. But also a tribute, a memory, and a musical accolade, one that is a masterpiece of sound, an ever-shifting symphony that takes in ambient sounds and neo-classical grace, post-rock intensity, and prog-rock adventure.
If the opening track, “Desaparecer,” is a swirl of haze and harmony, acoustic cascades and chimes shot through with white hot guitars, the title track, which follows, finds much of its dynamic shape in the clever interplay of the complex array of spoken word, which runs across the top.
“Siempre (La mano en el fuego)” feels, as many of the tracks do, a symphony within a symphony, a series of acts rising from the heart of Spanish sonic traditions through delicate flute-scapes before heading into howling and cinematic crescendos. By contrast, “Los muertos siempre son verdad” is subtle and subdued, a deftly picked acoustic guitar is gradually layered in percussion and beat, ebbing and flowing between atmosphere and intensity.
With vocals wandering between spoken word and song, operatic deliveries, and the almost otherworldly, and music which appears to know no bounds generically, Carmina Alegría is an album that defies demarcation – language is turned into feeling, music into the most adventurous journey you have ever been on. What a fantastic creation!
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