Mixing a slow and sultry vibe with an effervescent and energetic rhythm, Let Go is the perfect blend of grace and groove. On the one hand, the beats are full of life, bustling along vivaciously, helped by encouraging harmonies and sweeping strings washes. On the other, the main vocal is perfectly poised, sensual and seductive. If it were possible for a song to run on two speeds at the same time, then this would be what that might sound like. Though just how she achieves such a sensation is hard to fathom out, even when, like me, you are on your seventh listen.
It is R&B at its finest, leaning into the past traditions of the genre but also beating a sonic path to a bright new future. And it is those forward-thinking aspects, the mainstream pop sensibilities and the clubland infectiousness, which are critical to the sound of what is going on here. Anyone can just borrow, rework and repackage the past, but it is understanding the trajectory that music is following which allows an artist to deliver the perfect next step, one which is a bridge between what has gone before and what the future might sound like. And that is exactly the neat sonic trick that Gaviana manages to pull off with Let Go.
