Sin Miedo (Del Amor y Otros Demonios) ¿¿¿

by Uchis,Kali

Overview

On her follow-up to 2018's star-studded, genre-blurring Isolation, Colombian-American singer Kali Uchis unapologetically arrives as a top-tier urbano stylist. Miedo (Del Amor y Otros Demonios) ¿ whose title translates as "Without Fear (Of Love and Other Demons) ¿", is a radical next step. Rather than criss-cross neo-soul, EDM, and Latin pop, Uchis seeks to redefine the "classic." Here she works with more Latin trap and reggaeton-centered producers including Tainy and Manuel Lara, and Leeds-based pop visionary Josh Crocker. In another assertion of her hard won identity, she sings almost exclusively in Spanish. (Her label strongly advised against releasing it, fearing Anglos would not embrace a foreign language recording and didn't promote it.) Uchis is fearless in stretching her sound past funky breaks, slippery R&B, and spaced-out jazz tropes to offer bracing evolutionary conceptions of reggaeton, cumbia, and boleros, seamlessly juxtaposing them with her own brand of Latin pop and soul. While there are a number of fine collaborations here, including the futurist Afro-Latin soul of "Fue Mejor" with PartyNextDoor (Jahron Anthony Brathwaite), the spiky trap of "Aqui Yo Mando!" with Rico Nasty, and the trap groove of "La Luz" with Jhay Cortez, the best jams are reinventions of vintage boleros such as opener "La Luna Enamorada," a tune that dates back to the 1940s but was a 1964 hit for Cuban rockers Los Zafiros. She slows down the tempo, allows Crocker to thread incantatory beats and Beach Boys-style four-part harmonies into the mix, and follows the melody and form without deviation. "Vaya con Dios" -- an original, not the classic Mexican song -- is rendered with sampled strings, a low-tuned rubbery bassline, and reverbed guitars amid smoky hip-hop beats. When she reaches for her falsetto, she soars. "Que Te Pedi" is a classic Cuban bolero composed by Fernando Lopez Mulens and Gabriel Luna De la Fuente. Introduced by the sound of a radio dial slipping across stations, its stately horns, congas, and bassline frame her most dramatic, passionate singing on the album. "De Nadie" is a seductive Latin soul tune with alternating breaks and hip-hop beats, while self-composed closer "Angel Sin Cielo" is almost psychedelic as it drifts and hovers dramatically with bossa-styled acoustic guitars and her stretched and altered vocal pitches that bring her soprano down to tenor range and jazz phrasing. Sin Miedo (Del Amor y Otros Demonios) ¿ marks the spot where Uchis comes into her own, not only as a true song stylist but also as an innovator. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	05/07/2021
Label:	Emi Records / Interscope
UPC:	0602435534541

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Kali Uchis   Primary Artist,Vocals
Jowell & Randy   Primary Artist,Vocals
Randy   Primary Artist
Jowell   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
PartyNextDoor   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
SZA   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Jhay Cortez   Primary Artist,Featured Artist,Vocals
Rico Nasty   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Mauricio Guerrero   Guitar
Josh Crocker   Bass,Harp,Drums,Flute,Piano,Guitar,Strings,Keyboards,Percussion,Vibraphone
Randy Ortiz   Vocals,Featured Artist
Ariel Shrum   Trumpet,Trombone
Flikka   Vocals
Yakob   Brass,Saxophone
Tom Henry   Keyboards
Joe Harris   Guitar
Hailey Niswanger   Saxophone

Technical Credits

Austen Jux Chandler   Recording,Engineer,Producer,Vocal Producer,Additional Production
Jhay Cortez   Composer
Luis Figueroa Roig   Composer
Rob Bisel   Recording
Andrea Mangiamarchi   Composer
Chris Gehringer   Mastering Engineer
Will Quinnell   Mastering Engineer,Assistant Mastering Engineer
Gabriel Luna de la Fuente   Composer
Erik Bodin   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Supa Dups   Producer,Musical Producer
Ray Nelson   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Jaycen Joshua   Mixing
Yukimi Nagano   Composer
Servando Primera   Composer
Fuego   Composer
Josh Gudwin   Mixing
Fernando Lopez Mulens   Composer
Jahaan Sweet   Producer,Musical Producer,Composer
Albert Menendez   Composer
Jon Leone   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Randy Ortiz   Composer
Prashant Mistry   Mixing,Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Sounwave   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Kurtis McKenzie   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Luis Rawet Chanivecky   Composer
Marcos Masis   Composer
Tainy   Producer,Musical Producer
Mark Spears   Composer
Lauren D'Elia   Engineer,Recording,Vocal Producer
Ricky Reed   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
PartyNextDoor   Composer
Jakob Rabitsch   Recording
Rico Nasty   Composer
Cristina Chiluiza   Composer
Jacob Richards   Mixing Assistant
Octavia Landix   Engineer,Recording
Elijah Marrett-Hitch   Mixing Assistant
Mike Seaberg   Mixing Assistant
Ant Clemons   Composer
DJ Riggins   Mixing Assistant
Matt Morris   A&R
Yakob   Recording
Brodie Means   Assistant Engineer
Albert Hype   Producer,Musical Producer
Rvnes   Producer,Musical Producer
Jacob Michael Deimler   Composer
Joel Munox   Composer
Albert Melendez   Composer
Elena Rose   Composer
Ray 'Quasi' Nelson   Composer,Producer
Josh Crocker   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Joel Munoz   Composer
Paul Anka-Munox   Composer
Colin Leonard   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Dwayne Chin-Quee   Composer
Randy Acevedo   Composer
Joan Ortiz Espada   Composer
SZA   Composer
Roget Chahayed   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Antonio "DJ Fuse" Olivera   Engineer,Recording
Manuel Lara   Composer,Producer,Musical Producer
Ethan Shumaker   Producer,Recording
Sevn Thomas   Producer,Musical Producer
Kali Uchis   Composer,Producer
Liz Robson   Engineer,Recording
Rupert Thomas, Jr.   Composer