Son:Juana Molina

Artist: Juana Molina

Date Released: May 23, 2006

Label: Domino

Produced By: Juana Molina

Tracklisting:
 * 1) Río Seco
 * 2) Yo No
 * 3) La Verdad
 * 4) Un Beso Llega
 * 5) No Seas Antipatica
 * 6) Micael
 * 7) Son
 * 8) Las Culpas
 * 9) Malherido
 * 10) Desordenado
 * 11) Elena
 * 12) Hay Que Ver Si Voy

Review: It’s no secret that most celebrity actors have egos the size of small satellites and thanks to their boosted confidence, they believe they can transcend artistic boundaries into usually the realm of popular music. History shows us that this is usually not true, and the resulting music is shallow and overproduced to make up for lack of true musical talent. Juana Molina, an Argentinean singer/songwriter best known in South America as a popular comedic television star (her humor regularly makes appearances in her music), is one of those rare artists who actually transition seamlessly into this new artistic expression. Maybe it’s because most people outside of South America are not familiar with Molina or her previous stardom, she is easier to accept in this new medium, but the music really speaks for itself, with or without the back story. Building on her previous two albums, Segundo and Tres Cosas, Molina creates delicately intricate Spanish folk songs enhanced infinitely by an array of swirling instrumentation and bubbling electronics. Produced, recorded and mixed on her own, 'Son' is simultaneously laid back and adventuresome with Molina’s soft voice as the centerpiece in her musical un-still life. Unless you speak fluent Spanish, her lyrics mean nothing, which, in my opinion, makes the music even more interesting. Actual lyrics aside, Molina tends to layer each song tenfold with light, and typically fun, scatting, acoustic guitar, warm keyboards and a variety of usually ethnic percussion. The metaphor made with her artwork seems the most appropriate, sheets of softly colored cloth and tapestry unorthodoxly stitched and embroidered into invigorating patchwork landscapes. I also very much recommend her one-woman-show live act if you ever get the opportunity. Mpardaiolo