On her follow-up to 2018's star-studded, genre-blurring
Isolation, Colombian-American singer
Kali Uchis unapologetically arrives as a top-tier LatinX stylist.
Miedo (Del Amor y Otros Demonios) ∞ whose title translates as "Without Fear (Of Love and Other Demons) ∞", is a radical next step. Rather that criss-cross neo-soul, EDM, and Latin pop,
Uchis seeks to redefine the "classic." Here she works with more LatinX-centered producers including
Tainy and Manuel Lara, as well as Leeds-based pop visionary Josh Crocker.
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, jazz, and soul. In another assertion of her identity, she sings almost exclusively in Spanish. 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 actually 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