War Kingz is the third album by Puerto Rico's reggaeton star
Cosculluela. Its production steers fairly clear of the brittle, bullet-drenched sounds of El Principe, but also strays from the softer sounds that marred El Niño. Instead, reggaeton, hip-hop, club pop, and glossy, layered samples offer 11 different backdrops for
Cosculluela to rap and sing, though the singing is strictly done with Auto-Tune (and that's not a negative). The production is spacious, brooding, and more often than not, tense; there is a ton going on through, in, around, and behind his vocals. Check the strange intro to "No Te Metas," that commences with sinister groaning and laughter before giving way to a dark, slippery reggaeton banger. "Parkiao" commences with Auto-Tune and cinematic strings as
Cosculluela raps, backed by los Mafia Boyz on the choruses. The very next cut, "Patrullando," employs a pleña melody before the beats and synth strings kick in. Before long, sirens and crunchy loops bring in an increased sense of paranoia. This is followed by the ballad "Desamor," that throws the listener completely off the scent for a moment, before los Mafia Boyz jump back in on "En el Case."
Yomo joins
Cosculluela on the punchy, multi-layered polyrhythmic attack of "Mi Hermano," before the set closes with the fingerpopping head wagger "Subelo." Ultimately, War Kingz is proof that
Cosculluela has his mojo back. ~ Thom Jurek