Hi everyone. Blanco Nino here, the Internet's busiest music nerd. What am I doing? Oh my God. And it's time for a review of this new Natalia Lafourcade record, Cancionera.

Mexican musical artist, vocalist, Grammy winner, but most importantly, a singer, a singer of songs, Ms. Natalia LaFercade. And these days, whether they are wholly original and new, a take on a traditional tune, or a cover, something along those lines, a lot of Natalia's recent material tends to have an old school flair. And seeing her head further and further into this direction in her career has been interesting to watch. Because way back when, years and years and years ago, there was a point in time where her music, her sound, took a decidedly indie and pop-centric approach.

But ever since her Musas series, as well as her inclusion in the Disney Coco soundtrack in 2017, her albums have been racking up with the quickness a variety of different classic Latin music styles, from bolero to mariachi, somba, cumbia, all of which are sometimes done with tastefully jazzy variations.

Now, in my opinion, Natalia's music really reached a peak of skill and passion and execution on her 2022 album De Todas las Flores, which was my album of the year for a reason, there are still moments on that LP that make me cry. So of course I was going to go into any new album from Natalia, thrilled to see what it had to offer. And I was unsurprised to find this record itself is special too.

Now, like with a lot of Natalia's recent output, Cancionera's sounds and instrumentals are also looking toward the past, but maybe a little more so than usual. I actually think this is maybe Natalia's most openly nostalgic record so far in some respects, because the way some of these tracks are recorded, it sounds like I'm hearing a live band captured on a Hollywood soundstage.

You'll be shocked to hear how some of these tracks sound not just like songs, but scenes. Like the way "El Paloma y La Negra" ends off with the band jamming and everyone in the room chanting. The whole thing genuinely sounds like a wild party. Or the way "El Coconito" suddenly breaks into dancing crowd noise and some very exuberant trumpets in the last leg of the song. It's one of many moments on the record I can't listen to without thinking about where it's happening.

I am completely and utterly transported, which is an added bonus to the fact that Natalia's and David Aguilar's vocals marry so well with these beautiful, close harmonies throughout the song too. Not just here, but also the much more folksy "Como Quisiera Quererte", a track that features lyrics that describe a lot of longing, a lot of confusion with gorgeous but gentle piano embellishments.

Now for a bit I've been talking about the sense of place that a lot of these songs have, and I think there's another key aspect of this record that contributes to this feeling, and that's that Natalia and her band have committed to doing full takes on these songs when performing them, and as a result it's really easy to get caught up in the moment when all these tracks feel like they're just happening in real time. Or again, when the music feels like it has a very vivid sense of time and place alike, with the fun and carefree vibes of "Cocos en La Playa", Latin drum fills and tons of bars that pretty much describe a carefree day at the beach.

Sometimes the tracks on this record bring a much more dramatic setting, though. The opening instrumental, for example, which is surprisingly whimsical and wintry for the start of a Natalia album. The track also kind of expands on the theme melody of the title track of the record. And yes, the title track of the album has a very mournful tone to it too. I'm also kind of surprised by the very standard vocal jazz instrumental palette the track gradually progresses into, which I thought was sort of predictable. But Natalia's vocal performance is still killer and emotionally it's interesting to hear her really get caught up in what she feels is the magic and passion that she has for song, really the art form she's built her life on.

I've also heard this album categorized as Natalia's most "mystical" record yet, and I do think there are some key tracks that are cause for that assessment. After all, we do have the dramatic and acoustic ballad "La Bruja" in the tracklist here, a song that is not only attached to this strange art film of a music video, but the verses of the track are very curious as well. It's obviously got some symbolism going on, but you do have a lot of references to this witch and kind of being enchanted and taken when I think that's a kind of serving in place of Natalia's interest and infatuation with her heritage and music that relates to that. I mean, the writing certainly could be more literal. I'm not ruling out an incorrect interpretation here, but again, given the title and themes of the track, we are talking about overt nods to magic and all things otherworldly.

Which is where I also think the track "Luna Creciente" fits in, which is this ode to the moon, set to very cavernous guitars, some eerie leads popping up here and there, over which Natalia delivers a stunning vocal performance. I mean, she's making it sound easy at this point.

There's also "Mascaritas de Cristal", which is a characterization of someone who is deep into a lot of self aggrandizement and lies and deception. A false presentation of sorts. And this makes for two of Natalia's most biting verses ever on any album. I love the way she acts these feelings out. It's like she knows something that we don't. And the whole vibe of the track is just so deeply sinister.

The closing instrumental on the album brings those orchestral layers back that were there at the start of the record. So things do kind of come full circle there.

But still, I am kind of surprised by how mournful the overall tone of some of these tracks are and how widely that contrasts with some songs in the middle of the record here and there, like "Coconito". So if there is kind of an Achilles' heel and a downside to this LP, it's that emotionally, this record does seem to be kind of all over the place. There is a certain emotional inconsistency to the songs here that can be a little jarring. Also, on top of that, with how some of these songs are produced to sound a lot older than they actually are, I feel like Natalia is inadvertently resigning some of these sounds and ideas to the idea that, oh, this is like, old. This is super vintage. This is something that's like from a bygone era, and that's it.

I mean, there is certainly like a novelty and a cool characteristic to those textures and to those tones. But part of what was so cool about De Todas los Flores to me was that that record, for as maybe classic as some of the musical ideas on it were, the recording, the presentation, like everything about that album sounded so new and fresh and modern and vibrant. And frankly, it was cool to hear these sounds that I think people often define as just like being too aged and too old school to be relevant once again and just to have them brought back in such a way to where they feel, like, youthful and interesting. This record, whether it intends to or not, I think it does kind of make a bit of a novelty out of, you know, how classic some of the sounds on this record are.

Still, with that being said, the songwriting and performances are gorgeous enough to overcome any issues that that brings up. I also wasn't a huge fan of the Israel Fernandez vocal feature on the record. I just feel like his vocal style with the incessant vibrato is not really for me, but I can certainly hear what Natalia sees in his presence on the track for sure.

Despite those issues, I still thought Cancionera was another impressive album from Natalia. Even as she delivers a project that is a little all over the place thematically and emotionally, she still writes and records some of her best material yet and delivers one stunning vocal performance after the next. Which is why I'm feeling a light to decent 8 on this album.

Anthony Fantano Natalia Lafourcade. Forever.