Maria Raquel - Mucha Mujer - VINYL LP

Maria Usbeck's latest album Naturaleza is a bold new chapter for the always shape-shifting Ecuadorian singer-songwriter, diving deep into her singular realm of idiosyncratic pop music while retaining the observational, inquisitorial perspective that's marked her work thus far. Usbeck's third album for the Cascine tag follows the striking debut Amparo from 2016 (which featured co-production credits from Caroline Polachek) and 2019's expansive, exploratory Envejeciendo, which found Usbeck stretching her legs into the warm glow of 1980s electronic music and the spacious grooves of city pop. Since that album, she's also released the one-off single InchHollow,Inch which draped her entrancing vocals in a futuristic sheen amidst starry-eyed synths and the frissons of dialup technology.

NuDisco and House music producer Chris Diodati cut his teeth in his native Toronto and eventually relocated below the 49th parallel to Florida where he became a highly sought after DJ and producer. On his latest , he takes listeners on a gritty 15-track, cocktail-fueled journey through the sonic underbelly of Miami and New York City.

Vinyl LP pressing. After eight albums, Maria Rodés' talent has been made absolutely clear on numerous occasions. But InchFuimos Los DosInch is a special album, and not just because it's her first solo album with Elefant Records (after that wonder she shared with La Estrella de David titled InchContigoInch). We are probably looking at her most intimate work, where she combines singer-songwriting, Latin American folklore and sonic experimentation to express her vision of the end of romantic relationships. It is an absolute delight, and her marvelous voice dances between minute, delicate, exquisite arrangements. The album is produced hand in hand with Joel Condal, and also includes guitars and charango (a small Andean string instrument) by Isabelle Laudenbach and Marina Tomás, and cello by Marta Roma, who weave a blanket of arrangements that intertwine and hold together the story of this break-up from beginning to end.