Shout out to subscriber N_Gorski for immediately’s decide. They popped up within the feedback on final week’s nomination to ask what they considered Sotomayor’s new report. Properly, I hadn’t really listened to it but, however now I am hooked.
The group is made up of brothers Raul and Paulina Sotomayor from Mexico Metropolis. Wabi Sabi is their first report since 2020’s Origenes, and it is a pure pleasure. Have a look again at every little thing I’ve beneficial over the previous few months. Most of them cannot be described with the phrase “enjoyable.” However that’s wabi-sabi. It is enjoyable, chaotic, and danceable to demise.
I had beforehand realized about Sotomayor because of a brief documentary produced by Ableton about Raul’s varied tasks. Within the video, he talks about how his strategy to music manufacturing has modified over time. Up to now, folks tried to make it sound “correct” and “clear,” however now the necessary factor is “how a lot distortion are you able to make?” and “how a lot are you able to prolong it.”
You’ll be able to undoubtedly hear it within the music. The primary monitor, “Me dejo llevar,” opens with a synth arpeggio that has clearly stretched its lifespan to inside an inch. Stuffed with digital artifacts. The entire truck has a lightweight crust, as if every little thing has been barely cropped. “Who’s there” is equally edgy and bristling, sounding like a dance ground continually on the verge of erupting right into a riot.
Classic digital drum hits, droning bass, and stabs of reverb-drenched noise by no means fairly attain full catharsis, however they mix superbly into album spotlight “Vida.” Right here we discover Paulina in sultry gear as she sings a UK garage-inspired monitor that ultimately explodes into an Afro-house membership banger.
Wabi-Sabi flits between genres with an infectious freedom. Afrobeats, cumbia, electropop, R&B, and extra all collide on this album, which is indubitably essentially the most enjoyable album of 2026 thus far. What makes this report much more spectacular is that regardless of its unconventional sound (donkey jaw?) and stylistic deviations, Sotomayor nonetheless has a transparent imaginative and prescient to place this report collectively.
At no level does chaos threaten to overwhelm you. It by no means feels just like the duo is just throwing issues on the wall and seeing what sticks. All choices are rigorously made for the celebration. The gently meandering guitars of “Yo Se Todo De Ti,” the basic home of “Todo Se Delumba,” and the dancehall of “Prende La Palma” all really feel unified by Paulina’s simple charisma behind the mic and Raul’s unbridled sonic curiosity.
