This Argentinean trio breaks very little ground on their latest outingon Darla, and for the most part, this is fine by me. Lacking thecoke-fueled swagger of groups like Fischerspooner, Entre Rios come ofas kids who bought the textbook and read very closely.Darla
Their songs do everything I expect electro-pop to do: ride percolatingbeats; feature vocals that are coolly detached (or completelydisinterested depending on your point of view); and disappear from myconsciousness soon thereafter. The production here is smooth—likeSteely Dan playing on a Formica counter top smooth—something that soundengineer Gabriel Lucena can take pride in. On "Claro Que Sí," his beatsfloat and laze away behind singer Isol's icy detachment. It's a prettymoment of sugary pop on an album that at times can become overbearingin its sweetness. "De Tener" is similar in its execution, but featuresa strong chorus that keeps things interesting. While there is nothingparticularly wrong with Onda, their formulaic take on electro-popbecomes a bit grating and, well, boring. The tempos here rarely riseabove a mid tempo shuffle, which cause the songs to be bogged down in amid-paced mire. Furthermore, while their songs are sung in Spanish, abasic understanding of the language and a quick glance at the lyricsreveal that lyricist Sebastián Carreras' songs aren't exactly breakingany new ground in songwriting. Ultimately, what saves Entre Rios is thefact that they know they shouldn't be trying to stretch the boundariesof electro-pop. Onda knows it won't be shattering expectations orchanging any lives. Instead, it offers 11 pieces of clean, club-readybeats and breathy vocals. Whether you care enough to accept them isentirely up to you. - Nick Feeley
samples:
Read More
