 | Tracklist:
1. "Manos al Aire"
2. "Más"
3. "Mi Plan"
4. "Sueños"
5. "Bajo Otra Luz"
6. "Vacación"
7. "Suficiente Tiempo"
8. "Fuerte"
9. "Silencio"
10. "Como Lluvia"
11. "Feliz Cumpleaños"
12. "Fantasmas"
Release Date: 2009 | |
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| Summary: Extraño. Muy extraño. |
2 of 2 thought this review was well written
What a decade it’s been. If you’d have told someone in 2000 that good-looking girl who sings that song about wanting to be a bird would evolve into one of pop music’s biggest mavericks, you probably would not have been allowed another word in said person’s presence. But so it was – the singer, songwriter, producer and mother we know as Nelly Furtado has achieved somewhat of a notorious reputation for doing what she wants, how she wants and when she wants. Her three studio records up to this point – 2000’s Whoa Nelly!, 2003’s Folklore and 2006’s Loose – each convey a different side to this multi-talented enigma. Even now, in the face of her commercial peak (Timbaland really does know the way to reach the top of the charts), Furtado couldn’t care less about writing a hit. No, sir; now is a better time than ever to record an entire record in Spanish.
Let that sink in for a second. “Search your feelings”, to quote a classic. Still confused? Well, get used to it. It’s going to be hanging around like a bad smell all the way through Mi Plan, Furtado’s fourth studio album. You’ll be more than happy to appreciate some of the lovely arrangements here, and the even lovelier vocals throughout. Even still, this is the kind of curveball that’s difficult to knock out of the park.
Mi Plan is an album rich in culture. After all, it’s not every day a Canadian makes a pop album in a language other than English in studios in Toronto, Miami and Madrid; with guest spots from artists as diverse as Alex Cuba and Josh Groban. It is an ambitious project, you must hand it to Furtado regardless of your opinion on the rest of her body of work. And there is a lot to like about the record, even if it takes a few spins to properly settle in. Her pronunciation and delivery, for example, is absolutely gorgeous. This woman can literally say a phrase as casual as “¿Qué pasa?” and it sounds as natural as any seductive lady Spaniard. There’s still an infestation of hooks, too – just because there’s a good chance you have no idea what Nelly is singing, don’t doubt for a second you’ll be forgetting the choruses of songs like “Más” or the album’s title track anytime soon.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t take long for the excitement of just how different Furtado can be to run dry, leaving a sagging string of songs that are just plain boring in any language. And it’s not just the sappy ballads like “Sueños” or “Silencio”, either. The downright cheesy “Vacación”, complete with bizarre accordion and quasi-reggae swagger, sounds like a Spanish comedian parodying something from Gwen Stefani’s first solo record. Additionally, whoever’s bright idea it was to mix beautiful flamenco guitar and Concha Buika’s marvellous crooning with electro-pop production on the anachronistic “Fuerte” should be placed in a corner to think about what they’ve done. The occasional misstep is forgivable on any pop record, but there are moments here that more or less swerve off the path completely, hitting a tree somewhere nearby.
A lot of time, effort, ambition and soul went into Mi Plan. There is substantial evidence of this from the get-go. It’s sad, then, that far too much time is spent playing it safe; whereas it could have been spent wholeheartedly embracing the possibilities the project presented itself with. Maybe try for a single or EP in Spanish next time, Nelly? “Hit-and-miss” is not the kind of redeeming quality one wants in a record – no matter how you sing it.
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| Recent reviews by this author | | | |
who do you think you are davey?
Digging: Simian Mobile Disco - Unpatterns
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en espanol??
Digging: Porter Robinson - Spitfire Digging: Porter Robinson - Spitfire
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I'm a racist Anglo American from South florida. i refuse to listen to this Satan's music. Bad jokes aside, good review, will avoid this like the plague however.
Digging: Botanist - I: The Suicide Tree / II: A Rose From the Dead Digging: Botanist - I: The Suicide Tree / II: A Rose From the Dead
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i loved loose
Digging: Stagnant Pools - Temporary Room
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Rudy - our names are the same but the similarities stop there. I, for example, have taste and think Def Leppard are shit.
Digging: Kate Miller-Heidke - Nightflight | | |
I honestly don't know what you're on mate, but this string of reviews has been great, planning on slowing down anytime soon?
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Hahaha; some of these reviews I've had backed up for awhile because of BRC. But yes, more to come, including:
Poison the Well, Paramore, Bertie Blackman, Eleventh He Reaches London and An Horse.
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yay
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Very nice, it looks like the end of the year is coming around the corner with a smile on its face.
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Yee-haw!
Also, ATTN: EVERYONE. The next Australian Underground list is being compiled over the next 2 weeks, so if you've any suggestions, leave them in my shoutbox.
Rad? Rad.
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Rudy - our names are the same but the similarities stop there. I, for example, have taste and think Angels & Airwaves are shit
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hate this bitch
also for your list atavan, you want some metuls?
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Absolutely anything you want, rasp. As long as it's Australian and not well-known.
Lol @ CK.
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do you want small write ups and myspace links and shit coz i totally can do it. i'll send to your lastfm. i dunno which ones youve heard, what you consider not well-known, but i'll do a few and send over and you can use whichever ones you want.
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
That'd be fantastic, man. Basically a MySpace link and three bands that they sound similar to (like last time). Maybe a sentence or two on the band themselves we'll incorporate for this edition.
Thanks for your help, man. Same goes for everyone; hit up Nobodylikesyou on Last and see if you can help too 
x
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finished, sending now
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
Thanks so much, man.
List up on Halloween at the latest.
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Out of curiosity, does anyone here not believe in Halloween and not follow all the traditions and stuff?
| | | Album Rating: 2.5
I dress up like a monster asking old women for candy everyday, so Halloween's irrelevant to my lifestyle.
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haha, how delightful
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