Review Summary: Somewhere, someone is experiencing the greatest moments of their life – and no one will ever know.
Being an audiophile in this day and age is a strange thing. How remarkable is it that in our modern era we can sift through the proverbial stacks of another world– and how easy it is to lose sight of the gifts that this level of access can grant us. In a world rife with the struggles of macro level modernity, it is easy to miss the micro level miracles that bubble up out of our shared musical aether. Sueter7’s ”Todo Salió Bien en la Sencilla Villa Quién” is one of those miracles tucked away in the southern hemisphere.
Translating roughly to “Everything Went Well In Our Simple Village,” this beguiling mashup of indietronica, shoegaze, and neo-psych is a reminder of the shared undercurrent of musical joy that we all have the privilege of tapping into. An audible ray of alien sun: indefatigable in the face of strife, distance, or ennui.
The artist, Argentine producer Sueter7, wears his influences on his sleeve: shoulder to pinky, while gleefully twisting them hither and thither into colorful new forms. The dense crescendos of Parannoul, the mysterious melodies of Panchiko, and gentle humanism of Porter Robinson are splattered like octarine oil paints upon a Jackson Pollock canvas of sound.
As chaotic as this description sounds, Sueter7’s even hand and excellent ear for pop hooks frames these dense layers of blossoming sound in an inviting, appealing framework. The shimmering keys of ‘Mapache’ twinkle in anticipation of its head bopping hooks and conversational chorus – while the crunching guitar lines of ‘Confuencias’ pummel the listener with serotonin seafoam.
The obvious difficulty in assessing a record like this is the language barrier: it is written entirely in Spanish. But it speaks to Sueter7’s quality as a musician that “Everything Went Well In Our Simple Village” sounds as intimate and familiar as it does. So much so that the experience of listening to it feels like an alien treatise of quality itself.
Philosopher Robert M. Pirsig defined quality as an event in much the same way that Monroe Beardsley defined art as a conversation. In his famed ‘Zen & The Art Of Motorcycle Maintenance’ he asserted that “quality decreased subjectivity (and) takes you out of yourself, making you aware of the world around you.”
And if it isn’t already clear: ”Todo Salió Bien en la Sencilla Villa Quién” is an EVENT. Here the lack of English language lyrics in Sueter7’s work, and its wide reaching array of sounds, give you a bounty of audible handholds upon which climb a world of sumptuous, otherworldly delights.
That this rendezvous of self, other, and world outside occurs within these language barriers and genre mashups – necessitates that this meeting manifest in bright, kaleidoscopic abstraction. It’s warmly compressed vocals and wily instrumentals are as intoxicatingly alien as they are achingly familiar.
You could argue that the tendency to subconsciously ascribe personal meaning to foreign lyricism robs a work of authorial intent – but in understanding it’s quality as effectual rather than essential, we can see different sort of art-&-artist conversation occur. One that speaks in synthesized emotional ad-lib. It is precisely our inscription of meaning to melody that give this album such a timeless quality.
From its languid opening moments to its pulse pounding 9 minute closer, ”Todo Salió Bien en la Sencilla Villa Quién” offers a rare listening experience that feels both intimate and universal. I want to stress that “you don’t want to miss this” and that it is a “must listen” – but that urgency would rob you of your own place setting of quality, context, and melody. For all my flowery praise: it isn’t that deep. Just give it a listen, whenever you can, and as you like.
This, like memories of sunnier days, isn’t going anywhere.
