Maria Rodés, one of Spain’s leading singer-songwriters for years, thanks to albums such as ‘Elíptica’ (2018), ‘Lilith’ (2020) or, more recently, the notable ‘Fuimos los dos’ (2022), publishes one of Friday’s new releases. It is ‘Chico Bueno’, the “preview” of a project she has prepared together with BRONQUIO, alias of the producer Santiago Gonzalo.
The name BRONQUIO has been very present in recent times, especially for his collaboration with Rocío Márquez on the excellent ‘Tercer cielo’, the album that won the 2023 Ruido Prize. BRONQUIO was also among the musical recommendations that Pedro Sánchez shared in his famous interview with La Pija y la Quinqui.
In that podcast, the most music-loving Prime Minister in history defined BRONQUIO’s sound as a mix of “techno, indie and flamenco.” To these genres we must now add bachata, as this is the proposal of ‘Chico Bueno’, today’s Song of the Day.
The approach behind ‘Chico Bueno’ is no mystery: Maria Rodés sings a classic bachata melody and BRONQUIO decorates it with electronic effects. On paper it’s a simple idea, but the result is more surprising. BRONQUIO’s production integrates gunshot sounds, and Rodés’ voice sounds passed through a vocal filter similar to a vocoder. ‘Chico Bueno’ is one of the best updates to bachata that have been heard recently. And there have been many.
As for the theme of ‘Boy,’ Rodés and BRONQUIO tell the story of a love relationship destined to fail. Rodés, in love, sings to a boy who gives her hope and then takes it away. “I wasted my time hoping that, one day, maybe, you’d want to settle down, move in with me and let yourself be loved,” Rodés sings sadly. To the rhythm of this captivating bachata, she will ease her pain.
