Rauw Alejandro’s newly launched “Playa Saturno,” is the type of Album that is meant to be performed on a sizzling summer season day with the amount up, bass booming, and the solar shining. That is the right listening setting to get pleasure from it in, evoking pictures of palm tree lined-boulevards and gated marquesinas that have been so essential to reggaetón’s evolution. But, today, because the style turns into increasingly industrial, there may be an ongoing polemic about the place the road may be drawn between genuine reggaetón and pop music. However with “Playa Saturno,” Alejandro goals to seamlessly toe that line, combining heavy-hitting beats that mine the greater than two-decades-worth of the style’s historical past along with his trademark crooner model and straightforward falsetto. And within the course of, he proves that, regardless of his mainstream success, he’s a reggaetonero by way of and thru; one that really understands the complexities of his style and how one can make folks transfer.

Given the title of his present challenge, one might be forgiven for considering that this album is solely an extension of Alejandro’s earlier launch, “Saturno.” Nevertheless, whereas he continues to construct on the electronic-laced sound he cultivated on that album, “Playa Saturno” is much much less experimental in the case of crossing genres. And the album advantages from that, delivering the type of consistency that has you leaving the skip button untouched.

However simply because Alejandro is not as experimental right here, does not imply that this follow-up is any much less formidable. Over 14 tracks, the Carolina-native crafts an nearly good summer season album, one which navigates the deceptively deep waters of reggaetón’s soundscape with a veteran’s ear.

The album begins off with a quick intro that sees Alejandro flexing his crooner vibes, singing sweetly over an acoustic guitar. However the intro shortly segues into the acquainted, bass-heavy get together vibes with “Cuando Baja El Sol” and “Al Callao.” The sample-heavy, high-bpm really feel of those two tracks borrow components from 90s home to create a type of futuristic perreo that’s paying homage to the later Playero mixtapes (39 and 40 for the outdated heads). From right here we get straight into the meat of the album with Alejandro calling in heavy hitters like Ivy Queen, Nejo y Dalmata, and Jowell y Randy. What’s extra spectacular is that the younger spitter is seamlessly in a position to modify his supply on tracks and with artists which can be very totally different from each other, honoring their essence with out dropping what makes him distinctive.

It is a formidable feat. However what’s most spectacular, is Alejandro’s understanding of not simply his personal sound, however of reggaetón as an entire. Since he stepped on the scene, his expertise as an artist has allowed him to stay on the prime of the sport and in the identical conversations as Dangerous Bunny, Anuel, J Balvin, Karol G, and naturally, Rosalía. However with “Playa Saturno,” Alejandro is displaying that he is a scholar of the sport, pulling double responsibility by serving to produce many of the tracks on the album alongside a staff of in-demand beatmakers that embody Mr. Naisgai, Dimelo Ninow, Dulce Como Sweet, and others. Collectively they craft an extremely various arsenal of baselines, dembows, and snares whereas using old-school methods like tempo switches to maintain every observe attention-grabbing and totally different from the previous. And whereas the album does start to taper off in the direction of the top, that is not earlier than Alejandro offers us his finest on the reggae en Español, Rvssian-produced banger, “No Me Sorprende.”

In the event you’re searching for an album with experimental sounds or extra various content material, you will not discover it with this one. That is one place the album may have gone additional, as songs like Dangerous Bunny’s “Andrea” have confirmed that reggaeton can deepen its subject material with out dropping its danceability. However that should not take away from what Alejandro has achieved right here. His second album of this yr IS an ideal summer season album, one you’ll be able to throw on on the seaside or at a barbecue and never fear concerning the vibes dipping. The pounding bass and enjoyable lyrics of “Playa Saturno” present an awesome soundtrack for the warmer months or for these of us dwelling en la isla.