I could have sworn we’d covered her before, but apparently I just dreamed it.
[Video][Website]
[4.80]
Jonathan Bogart: It’s neither as gleefully trashy as “Egoísta” or as gorgeously reflective as “En El Amor Hay Que Perdonar”, but falls between the stools and ends up being satisfying in neither direction. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad that there are Mexican starlets aiming for maxed-out Rihanna-style trance bliss, but Rihanna herself only nails it occasionally too.
[6]
Brad Shoup: Belinda’s got that vocal fry that asserted itself in the heyday of charting Lohan, A. Simpson et al. Nice to have it back. Otherwise, this is a rote “Waiting For Tonight” dawnrocker.
[3]
Alfred Soto: Apt title for such a colorless Rihanna-aping number.
[2]
Iain Mew: It’s interesting that a song can share so much with Guetta-pop whilst still suffering from the opposite problems. Rather than being wearyingly high impact all the time, the synth fizz and pop and Belinda’s energetic performance turn into a pleasant nothing, cancelled out by filters and lack of hooks. It doesn’t help that the official YouTube, the one that’s been in the site’s most viewed chart, has sound quality that would shame your average radio ripper.
[5]
Crystal Leww: Belinda’s vocal sounds a bit forced and strained on the verses, and the verses seem to just service the chorus anyway. The chorus is fun, so I have no idea why the flow is broken at the end of the song with a shrill laugh and the last syllable of “obscuridad” sped up and stuttered.
[5]
Will Adams: The music sounds a lot like Wynter Gordon during her shiny plastic pop days. Belinda also resembles Gordon with the way she lets the longer vowels crack around the edges. “En La Obscuridad” lacks the pop sheen of its reference points, though. But, as the laugh that begins the outro shows, it’s meant to be disposable.
[6]
Ian Mathers: This one really is all about those “oh oh oh oh oh oh oh”s (or “ah ah ah ah ah ah ah”s?), so it’s a shame they’re dropped from the last minute or two of the song.
[6]
Daniel Montesinos-Donaghy: The pointed “mil valiums que tomar” (thousand pills of valium) line suggests that Belinda and her collaborators intend on crafting a drug-fuzzed take on traditional Top-40 dancefloor. There is an attempt at restraint that recalls Ultra Blue-era Utada’s reflective take on these type of pillowy four-on-the-floor rhythms. However, the attempted aesthetic doesn’t quite stick the landing, the split between euphoric dance and hazy production teasing with little promise of release. While “Obscuridad” bubbles, there are treats — producer El Nasi lets the opening chords to slowly build themselves up from charming tinny bleeps to crunching rave synths, Belinda’s closing yelp of frustration/glee — but it bubbles too long, neglecting to create a real lasting impact.
[6]
Rebecca A. Gowns: I want to like this! So much! It almost goes somewhere! If this song had a climax I bet I’d love it.
[4]
Katherine St Asaph: I can’t take this, take this, take no more — chorus, what you, what you waiting for?
[5]