From Cuba, a singer-songwriter who could live down comparisons to Dave Matthews…
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[4.50]
Jonathan Bogart: Kudos for the anti-domestic violence message, and I always appreciate hearing some memory of Andalusian vocalizing in modern Latin American music, but also, snooze.
[3]
Iain Mew: The music is boringly pleasant, but his voice is just too piercing to ever relax and let it wash over, so listening to the combination for four minutes becomes a test of barely engaged endurance.
[2]
Patrick St. Michel: For such a sparse song, this is compelling beyond the heavy theme. Elain boasts a powerful voice, while “Sin Pasaje de Regreso”‘s percussion sounds just slightly off, a touch that makes it all the more intriguing.
[6]
Zach Lyon: The verses sound like the boring parts of every acoustic nu-metal anthem, but his high register promenading achieves a brightness of its own, perhaps only made special in contrast to the rest of it.
[5]
Brad Shoup: The acoustic chording had me in “Don’t Cry” mind; the fretless bass put this over. I hear something childlike in his upper register, something at once mournful and non-comprehending. It’s all a bit of a hash — I can’t tell if the extra beat halfway through is intentional or intentionally allowed — but weird things can cause good cries.
[7]
Ramzi Awn: Elain’s voice helps illuminate a tough sound to pull off, and the simplicity of the arrangement is welcome enough. Overall, “Sin Pasaje de Regreso” achieves a level of production that is admittedly corny but mixed well.
[4]