Cordero Issue #37

De Donde Eres (Bloodshot)

By Annie Holub
Published: September 1st, 2008 | 11:42pm

Ani Cordero’s Puerto Rican roots usually peek through somehow on her band’s previous three albums — salsa sung in Spanish mingles with rock sung in English. But for De Donde Eres (which translates to “where are you”), Cordero has set aside the English entirely. De Donde Eres might not have the fascinating bilingual tension that previous Cordero records reaped so well, but what De Donde Eres lacks in linguistic tension, it makes up for in emotional, cultural, and energetic depth. Strangely enough, singing entirely in Spanish allows Cordero to become an even better multicultural, multilingual rock band.

The record begins with “Quique,” a haunting but upbeat song about Cordero’s cousin Quique dancing at a party: “Baila, Quique, Baila” (Dance, Quique, Dance), chants Cordero, “Así Se Hace, Señor” (That’s How You Do It, Yes Sir). And from there on, De Donde Eres shows how to create the same kind of cultural bilingualism that made Cordero’s previous Spanish/English records so exciting, but in just one language. “La Música Es la Medicina” (The Music is the Medicine) has perfect radio-rock dramatics — there’s a chunky bass line and Cordero’s voice gets distorted on the chorus. “Fin del Mundo” (End of the World) swaggers with a blend of rock and salsa romanticism, and “Ruleta Rusa” (Russian Roulette) goes cosmopolitan new wave/jazz while Cordero sings of the game of “la rulata rusa” being played with our world.

The emotional depth in these songs is part of what makes them speak beyond the language — even the most untutored Spanish speaker can understand what Cordero intends when she cries “corre busca ayuda” (run for help) on “Veneno” (the poison) as the drums conjure deep, dark fears. The brightness of the trumpets, the warmth of Cordero’s voice, and the lyrical intensity all combine to make De Donde Eres a complex and strong record, and by far, Cordero’s strongest yet.

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