El Mal Querer

Sound DNA

• Global & Regional
• Flamenco

• synthetic
• intense
• theatrical

About

It's not enough that rising Spanish star ROSALÍA ingeniously blends traditional flamenco with contemporary pop on her second album—she also gets a narrative based on medieval literature in there, too. Inspired by <i>Flamenca</i>, a 13th century book about a woman imprisoned by her jealous fiancé thought to be the first modern novel, each of the 11 songs on this collaboration with producer El Guincho (Pablo Díaz-Reixa) serves as a “chapter” of a running story about a doomed relationship. ROSALÍA went through the album track by track with Apple Music. <b>MALAMENTE (Cap. 1 Augurio)</b> “It’s a premonition—this moment when you know in the beginning of the story how it’s gonna end, but even then you go and do it. I was trying to compose a song everybody could understand, doing experimentation with electronic sound but also connected with my roots and flamenco. It’s combining these worlds.” <b>QUE NO SALGA LA LUNA (Cap. 2 Boda)</b> “This song is about commitment and that feeling you get when you get in a relationship with somebody. Sometimes you lose something of yourself in the process. It's the dark side of getting engaged—it's something beautiful but at the same time, there's another part, right?” <b>PIENSO EN TU MIRÁ (Cap. 3 Celos)</b> “It’s ‘Thinking About Your Gaze.’ This was a song that started from a sample of Bulgarian voices. I did the bassline on an island in Spain, El Hierro. I was so inspired in this place.” <b>DE AQUÍ NO SALES (Cap. 4. Disputa)</b> “It’s the most aggressive part of the record...and one of the most risky. I wanted to use the motorcycles in this song with this crazy rhythm that combines [chapters] three and four. Khalid told me he liked the song—I would love to do music with him.” <b>RENIEGO (Cap. 5. Lamento)</b> “It’s a traditional melody from flamenco. [Spanish singer] Camarón was singing with an orchestra; he created the arrangement. I think it sounds very magical.” <b>PRESO (Cap. 6 Clausura)</b> “You can hear Rossy de Palma’s voice—she’s an iconic actress from Spain. You can feel the experience in her voice. It’s heavy, you know?” <b>BAGDAD (Cap. 7 Liturgia)</b> “I was very inspired by an erotic club in Barcelona called Bagdad and by ‘Cry Me a River’ by Justin Timberlake. He heard the song and said, ‘Yes, you can use the melody’; I was so excited because he never approves anything.” <b>DI MI NOMBRE (Cap. 8 Éxtasis)</b> “It’s a very flamenco vibe, very traditional, [but] the structure is very pop. It’s about this connection between two people; the sexual moment. The lyrics—'Say my name, say my name'—I'm such a big fan of Destiny's Child. [It's] paying tribute to all these artists I heard when I was a teenager. ” <b>NANA (Cap. 9 Concepción)</b> “This is a traditional flamenco melody used when you have a child you’re trying to make fall asleep. I was very inspired by what James Blake does—the space and the production he uses in his songs. I feel like in 50 years, people in universities will study him.” <b>MALDICIÓN (Cap. 10 Cordura)</b> “We’d been working with Pablo on the production and composition for a year and a half, and I didn’t like it enough. Then: This Arthur Russell sample—I think it’s perfect in this moment.” <b>A NINGÚN HOMBRE (Cap. 11 Poder)</b> “The last song of the record is the first I composed. Pablo was very excited by it and we saw that we sound good together, so I was like, ‘Let’s do the entire record together.’ It’s about the power of a woman.”

via Apple Music

Tracklist

Credits