November 12, 2003 @ 11:48 am

GLORIA ESTEFAN - UNWRAPPED (EPIC)

Ernesto Lechner

Ay, ay, ay, here we are again, five years after her last English album—and nothing has really changed. She’s still the very picture of mainstream pop.

Ay, ay, ay, here we are again, five years after her last English album—and nothing has really changed. She’s still the very picture of mainstream pop. Qué pasa, you ask? True, Gloria Estefan’s not exactly unpredictable, but there’s still nothing inherently wrong with accessible music—Unwrapped offers proof. Why, it’s certainly pretty, even beautiful at times, peppered with all those sweet violins and crunchy drum rolls that the players of her spotless band perform with the bravado of a ’70s arena-rock supergroup. If you didn’t know that Estefan has an affinity for the bell-bottom decade, the jangly Andeanfolk vibe of “Wrapped,” her first single, will surely tip you off. Or the epic chorus of “A Little Push”— the bombastic feel, the big sound, the melancholy melodrama of it all, says ’70s style. In spite of the nostalgia, the Afro-Caribbean sounds found on her previous albums are far richer. But Afro-Caribbean wish list aside, this endearingly old-fashioned album will also do. Imagine the two of you dancing together, arms outstretched in a sold-out stadium, pointing those lighters to the sky until the fuel runs out.

Article tags: GLORIA, ESTEFAN, UNWRAPPED, EPIC 

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http://www.vibe.com/music/revolutions/2003/11/gloria_estefan_unwrapped_epic/

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