ANA TIJOUX / VENGO / MARCH 18 [NACIONAL RECORDS]
There’s a lot of hype around Vengo, Ms. Tijoux’s fourth solo album since breaking up with the Chilean rap combo Makiza. The French-born femcee has declared that it was her goal to explore Latin American folklore on this new project, with more focus on live instrumentation and less on samples and scratch. After recently collaborating with Ondatrópica and Quantic on successful rap/cumbia fusions, she decided to pay tribute to her father’s side of her roots.
PROTISTAS / TBA / TBA [QUEMASUCABEZA]
“Estamos en la búsqueda de un contenido más profundo y dramático en relación con los discos anteriores. Volviendo, en parte, a los instrumentos acústicos y centrando las letras en el drama familiar. No estamos muy interesados en que sea un disco pop”. – Alvaro Solar, Protistas
To echo the words of my colleague Afroxander, the overlooking of Protistas as Chilean game changers is a mistake we need to correct. Protistas has given us some of the catchiest and boldest pop songs in the past four years, they’re just cloaked in grittier garb than their local counterparts. No glitter, no extreme use of synths, no snazzy dance moves. Just Arcade Fire-nodding anthemic pop, yet dirtier and somehow prettier. Looks like they’re toning down those pop inclinations for their upcoming, as-of-yet-untitled album, and exploring more intimate themes. Bring it on. – PCG
TINO EL PINGüINO / TBA / SPRING / SONIDO LIQUIDO
After having a stellar year, appearing in many top album countdowns of 2013, guesting, rhyming, and killing it all around, Tino El Pingüino is ready for more. As of late, the Mexican rapper has been touring all over his home country and is slated to appear at Festival NRMAL in Monterrey alongside an eclectic mix of international artists, including electronic pioneers Silver Apples, eclectic techno producer Matias Aguayo, and Spanish cult heroes Hidrogenesse. At some point during the year, Tino will drop a new album, the follow up to the critically acclaimed Tu Antiheroe Favorito. What to expect? Rhymes about sex, love, and everything else around Franco Genel’s world. Also to be expected: world-class beats and some guest spots by talented people from the Mexican hip-hop underground. – MH
TWIN SHADOW / TBA / TBA [4AD]
There is literally nothing known about Twin Shadow’s upcoming album. Nothing. No title, no release date, no tracklist. We don’t even know if he’s written a damn thing. But we know it’s coming at some point in 2014 and even if it only includes any and all of his UNDER THE CVRS takes I’ll still be happy, because that 112 cover never gets old. – PCG
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ALEX ANWANDTER / TBA / TBA [NACIONAL RECORDS]
Like Twin Shadow’s upcoming album, Alex Anwandter’s third solo release is a mystery. We know it’s happening, as confirmed by his label Nacional Records, but no word yet on its title or release date. Both Odisea and Rebeldes have proven to be mini classics, albums we keep going back to, albums his fans ecstatically cry-sing at shows. So we’re confident whatever Anwandter comes up with will be just as engrossing. – PCG
PORTER / MOCTEZUMA / SPRING
“Seremos co-productores, no estaremos con ninguna disquera, ni siquiera independiente”. – Villor, Porter
We admit we’re a bit conflicted about this one. We were extremely excited when Porter reunited last year at Vive Latino and nearly suffered a heart attack when they announced the fact they were working on new material following the release of “Kiosco.” Unfortunately, we’re a little upset with vocalist Juan Son leaving the group some time later. The remaining four members continued with new singer David Velasco, who joins the band on the upcoming record, Moctezuma, due this spring. We may not be as excited as we were initially, but Velasco is a talented singer and we’re interested in how he’ll contribute to the band’s sound. -AFR
JORGE DREXLER / BAILAR EN LA CUEVA / MARCH [WARNER MUSIC SPAIN]
The Uruguayan singer-songwriter spent some time in Bogotá, Colombia, last year, recording what will be his next album with the production of Mario Galeano (of Frente Cumbiero and Ondatrópica) so we can predict that it’s going to be more dance-oriented (Bailar en la cueva, is the title) and probably indulge in the tropical-experimental world of post-ñu-cumbia. Drexler hasn’t dropped an album since 2010. A guest appearance by Brazil’s Caetano Veloso (on “Bolivia”) adds to the accumulated expectations, as well as collaborations with three other music acts on this list: Ana Tijoux, Bomba Estereo, and Calle 13. – JD
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CECI BASTIDA / LA EDAD DE LA VIOLENCIA / APRIL 15 [COSMICA RECORDS]
“I wanted this to be a record that wasn’t as polished as the first one. I wanted to experiment with different instruments and leave ‘mistakes’ in there.” – Ceci Bastida
“Por la Calle”’s incendiary catchiness tells us that Ceci Bastida’s next album is one to expect great things from. La Edad de la Violencia, due out in April, is the Tijuana native’s second solo outing, the follow up to 2010’s excellent Veo la Marea. Yes, it’s taken her four years to get her act together, but she had a baby in 2011 so give the woman a break!
This time she’s teamed up with Fool’s Gold frontman, Luke Top, for three of the tracks, and reunited with Brooklyn’s XXXChange, who worked on Veo la Marea. There’s also another reunion on La Edad de la Violencia: fellow Tijuana No! singer Julieta Venegas—maybe you’ve heard of her—makes a cameo.