Russian Red - Fuerteventura

In 2008 we saw the release of Russian Red’s debut album, I Love Your Glasses, a record that introduced us to a very special voice filled with promise. With one excellent track called Cigarettes, this Spaniard quickly managed to grab attention onto herself, and after a few years of work, she now returns with a brand new album.

Fuerteventura is the name of her new work, recorded in Glasgow and produced by the very Tony Doogan, Russian Red dives into a completely new category and doesn’t cease to amaze from start to finish.

Crafting a simple yet incredibly effective folk sound and mixing it with the most tender pop from the 50’s and 60’s, her sound flows incessantly from track to track, creating a vibrant yet gentle atmosphere. The leap from the first album is greatly noticeable. Here Lourdes Hernandez, as she is called in real life, shows great maturity and more freedom when creating songs. Of course, the presence of Tony Doogan can be felt as the album is perfectly produced, making for some rich sounds that will captivate quite a few of us.

I Hate But I Love You plays like a ballad, slow and easy, serving as a great ice-rink for Lourdes’ voice to skate on. It’s definitely inspired by past times and yet, it is executed in a way that will not put off those who prefer more modern beats.

But it’s not all traditional folk, as she also tries to dive into newer sounds as is the case with Mi Cancion 7, which seems to capture some of the essence of other artists like Florence + The Machine and blends it with the likes of Bjork.

It’s also just good old fun-loving pop, just like in The Sun The Trees, simple but spot-on, it feels familiar from the first listen and it will stay in your heard afterwards. Brilliant.

After listening to Fuerteventura, it seems quite obvious that this Spaniard is meant to become an easily recognisable name in folk music. What she does, she does it well, and keeps building upon her capabilities in a really fast pace. Fuerteventura deserves your attention - don’t let it escape you.

Russian Red - I Hate You But I Love You by _ricard