GABIFUEGO
Romanticas
Release: October 2, 2020
Review by Nathalie Knudsen
Norway's new reggaeton-hope released his first EP Romanticas on October 2nd with 6 songs, 3 features, and 16 minutes of good vibes.
Fun fact: You might not have heard about GABIFUEGO, real name Gabriel Muñoz, but you've probably heard about Norwegian indie/bedroom-pop artist boy pablo. Gabriel plays guitar for boy pablo on tour, so he's not unfamiliar with being on stage (he even shaved his head during a show in 2019).
NORWEGIAN-CHILEAN + ICELANDIC = DREAM TEAM
The 21-year old Norwegian-Chilean made his artistic debut in May with what may be the first ever reggaeton-track featuring a verse in Icelandic. “Moviendo” is an upbeat and fun song, and GABIFUEGO really proves himself as a reggaeton-artist. It has the hip hop-influences, the rapping and singing in Spanish, and the famous dembow rhythm reggaeton music is known for. It also features Icelandic rapper GKR, who raps the first verse. Even though GKR doesn't use a single Spanish word, the two languages blend so seamlessly together that we might as well just erase “language barrier” from our dictionaries.
Although “Moviendo” was a great first single, it's his third release that seems to be the most popular. Acting as the first song on the EP, “Contigo Tengo Feeling” features fellow Norwegian artist Astrid S. The two met at a Norwegian award show and got in touch through mutual friends to make the tune. And while Astrid already has an impressive resume, this is the first time she sings in Spanish. The track is catchy and lively, and sure to be stuck in your head all day.
NORWAY'S NEW RAGGAETON-HOPE
The next two titles on the EP, “Para Nada” and “Vamos” are feature-free. With these, the lyrics are all in Spanish, and both were released as singles prior to the release of Romanticas. “Para Nada” is probably the most chill song out of the six on the EP, while still including the rhythms and hip hop/dancehall-influences the genre is known for. “Vamos”, on the other hand, sounds like it should be a radio-hit and makes you want to dance along (it also happens to be my personal favorite).
The final songs on the EP, “Perreo” and “Manos Arriba”, were the only ones that had not been released as singles beforehand. Both have that compelling rhythm that makes you want to keep listening, and they are generally just sick tunes. “Perreo” does not have a feature artist, but we do hear a female voice talking during some parts of the song. There’s a flute-like melody playing throughout the song, and personally I think this song is the most similar to the general idea of reggaeton. If someone would've played me this and told me it was made by J. Balvin (X, Mi Gente) or Daddy Yankee (Despacito, Gasolina), I probably wouldn't have doubted it.
“Manos Arriba” does have a feature artist; Norwegian rapper Kjartan Lauritzen. The title translates to “Hands Up”, and this whole song just feels like a party. The beat and the lyrics are fun, inviting and makes you want to, well, party. And with lyrics in both Spanish and Norwegian, it's proven again that there's room to get creative within the genre.
HAVE FUN AND BE CREATIVE
To me, the theme of the EP seems to be that you can have fun, as well as be inventive and creative with the way you make music. While one wouldn't necessarily think to combine Spanish reggaeton verses with Icelandic or Norwegian rap, it works surprisingly well together. And the result is a creative and interesting new take on the increasingly popular reggaeton-genre.
With Romanticas, GABIFUEGO proves that the reggaeton genre is much more inclusive than people might think, and delivers a fun, solid and just straight up fire (fuego?) debut EP.
Cover art: Even Suseg / Photo: Michael Ray Vera Cruz
Listen to Romanticas on Spotify and Apple Music, and make sure to follow GABIFUEGO on Instagram and Facebook.