Revelación is the latest release from Selena Gomez, and her first-ever Spanish-language EP.
Full disclosure before this review: I am a native English speaker who knows VERY basic Spanish. Most of the lyric interpretations will be from reliable translation sources, but the commentary on every other aspect of the song is unaffected by the language barrier.
The first aspect that really jumps out at you when beginning to listen to Revelación is how well Gomez's voice suits Spanish-language music. There's some unnamable quality that, although her English music is impressive and enjoyable, makes this Spanish release just that little bit elevated from her previous English-langauge releases. Perhaps it's something about the language that really emphasises the positive aspects of her vocals, but either way, it sets us up for a really good EP.
Immediately with De Una Ver, we see Gomez inserting herself into the Latin genre. With thumping basslines and sultry beats, which don't stray too far from Gomez's previous pop releases but still bring us something new, De Una Ver is a great opener.
However, her new R&B cross Reggaeton sound is firmed up within further tracks on the EP, such as 'Buscando Amor' and 'Vicio' with their catchiness and thumping basslines.
'Baila Conmigo' is one of two impressive collaborations of the album. It is smart for Gomez to use up-and-coming Latin artists rather than necessarily the long-standing icons, as it shows that she is truly engaged with current Latin music and allows for an incredibly fresh sound. Both Gomez and - vocals work incredibly well together, along with the heavy basslines that have become synonymous with this ep.
With her second collaboration, 'Dámelo To'' Gomez does go for a more established artist Myke Towers, who has worked with two other Latin icons in the form of Bad Bunny and Becky G, which almost guarantees this song will be a success (which it is).
Throughout the EP we see the classic themes of confidence that we've seen in Gomez's most recent album 'Rare'. There's a lot of self-love and conviction, which works well with this new style of music. With songs like Vicio which are forward about wanting someone you're interested in, with the repetition of "Your lips, your lips/ Are my vice, my vice" and the track 'Adios' which is about moving and being well and truly done with your ex-lover: "This isn't personal, there's nothing to explain, bye / If they say that they saw me with someone else / It's probably true, yeah"
Overall Revelación is a great new release from Gomez. It's good to see her branching out and trying new styles to her music. It may be a bit basic, and it's not adding too much to the Latin music world or remarkably different from her English releases, but something about it is elevated. Clearly, Revelación was a passion project for Selena Gomez, and I'm glad she decided to do it as it's definitely a good listen.