Customer Reviews

Sweet & Sour - Hot & Spicy

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

In her fourth album Ely comes full circle with another one of her musical evolutions! She puts a little bit of everything in this new album. Unlike her previous cds where she sticks to one style, here Ely has two completley different cds combined in one( that is why she has the digipack ediction wich LITERALLY is two cds). Each song can be classified in its own genre, which demonstrates that Guerra is not afraid to flow in more than one direction, musically speaking. This cd is about evolving and evolution can be slow or it can be VERY radical, just as this album is Ely's most intensely radical cd. Her English can use a little work, but it doesn't weaken the meaning behind the songs. Highly recommend the cd for those who are not afraid of experimentation and radical changes; this is Ely Guerra's most intense moment in her career and personally speaking this cd is the one that will help her gain a little bit more commercial success. Lotofire obviously started this process, but Sweet & Sour, Hot Y Spicy will take it to the next level.

****For those who really want to see this authentic artist at her best, see her play these songs live and you will truely appreciate the album. I didn't appreciate the English songs until I saw her perform them in one of her concerts in San Francisco, Ca USA. The same may be for some of those who are having trouble with these same songs or other songs in the album > ;)

I must agree with another commentator about giving this album "some time." I am a HUGE Ely fan, and fell in love with here when I heard her previous album LOTOFIRE, which I still consider her best. When I first heard this new production I hated it, but found that some of the songs lingered in my head... So I decided to listen to it more, and now have grown to appreciate what Ely has done.

What can I say? As with Julieta Venegas, love does things to songwriters, afterall, they are human beings people! Change and happiness isn't necessarily downfall however...

This album is bouncy and playful, and Ely fluctutates, within the same song, with coos and yells. However, it is delicately orchestrated to be this way, and the result is good. It is something different, definitely experimental, and with more rock and pop sounds than her previous work.

I gave it four stars because of two reasons. She does one English song that is quite shockingly HORRIBLE(ANGELITO HEART(?)) and ruins the mood of the album, since it is in the middle. Another problem is the never ending cooing...it sounds great at first, but she does it in EVERY song and it gets a little old.

Overall, I do recommend the album. You can tell that Ely has found a large part of herself, though is still in the process of COMPLETELY finding herself. She seems to be experimenting lots with her music- all of her albums are very different.

It is almost impossible, and certainly a major challenge, to surpass yourself when you have a record like "Lotofire" in your resume. But Ely Guerra finds the way in a very unexpected turn of the wheel. While "Lotofire" was intimate, circular, introspective, conceptual and highly complex, "Sweet & Sour, Hot y Spicy" is extrovert, simpler, charming, and invites the listener to change from song to song in every imaginable aspect.
The title couldn't be more appropiated. Ely's vocals are incredibly diverse: she roars in "Te Amo-I Love You", whispers in "Angelito Heart", provokes in "Puerto Vallarta", enchants in "PaRaTi" and evokes nostalgia in "Quiereme Mucho".
Likewise, the rhythms and the instruments used are constantly surprising. There's a latin jazz ("Besame"), a bolero ("Mi Playa"), a lovely ballad ("Angelito Heart"), and even a folkloric tune that will make you go dance ("Lucrecia Y Rigoberto").
There are two songs in english that Ely sings with such confidence ("Puerto Vallarta", "Angelito Heart"), that it's hard not to think that her next album could be completely sung in english. It should be.
Ely's talent as a mexican musician who avoids the cliché of using her hispanic roots to make music (Julieta Venegas, Lila Downs, Café Tacvba), is one of a kind.
In that sense, "Sweet & Sour, Hot y Spicy" is one of the few mexican albums that's not afraid to look forward into making universal music.
It's completeley different from "Lotofire", but equally interesting and powerful. And that's a triumph for Ms. Guerra.

Yet again Ely Guerra has composed an amazing album. True this is a substantially different sound than her previous albums, and it did take me a while to appreciate Sweet and Sour, Hot and Spicy on its own merits. But wow, I spent all weekend listening to the CD and it doesn't get old. In fact, the more I listened to it the more I appreciated the subtle nuances of each song and the way they flowed from one song to the next. This album has a happier light hearted feel to it with definite 50's/60's pop/bolero influences. Ely's voice continues to shine as she sends you into a trance with her sultry voice. I can't reccomend this album enough, I've played it for all of my friends and they have all fallen in love with Ely. Just be aware, this is not the same Ely Guerra sound you heard in Lotofire or Pa Morirse de Amor, this is a new happier Ely and every bit as good as her previous albums.

Para muchos de nosotros que somos fieles seguidores de La Guerra, sabemos que a Ely le gusta cambiar su estilo de musica (y look) con cada disco que saca. Desde el mellow "Ely Guerra" a el dark "Pa'Morirse de Amor" y hasta el famosisimo "Lotofire" donde nos supo demostrar que combinando varios sabores de musica latina, rock, jazz, y trip-hop puede causar tanta sensacion. Este disco, "Sweet & Sour, Hot Y Spicy" si es diferente a sus tres discos anteriores pero nada que cause mucha sorpresa. Contiene dos rolas en ingles, que no suenan nada mal. La letra de algunas rolas son sexy y algo eroticas pero van muy de acuerdo con el nuevo look de Ely. Me gusto el concepto de dividir el disco en dos partes para coincidir con el titulo. La primera parte es mas rockera mientras la segunda es mas suave y sexy. Si llega a salir el digipack aqui en USA, esta version contiene dos bonus tracks (versiones demos), mas arte (me contaron que son acuarelas de Ely que ella misma pinto) y poesia o versos de Ely como lo hizo en su disco de Lotofire. En fin, este disco lo recomiendo a los nuevos fans de Ely y a los fieles seguidores desde que inicio ella su carrera. No se arrepentiran.

I am a huge fan of Ely since her first record, she is my favorite Mexican singer ever, I love hearing her voice, she sounds like an angel, and she is very feminine. This record is like the redemption of her previous works, she faces the past and the future, the classic and the modern, the intimate and familiar. She undresses her soul, open her heart and let you discover her world. The songs are revealing a new part of her art, some are funny, some are melancholic, but after you hear them you will enjoy them every time. Very creative record!
My favorite songs are Quiereme mucho, Pa-ra-ti.

Ely Guerra is one of the only true Mexican female rockers out there. She really knows how to rock, don't expect just soft rock. One of the most unique in her craft. She can go from having an soft angelic voice like Joni Mitchell to an angry PJ Harvey. "Ojos Claros, Labios Rosas" is definitely one of the standout tracks on the album. "Angelito Heart" is one of the sweetest songs you will ever hear. The song sounds like it should be in a film. This album will definitely grown on you after the second or third listen. In no way is Guerra a mainstream artist. She is modern, but she does her own thing. In "Puerto Vallarta" she sounds like Andrea Echeverri. And who can resist a beautiful woman repeating over and over again kiss me in "Besame."

Armonia; rabia; sensualidad; nostalgia; alegria... este nuevo trabajo de Ely guerra provoca todos estos sentidos. Pero, no esperen una continuacion lineal de lotofire (su anterior disco). La segunda mitad del disco es mas parecido a lotofire. La primera mitad es energia roquera, mas guitarra cruda y voces rasgadas, (pero claro, a lo ely guerra). Este album es una exploracion a su femeneidad y creatividad. Nos demuestra que se puede se extremadamente sexy de forma creadora e inteligente.

por el primer sencillo yo pense que todo el disco iba a ser asi pero esta medio calmado y da como que un poco de flojera oirlo otra vez

It took a little while for this album to grow on me, but it finally did. At first listen, I hated it, I was totally expecting another Lotofire, and this is almost the exact opposite. I never listened to it again for like two weeks, but I noticed that some of the songs were somehow floating around in my head so I gave it another chance and it sounded completely different than the first time. Anyway, this is a great album that at first listen is very awkward, but just give it time.