Oh, Sweep. At some point it had to happen. After five years surfing one wave after another, each one bigger than the last, managing to become one of the greatest exponents of reggaeton worldwide, as well as a social phenomenon that has turned his followers into true fans who dress, speak and they act like him (FERXXO, MOR,…), and, above all, a compositional animal capable of launching dozens of songs with an overwhelming rhythm, Sweep seems to have hit a first ceiling with his latest album ‘MOR: Don’t be afraid of the darkness’, which could be his breakthrough album, where he has bet on himself and his versatility and talent, leaving us with his most varied work – without a doubt – in terms of rhythms and productions, it has ended up being an album that fails to reach its ambitions. To the complexity of certain productions and their adventures in variants of reggaeton that touch on techno, afrobeat or indie pop, which is commendable, of course, is added a collection of lyrics that fail to move the listener (or warm them up, or make it vibrate) as many other of his songs do.
It usually happens, and I will not tire of repeating that it is a misfortune, that the more an artist grows, the more he strives to improve on a musical level and the more he forgets the lyrical aspect. I am not asking, of course, that Sweep be Bob Dylan, but he remains one of the best lyricists of the urban genre in Spanish. Yes, that one in ‘Yandel 150’ He is able to hook you into what he is telling (singing) in just three and a half sentences. ‘MOR: Don’t be afraid of the darkness’ It is a complete album, but it deserves a reduction in the ratings of what we have been offering to Sweep in this magazine, one of the first, by the way, in our country, to give him the recognition he deserves as one of the great Colombian musicians of this decade.
The collaborations that adorn the album are certainly interesting. Rema is one of the most important afrobeat artists of this new batch that (once again) threatens to assault the global mainstream, and who seems like he can achieve it, and ‘BUBALU’ It’s a good topic, but it’s not as good as it could be. ‘Pretty girl’ It is, in almost the same way, more of a sticker in the Colombian’s career than a great hit: if you collaborate with Sean Paul, perhaps it is better to go to his field instead of making him come to yours. The intro of the album is one of his best cuts, as are the two cuts with which he ends: ‘the only ferxxo theme’, along with Pailita and Young Cister; and ‘PRIVILEGES’, one of the great surprises of Feid’s career, jumping into alternative guitar pop with the help of Cupid. Not out of chauvinism, but ‘PRIVILEGES’ It is one of the most brilliant and original songs I have heard in recent times; especially the union of styles in production is addictive.
With reggaeton already converted de facto into the new pop, and electronica established in the trend (‘TECHNO LIGHTS’) Sweep It seeks to take the genre to new heights and new audiences (the few that remain to be conquered), but it forgets that pop is not just a sound, nor a theme, it is the desire for those who listen to you to feel something with your songs. that they already felt but didn’t know it was there. ‘MOR: Don’t be afraid of the darkness’ It’s too cold, there’s no feeling, there’s no feeling of fear, as Carolina Durante would say. Sweep He passes the exam but has not yet signed an album that establishes his legend, as if Rauw did it with ‘VICE VERSA’, also playing at being pop; Bad Bunny with his reggaeton for those who don’t like reggaeton; or Balvin with “Vibes”.