La Música No Se Toca / La Musica No Se Toca

Like clockwork, Spanish superstar Alejandro Sanz has been releasing a new studio album every three years for the past fifteen. 2012's La Música No Se Toca is the successor to 2009's Paraíso Express, and it introduces one significant change in Sanz's career: namely that he changed records labels after spending more than 20 years with Warner Bros, ever since his 1990 solo debut Viviendo Deprisa. Sanz's switching allegiance to Universal may have to do with the fact that, in times of decreasing record sales and mounting competition at home from all those Operación Triunfo young alumni, his last two albums did not perform as well as expected. Perhaps for the same reason, this time around Sanz refrains from the genre experiments and high-profile duos of No Es Lo Mismo, El Tren de Los Momentos, or Paraíso Express, which included stabs at reggaeton, some political content, and guests such as Calle 13, Shakira, Alicia Keys, Juanes, Maná, or Carlos Baute. Instead, he prefers to play to his strengths and deliver a collection that makes sure to touch all the bases of his now patented singing and songwriting style. This includes plenty of romantic ballads ("Mi Marciana," "Para Decirle Adiós"), and midtempo numbers with a slight flamenco groove ("Me Sumerjo," "Camino de Rosas"), all armed with rousing choruses and defiantly sung in his trademark, rootsy Andalusian voice. Both leading singles "No Me Compares" (automatically nominated in two Latin Grammy categories upon its release) and "Se Vende" are good examples of Sanz's approach to La Música No Se Toca, but in truth, almost any song could have been chosen instead, as they are largely cut from the same cloth. The only exceptions are the few uptempo selections thrown in to stir things up, like the opener "La Música no Se Toca," which promises a different, more rebellious kind of album that never materializes; the snarling rock of "Llamando a la Mujer Acción," and the closer "Down," featuring American rapper Fat Joe. Production by Colombian Julio Reyes is typically immaculate, but overall, La Música No Se Toca is ultimately an album that will not make people change their minds about Alejandro Sanz: those who find his songs inspiring will find much to like, and those who reckon his writing and arrangements are a tad trite will do better to stay away. The formula, however, still seems to work, as La Música No Se Toca debuted at the top of the charts in Spain and several other countries worldwide, quickly reaching double platinum status.