Matías Aguayo: Anenoa review – the funkiest, freest singer in the business hits the dancefloor

The Return of Matías Aguayo's Infectious Energy

Over the past two decades, Chilean-German vocalist and producer Matías Aguayo’s mutable, instinctive singing has been an instantly identifiable ingredient of leftfield electronic music. On Battles’ 2011 track Ice Cream, he squealed and tripped through syllables against a thunderous synth backing, while Japanese synth-pop group Crystal’s 2017 track Kimi Wa Monster saw Ayuayo singing a keening, childlike melody over instrumental.

The Sound of Anenoa

His own releases featured layered chants and scatter-gun vocal rhythms over pulsing Afro-Latin beats. While his last record, 2019’s Support Alien Invasion, marked his first foray into instrumental music, Anenoa heralds Aguayo’s welcome return to the mic across a selection of hard-hitting, dancefloor-focused arrangements.

The Dancefloor-Focused Arrangements

The fast-paced syncopated Latin rhythm of opener Sentimientos Encontraos sets the ebullient tone, with Aguayo’s nonchalant repetition of the title creating a hypnotic motif as bubbling and kinetic as the beat. Sprechgesang gives way to soulful falsetto on the ghetto house-influenced Asuka, Rock, Roll, while vocal processing transforms Aguayo’s party chants into a growling baritone on thumping trance number Avestruz en Veracruz.

The Playfulness of Aguayo's Vocals

There’s a playfulness to every vocal decision, veering from chipmunk high-pitched tones on Anenoa Pt 1 to the languorous listing of percussion instruments – “the snare, the cowbell, the shaker” – on funky highlight The Beat, as if Aguayo has been led purely by whim each time he steps into the booth. It gives the record an infectious, lively energy, encouraging listeners to turn up the volume and dance to Aguayo’s irrepressible sounds, no matter where his shapeshifting voice might take them next.

Also Out This Month

• British-Egyptian duo Natacha Atlas and Samy Bishai release Parallel Universe Volume 1 (Airfono), blending melismatic Arabic vocals with a fascinating range of backing tracks.
• French-Iranian producer Cinna Peyghamy’s Music for Tombak & Synth (Other People) sculpts eerie sound worlds from the ancient Persian percussion instrument.
• Pakistani-American vocalist Ali Sethi soars alongside drummer and producer Gregory Rogove on their debut album Room Jhoom (self-released).