The first notes of “Menéate pa’ mí” announce a bold, club-ready new single from Mexico City-based duo Sotomayor, made up of brother and sister Raul and Paulina Sotomayor. Hot brass samples and quick rhythms, courtesy of Raul, drive forward with sharp determination as Paulina sings and raps. Her voice is rapturously cool and her verses nimble on what the duo describe as “the most danceable, fun party song” of upcoming album Origines, set to arrive on Wonderwheel this February.
The entrancing “Menéate pa’ mí” signals a slew of high-energy cuts from the electro duo as they aim for an era of tropical new highs. “In our first two albums, Salvaje and Conquistador,” they note, “we had a fair amount of downtempo Latin tracks. For Origenes, we tried to aim for uptempo tracks, much more focused on Afro-Caribbean percussion, since we know that is what works better for us when performing live.”
Certainly, “Menéate pa’ mí” was made for an audience in motion. With elements of merengue and house, Sotomayor continues, it bears stylistic resemblances to “legendary bands like Proyecto Uno or Ilegales”, but has a freshness all Sotomayor’s own. The second single from the album after last year’s cumbia-flavored “Quema”, “Menéate pa’ mi” also sports production work from Eduardo Cabra, better known as pioneering Puerto Rican hip-hop duo Calle 13’s Visitante, adding a new layer of expertise to the track.
Sotomayor’s creative combinations of pan-Latinx folk and electronic sounds make for brilliant color as they continue to rise higher in the pop music world. If “Menéate pa’ mí” is an indication of what’s to come, there’s no doubt that the rest of Origines and all their work to come will only see them continue to soar.
Origines releases on Wonderwheel Records in February 2020.