Juana Molina

How is it the more insular and experimental this Argentinean songwriter gets the better she sounds? While her last album, Son, had its long, ambling songs, comprised of Molina’s layered, yelping sounds and Spanish lyrics combined with looped electronics, field recordings and canned beats, this is, well, a whole new day. Don’t be too scared because the joy of Molina is the uncanny knack for finding a driving melody among her flittery soundscapes. The title track is one of the best songs she’s ever crafted and even the sublimely quiet "Vive Solo” gets a little frenzied near the end. The problem and joy of Día are the same, or the fact that Molina has further retreated inside herself. "Lo Dejamos” doesn’t really amount to much and this album is missing that bright spark that Son had. Yet despite these minor criticisms, Molina has never been more in control of her idiosyncratic vision. She sounds unlike anything else and when she hits her groove — like on the title track — you somehow connect to her unique sound world.