Album Preview
Diego Garcia: Paradise
For his follow-up album Paradise, Garcia seems to have lightened up a bit, no doubt reflecting his personal life.
Argentine-American singer/songwriter Diego Garcia wowed everyone (but maybe especially the swooning ladies) with his 2011 solo debut, Laura. A tribute to his girlfriend of the time, it was an album that expanded upon his already-developed skills as a songsmith, given his time in the brooding indie-rock band Elefant. Incorporating a more stripped-down approach with a decided Latin flair, Garcia hit a sweet spot with “You Were Never There,” a remarkably bouncy, catchy tune, given its bummer of a lyrical storyline, displaying an anxiety of whether his burgeoning relationship with the album’s subject would last.
For his follow-up album Paradise, Garcia seems to have lightened up a bit, no doubt reflecting his personal life (now married to Laura, with a young daughter in tow). But he is not one of those artists who are at their best only when their own life is miserable, and ever the savvy professional, he keeps some of the angst present in the musical background of many of the album’s dozen tracks. A clear exception is the record’s first single, the jaunty, celebratory “Sunnier Days,” which recalls the easy-going vibe of New Wave favorites Haircut 100. The record retains a Latin element as well, especially in the rhythms and guitar-playing on songs such as “Thoughts of You,” which given his appreciation for early Julio Iglesias seems to fit Garcia’s nature quite nicely. Overall it’s an easy-going, swoon-worthy record that should keep the romantics happy and might even get the curmudgeons’ feet tapping as well.
- Eric J. Lawrence
Track List:
1. Start With the End
2. Tell Me
3. Dónde Estás
4. Truth Will Ring
5. Sunnier Days
6. My Heart Is an Island
7. My Everything
8. Thoughts of You
9. She Dances
10. Warm Winter Day
11. Darling Please
Photo by Jared Zagha/Courtesy of the artist