World album review: Juana Molina, Wed 21 (Crammed discs)

The palpable physical presence and hypnotic power of this Argentinean composer’s music makes her more of a sonic sculptor than a songwriter in any traditional sense. You can sense the amount of time that’s gone into carefully layering up each of these pensive yet insistent songs on this, Molina’s sixth album (and the first in five years).

The warm human purr of her ethereal vocals is juxtaposed towith fluid electronic elements and the occasional welcome interjection of bluesy guitar and jagged off-beat percussion.

It’s as if extra-terrestrials have had a bash at making contemporary Earthling pop music but didn’t quite nail it. And in this instance that’s a charming if slightly sinister thing.