Marshmello & Manuel Turizo – El Merengue

• Usual reggaeton base
• Following the trend of “La Bachata”
• Lack of versatility

It seems that Latin music is gathering more traction as of late, with several records getting plenty repeats on foreign radios and stations even when summer is yet to arrive. Shakira and similar others are dominating positions in the global music charts, including Manuel Turizo with his “La Bachata” inching closer to a billion streams already.

Of course, where the trend is, there are opportunities. The EDM industry has taken on this viral phenomenon, with “El Merengue”

being a good example of interesting outcomes that can pop out when looking for such synergies.

Marshmello teamed up with Manuel for the mentioned record, following a typical recipe and leaving ample space for the classic rules of the genre. Evidently, the duo is looking to place a summery hit in March, which caught me by surprise.

Unfortunately, “El Merengue” doesn’t fare well and doesn’t stand out much, which is in all manners the same that we are used to hearing every summer. Turizo’s vocal is splendid, striking out over the trite base with a zest. The outcome is streamlined and easygoing, danceable; although falling short of leaving any memorable aftertaste.

With all sincerity, I hope to hear a bolder take from Marshmello, who could have brought over some external influences to a Reggaeton project. His contribution is barely enough to bring home a decent production, with minuscule details in the percussions and the intro sequence that was notable. Even the masked alias got chained by the rules of this genre.

Obviously, “El Merengue” will turn out to be a decent success considering the crowd it’s aimed towards, even though entertaining and nothing more.

You can listen to “El Merengue” here:

[embedded content]