Oral Fixation Vol. 2

About

In 2005, mere months after releasing the blockbuster first installment of her ambitious <i>Fijación Oral<i> double album, Colombian pop superstar Shakira unleashed <i>Oral Fixation, Vol. 2</i>, dipping back into her English lyrical arsenal for a fresh jolt of buzzing rock ‘n' roll. Both records were meticulously curated from a dizzying batch of 60 songs that included guest producers and performers such as Argentine rock legend Gustavo Cerati, Rick Rubin, and Wyclef Jean. To a certain degree, the project aimed to recapture the poetic grittiness of her raging, raven-haired ‘90s work while applying the pop crossover lessons picked up during her incandescent <i>Laundry Service</i> era, four years prior. While <i>Fijación Oral, Vol. 1<i> oscillated between earnestness and camp, <i>Oral Fixation, Vol. 2</i> aimed to translate Shakira's famed poetic introspections for her growing English-speaking fan base. On groovy pop fantasy “Dreams for Plans,” she yearns for days spent doing everything and nothing with a paramour. For the show tune-esque “Hey You,” she takes a more assertive approach, brassily lusting over a lover via a series of silly, suggestive metaphors. Later, on the orchestrally majestic “Your Embrace,” she again muses about companionship—this time, pondering the void created by an increasingly distant partner. In signature Shakira fashion, <i>Oral Fixation, Vol. 2</i> teems with genre diversity, layering a children's choir over throbbing disco on “Timor” and invoking Gregorian chants for the biblically themed “How Do You Do.” A guest spot from guitar legend Carlos Santana bolsters the sinewy soul ruminations of “Illegal,” while Wyclef Jean's effusive verse on “Hips Don't Lie” helped Shakira secure her first Billboard Hot 100 No. 1. A Latin Pop melange, the song features samples from salsa great Omar Alfanno and merengue master Luis Días, as well as a rework of Jean's own “Dance Like This”—a booming celebration of pan-Caribbean multiculturalism.</i></i></i></i>

via Apple Music