Para Mi

Cuco transmutes various pop methodologies to create his own blend of burnout soul.

Subtly sad, sweetly distorted and at times outright trippy, the result is perfect for long drives under summer skies.

Its backward-seeming track sequence improves significantly as it goes along; its instrumental interludes are better than most of the songs. Para Mí may have been the result of a near-fatal car crash, but the album is a happy meanderer.

Cuco might not convert naysayers this year, but he clearly isn't overly concerned. He's delivered an easygoing, often charming set of songs, and that's a mission statement fulfilled.

There are some lovely songs on Para Mi, though; you might just have to slog through some unfortunate synths and occasionally cringe-inducing lyrics to get there.

Impressive, but there are misses as well as hits here. Sometimes Cuco’s vocals and lyrics don’t match up to his sonic atmospheres.

Para Mi renders some of the best elements of his songwriting into more accessible forms. Removing the layers of fuzz leaves Cuco's multi-colored songwriting in clear view, revealing an artist still finding his way. This can make for moments of awkwardness, but it also brings his endearing vulnerabilities to the forefront.

Though the better part of Para Mi was ostensibly written with romantic interests in mind, the songs, so anchored to fixed experiences, have come to represent universal lessons learned. They’re still rough around the edges—many lack dynamism, fading in and out of monochrome synth passages—but the impression that Cuco put all of himself into the music remains.