What the record is and where it came from
El mal querer was released in 2018 after developing as Rosalía’s graduation project. Co-produced with El Guincho, it follows the medieval Occitan narrative Flamenca through a sequence of chapters. The literary source provides a structure for examining a destructive relationship.
How it sounds, and how it was made
Flamenco elements meet contemporary pop and R&B production. Much of the album was recorded in El Guincho’s apartment with a modest digital setup, showing that its carefully shaped scale does not depend on a large conventional studio. The voice remains a central source of drama.
What lands
“Malamente” and “Pienso en tu mirá” make the project’s identity clear before the full narrative is understood. The chapter structure gives individual songs a relation to a larger movement. Tradition becomes material for a personal, deliberately contemporary construction.
What does not
The conceptual organisation can require more explanation than an audio-only first listen provides. Listeners looking for a traditional flamenco programme may find the production changes too fundamental. Admiration for the combination should not erase the differences between the source traditions and this specific work.
The ideas inside it
An older story can supply a form for examining present-tense power. The album’s relationship narrative gains force through a contemporary voice and production language, while the chapter structure keeps the conflict from becoming a collection of unrelated emotional moments.
Who should hear it, and who should not
Hear it if you enjoy pop that asks to be followed as a whole. It is a less appropriate choice when fidelity to a traditional performance setting is the main purpose of listening.
Is it worth your time
Yes. Start with the singles, then follow the original sequence; the short individual statements acquire another weight within the larger narrative.
