Two-time Latin Grammy Nominee Willbert Álvarez
returns this year (2021) with a fresh album release directly from
Barcelona, Spain. A multi-talented songwriter, Álvarez makes a notable
comeback with a record filled with darkness and light, poetic stories,
and characters alongside the powerful single “La Oscuridad del Tiempo”
(The Darkness of Time) which features a music video animated in 3D by
the artist himself.
Mundo Cruel
contains 11 tracks, loaded with lyrics and rock, recorded entirely on
analog tape like all the records we hold dear to our hearts. Full of
unexpected twists, crazy fables, and heartbreaking tales, the album
tells a living, honest story as only an artist like Willbert can tell.
The album was co-produced by Nerio Gutiérrez Ross and Germán Gutiérrez Ross at Playground Studio in Madrid, with German also
mixing and mastering. In Willbert’s own words: “this record was tracked
in a 1972 analog tape machine, with collaborations from amazing
musicians such as Nana
Cadavieco, Javier Weyler (former member of Stereophonics), Vladimir
Peña, Víctor Hugo Mendoza, Eduardo Benatar, Pedro Misle, Tomás Sánchez, and Julián Nemesio”. About lyrics and inspiration, Willbert goes on to say, “[This
is a] painful, unsettling album, which is also immensely happy,
grotesque, and perverted but filled with kindness and compassion,
[being] hilarious and sad at the same time. [It’s] album that bleeds and
hurts as life itself, a life worthy of living and dying for. Such is
this Cruel World (Mundo Cruel)."
The
album is released with a single called “La Oscuridad del Tiempo” in
which the artist puts his own beliefs to the test and faces the
uncertainty of faith. Also released is a 3D animated music video for the
single, directed by Álvarez himself with an original concept by
Willbert and Nerio Gutiérrez. The story revolves around an astronaut
that floats around in space with an uncertain destiny, very much like
humanity in its search for meaning. The complete story will be revealed
at the right time, on Willbert’s own terms.
Mundo Cruel
is also available in a limited-run Vinyl Edition; the vinyl’s concept
art is intimately bonded to each one of the songs in the record and made
flawlessly by Argentinian artist Valeria Giaginto.
For
more information about the release, its Vinyl Edition, and details
regarding streaming platforms, we recommend following him on social
networks.
