February has arrived and that means it is the time to celebrate love in all its forms. Artists are taking the spotlight to release their songs surrounding the universally explored theme, and singer-songwriter Lizbeth Román is the latest Puerto Rican indie artist to do so. After publishing her single, “La Bruja” a while back, Román and her band Los Duendes Invisibles kick off 2018 with a sweet sounding heartache story in the form of “Bolero Saltarín.” Accompanied by a video directed by Eric M. Rojas, Román and Los Duendes Invisibles show how they are yet another group of musicians to look out for in 2018.
(picture of Lizbeth Román as found on her Facebook page)
Influenced by the classic bolero sounds of the past and adding a bit of the indie folk music touch, like iLe in iLevitable, Román and Los Duendes Invisibles present a song which will touch many as they continue to grow as a group. By exploring the themes of love and heartache in a genre that is currently seeing its rebirth, Román and her band manage to create a radio friendly and pop-inspired bolero, which will produce a lot more buzz for them and, in the long run, will make their music timeless. With “Bolero Saltarín,” Román touches on the collectively explored theme of heartache with the song’s main character losing a loved one. However, in order to get a better picture of the lyrics, one should watch the Eric M. Rojas directed visual.
(picture of Román performing by Eric M. Rojas as found on her Facebook page)
The video to “Bolero Saltarín” by Eric M. Rojas features a little girl, who one can assume is Román as a kid, wandering the streets as if she was searching for her loved one. Now, one can easily assume that the song is all about separating as a couple, but by taking a deeper look at the visuals one can come to other conclusions. The music video to, “Bolero Saltarín” features the aforementioned main character exploring the abandoned and, at times, messed up streets of post-Hurricane María Puerto Rico. Therefore, if one explores the track’s story in its simplest form, one can come to the conclusion that the love between the main character and the one she sings to might have been born and lost due to the aftermath of Hurricane María. However, this is just one interpretation. The video features a little girl as the main character, which could imply she lost a friend whom she had a crush on due to said hurricane. The visual also features the little girl looking at the distance at one point. Maybe the heartache is due to having lost the love interest because said person had to leave and become part of the Puerto Rican diaspora after Hurricane María. Who knows? This might be just one interpretation. However, what the listeners might know is that,“Bolero Saltarín” at first listen might seem like a simple song about heartbreak, but when one sees and analyzes the visual that accompanies it, one can come to many conclusions as to what the meaning of the lyrics really is.
(picture of Lizbeth Román performing as found on her Facebook page)
2018 has shown to be a great year for Puerto Rican indie artists, despite the difficulties presented by Hurricane María. Lizbeth Román and Los Duendes Invisibles’ latest single is yet another example of the type of quality music being brought at the forefront. Their, “Bolero Saltarín” is a love song which mixes sounds of both old and new, while telling what might seem like a simple story. However, when one watches and analyzes the Eric M. Rojas directed video for the tune, one can come up with many conclusions. Thus, I implore all readers and listeners to watch the video and come up with their own ideas as to what the whole story is really about.
Watch “Bolero Saltarín” on YouTube here
Listen to Lizbeth Román and Los Duendes Invisibles on Spotify here