The Marías released their second studio album titled Submarine on May 31. The band is from Los Angeles and produces music in the American indie pop genre with funk and jazz influences. The band is made up of lead vocalist María Zardoya, drummer and producer Joshua David Conway, lead guitarist Jesse Perlman, and keyboardist Edward James. Zardoya is heavily influenced by her Puerto Rican roots and writes songs in both English and Spanish. The band started as a duo, with Zardoya and Joshua. The two were nominated for a Grammy in 2021 for their album Cinema.
Submarine includes 14 songs with a total duration of 45 minutes and 13 seconds. Like most of their work, this album was produced by band member Joshua, but he was also joined by Gianluca Buccellati. Zardoya had this to say about the album before its release.
The album has a bit of a weak start with Ride introducing the album. I’m not a big fan of the heavily edited robotic-sounding voice and I also believe that it doesn’t fit the general vibe of the rest of the album. I did like the lines “introducing submarine, careful while you’re cruising, gonna be a ride” and I thought those lines alone were the only thing saving this song. It feels like they’re trying to prepare and almost warn the listener not necessarily in a bad way though.
The third track, Echo, has a very clear funk influence and has the perfect balance of autotuning in the vocal layering that makes it feel like there’s a slight echo to María’s voice without sounding like a robot. The lyrics tell a story of a relationship that’s ending but the memories and ties she had with this person echo in the back of her head and she finds difficulties turning away.
Real Life is the fifth track off the album, and in this song I enjoyed her vocals paired with the instrumental; both sounded very fluid. The theme is different from her other songs because a great amount of her music is written about her ex-boyfriend/ band member Joshua and she’s always talking about getting back with an ex, but as a frequent listener, it’s refreshing to hear the lyrics “we tried but im walking away from you something I gotta do”. I think this being called Real Life is perfect because it captures very true and complex feelings people go through in romantic relationships. If the lyrics are looked at more closely, she seems to be going back and forth, one line being “I’ll runaway with you” and the next being “Can’t stay forever this way”, she’s going in between her unrealistic desires and reality.
Track number 11, No One Noticed, is by far the most popular song off the album, with over 125 million streams. The lyrics seem to be María reminiscing on the ways her partner cared for her. She does this as his feelings for her are fading, but she’s holding on to the way things were. It seems like she might not care for him exclusively. She repeats that she doesn’t want to be lonely and needs a “virtual connection”, something that doesn’t feel genuine. In the line “Hold me, console me, and then I’ll leave without a trace”, she just wants to feel connected to someone, then she’ll be on her way. It’s messy and a bit complicated but I think that’s why so many people relate to this song and her other music.
Sienna is the final track and I couldn’t think of a better way to close out the album. This is by far my favorite song off the album. One aspect I find to be incredible throughout The Marías discography is their storytelling and use of imagery which I think helps this song shine. Along with this, her voice makes me feel like I’m being put in a trance. This song captures all of their strengths perfectly. Not many people know, but this song tells the story of the child Maria hoped to have with Joshua before their relationship ended. She talks about how the baby will share similarities with the both of them. I like how while telling the story of her relationship falling apart she doesn’t just talk about what it’s like to be with that person (it’s almost hard to tell), but to also lose the future she had planned. The last line is “see her face in the forest then it disappears.” Clearly this child was something she hoped and was waiting for.
The instrumentals also speak to the emotions perfectly in the way the beat starts building up when she’s describing the things she dreamed of and has a steady beat when talking about the person she was involved with. The intentions she had with the song are emphasized through the layered instrumentals that grab the attention of the listener when talking about Sienna, and speaks to how this song is, again, about the loss of her (Maria’s) hopes.
I would recommend this album to those who enjoy indie pop music, since I think The Marías encapsulate the genre perfectly. In addition, a few of the slower songs such as If Only would be enjoyed by those who are fans of music with jazz influences. Despite overall being under the indie pop genre, The Marias cater to a variety of audiences, which explains their rapid growth in popularity.