For Rodrigo y Gabriela, home is not necessarily a physical place, more a sense of having purpose and inner peace instead of seeking external approval. The seventh album from the Grammy award winning (for 2019’s ‘Mettavolution’) Mexico City-bred instrumental duo of Rodrigo Sánchez and Gabriela Quintero radiates that quality. However, place is also a key inspiration for ‘OurHome’ which was recorded in Japan, a country they prize for its art, aesthetics and attention to beauty. What is striking listening to the self-produced album is its wildly expressive sound, a noise that leaps loudly from the speakers but which contains many moments of considerable delicacy. Their acoustic interplay takes elements of rock, folk, blues, classical and flamenco, Sánchez’s lightning-fast guitar playing offset by Quintero’s percussive flourishes. While usually acoustic guitar music might be expected to be quiet and introspective, much of ‘OurHome’ is breathtakingly loud and dynamic.
These elements are on display from the outset on the title track. The piece was prompted by the death of their studio cat, Pelusa, in incident which served to break a period of creative statis. They interpreted it as her telling them to stop messing around and to concentrate on what they do best which is playing from the heart. That is what they do excellently throughout ‘OurHome’. While the playing is indisputably of a phenomenal technical standard, the emotion of the music creates the major connection. They enrich their sound with some guest contributors, including cellist Hiyori Okuda whose melodies add sonorous textures to the title track.
‘Somos Como Tú’, which translates as ‘We Are Like You’, is unique among not just this album’s eleven tracks but any recorded Rodrigo y Gabriela compositions in featuring lyrics: Sanchez’s voice is soulful and is offset by Quintero’s rapid-fire delivery. They are backed by a gang chorus and hand percussion which gives the song a distinctive Latin American flavour as they muse on migration, displacement and shared humanity.
The influence of Japanese culture is apparent in ‘Akatsuki’ which is named for a secret organisation of mercenary ninjas in the manga, ‘Naruto’. Their sound is enhanced by collaborating with Japanese jazz pianist, Hiromi, whose percussive style of playing mirrors that of the duo, an approach that adds to the record’s drama. ‘Monster’ takes its title from a psychological thriller from manga luminary Naoki Urasawa and switches after a cello and guitar introduction between classical guitar and passages of a metal-level ferocity, accompanied by frenetic percussion.
While the record has a unified and recognisable style, each track has its own distinguishing qualities so ‘Flying Underground’ has heavier percussion and outbreaks of rockier guitar. ‘Quicksand’ highlights their shapeshifting capacity, moving with alacrity between contemplative and explosive passages. In contrast to a lot of instrumental music, especially from post-rock bands, the changes are applied with speed and plenty of switching back and forth rather than the conventional gradual build-up of noise. The especially melodic ‘MADitation’ has a title that conveys the charm of their music which is startling and unconventional but casts a firm spell.
‘Astrum in Corpore’ is inspired by German Renaissance philosopher and alchemist, Paracelsus, who believed the stars and planets had an impact on human bodies as they were made of stardust. While his views were dismissed as crazy, Rodrigo y Gabriela find them appealing, especially the notion that people are bigger than their own little worlds. Music and the connection it can bring are probably the best argument for that worldview. On this particular track, there is a passage of such deep beauty at its midpoint before the track winds up to a giddy crescendo, before ending so abruptly that it draws a laugh of astonishment.
Dialling it back ever so slightly, ‘Is In Your Pocket’ features Yukihiro Atsumi, a Kyoto-based musician and composer who plays nylon guitar but in the style of the Edo period which had no guitar so he subsequently spent 15 years studying the music and how to translate it to guitar. There is a magical, free-flowing nature to the collaboration.
In contrast with the previous relatively concise tracks, ‘OurHome’ concludes with the near-eleven-minute epic, ‘Simurgh’ which includes an appearance from former Megadeth guitarist, Marty Friedman. The extended timeframe enables the piece to flow through calm classical phases and intense blues rock playing, peppered with cello enrichment while the percussion is less frenzied.
‘OurHome’ is both a love letter to Japan and a meditation on finding peace wherever you are. It is an astonishing and unexpected album. When I was searching for my next enthusiasm and what would prove to be one of my favourite 2026 releases, I would not have anticipated finding it in two acoustic guitarists who generate their percussion through hitting their guitars yet Rodrigo y Gabriela have created a record of astounding drama, vibrancy and beauty, an album in which I feel completely at home.
Rodrigo y Gabriela: OurHome – Out 18 September 2026 (ATO Records)
y Gabriela – Akatsuki (With Hiromi) (Official Video)
I was editor of the long-running fanzine, Plane Truth, and have subsequently written for a number of publications. While the zine was known for championing the most angular independent sounds, performing in recent years with a community samba percussion band helped to broaden my tastes so that in 2021 I am far more likely to be celebrating an eclectic mix of sounds and enthusing about Made Kuti, Anthony Joseph, Little Simz and the Soul Jazz Cuban compilations as well as Pom Poko and Richard Dawson.
