On the heels of tours with bands Fitz & the Tantrums and Ray LaMontagne, Mexican singer, songwriter and keyboardist Ximena Sariñana recently released her self-titled, major label, debut English album. The album fuses pop and dance to a new audience, since she’s released several Spanish albums in the past.

No stranger to show business, Sariñana is the daughter of acclaimed Mexican film director Fernando Sariñana, Ximena has also been acting since she was 11. She has starred in three telenovelas and 11 Mexican films, ranging from box office hit Amar Te Duele to film festival winner Dos Abrazos, which won the 2007 Best New Narrative Filmmaker Award at the Tribeca Film Festival and earned the prize for Best Supporting Actress by the Mexican Film Critics and Press Board. Needless to say, performing is the family business and Sariñana is comfortable in her own skin throughout this album.

The list of producers is as impressive as the bilingual beauty herself. Aided by producers Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen) and TV On The Radio’s Dave Sitek (who is a popular figure these days), Sariñana’s collaboration with them adds international flair to the songs.

“Different” has Kurstin’s fingerprints all over. The song combines Allen-esque pop sensibility yet retains the Mexico City-native’s unique take on this genre. The track is full of whistled melodies, horns, and bouncy digital synth effect. “Shine Down” has Sariñana singing over a thick layer of distorted synths and electric guitars. These two songs are examples of the different types pop numbers that the singer is capable of singing and writing. Normally on a debut album (though technically not a traditional one in this case), an artist can go overboard, either being too conservative or trying too hard too much. But on this album, the eclecticness demonstrates that Sariñana is more of an artist than the manufactured American pop that is popular on Top 40 radio today.

At only one point does Sariñana retreat to comfort of her native tongue for the delicate “Tu Y Yo”, where she collaborates with Mars Volta’s Omar Rodriguez-Lopez.  This is a standout track, though it’s hardly one that will resonate amongst the indie crowd.

Ximena Sariñana shows she’s also a gifted young songwriter and is smart enough to realize she should work with the right people and top producers in order to make a terrific album. Her English debut is a pleasant surprise and shows that international pop, regardless of language, can be good if you have the right team working with you.