Rolling reggaeton, salsa, merengue, bachata, and cumbia thread 2008

Coming Soon:

http://cover6.cduniverse.com/MuzeAudioArt/Large/34/1011634.jpg

Convenient link to last year's thread: Rolling salsa, merengue, bachata, and reggaeton thread 2007 (Ladies get in for free)

Oh boy. xp

I was e-mailed that Putumayo pic. Oh brother.

Los trustafarianos.

http://thumbnail.search.aolcdn.com/truveo/images/thumbnails/D7/CE/D7CE3928994A8B.jpg

Some decent-looking new salsa releases showing up at www.descarga.com, especially:

Bobby Valentin: Evolution
Ray Santiago: Latin Up - Ray Santiago Afro Cuba A La New York City
Sammy García: Por Buen Camino
Alfredo Linares: Salsa De Verdad (compilation)

If you hunt through the individual ballots for the Village Voice 2007 jazz critics poll you'll see they had an optional "Latin" category and "vocals" category, although such types could also make their top 10s. http://www1.villagevoice.com/music/0801,davis,78767,22.html

Best Latin Album
1. Bobby Sanabria,Big Band Urban Folktales (Jazzheads) 11
2. Paquit o D'Rivera, Funk Tango (Sunnyside) 3

For Best Vocal, Debut, and Latin Jazz albums, critics were asked to name one album apiece, with no point system.

I'm actually half-Chilean and when my cousin takes me to Reggae clubs in Santiago, 'Oh boy' is about right.

Is that good or bad?

http://www.nndb.com/people/937/000031844/buddy-holly-crop.jpg

Buddy's wife spoke Spanish, I think.

Oh boy

Ha. So that Latin reggae cd arrived in the mail. Most of the groups are from Spain, although I haven't listened to the cd yet.

Reading The Reverend's ballot comments reminded me that I'm still not sure exactly what people (non-target-audience music writer type people, for the most part) wanted reggaeton to do, and there isn't so much attention to it at the moment, but to me it's doing plenty of interesting things. While some, or possibly all, of the recent biggest name big releases have been a letdown, stuff like Casa de Leones (not that I've heard it all, but it's high on my to-buy list) and Nejo y Dalmata's debut album are pleasant surprises. Also, there have been some pretty strong singles, like at least two from the Daddy Yankee album. Weird to see them getting no votes at all, but I guess "Gasolina" was pretty much a novelty hit outside Latin music circles, which is fine, but I bet some people who liked "Gasolina" and maybe "Rompe" would have liked those new songs if they had heard them. I've gone from being cool toward it, to being lukewarm about it, to being a real enthusiast (the latter for only the last year and a half, probably). I realize I'm not anything here, but glad to see the Rev repping for la musica.

I think the Fergie collaboration may have sullied DY in a lot of folks' eyes. I know that's how I felt about it.

I still love the non-Fergie version of "Impacto", which nearly made my singles ballot, but I do think that probably threw a lot of people off, including myself. It wasn't until I heard the original that I came around on it. I still need to hear the Nejo & Dalmata album, but I kind of have a moratorium on new purchases right now. (La la la, wait 'til I get my money right.)

Unrelatedly, this is great. I hadn't heard it before. Voltio's "Mambo" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUKIpzgC82I

I still don't have a real copy of Nejo & Dalmata (nor do I have the whole thing--I think it may be a leaked pre-release version lacking some tracks that were ultimately included), but once I start buying CDs again I will. (I have a for real moratorium on new purchases until I have a job in New Mexico.)

And I am at work or I would watch that video.

Walking around with "Mi Dia de Suerte" stuck in my head all the time is good enough for now.

Reading The Reverend's ballot comments reminded me that I'm still not sure exactly what people (non-target-audience music writer type people, for the most part) wanted reggaeton to do, and there isn't so much attention to it at the moment, but to me it's doing plenty of interesting things.

The thing is, I don't think it's so much a case of whether "non-target-audience music writer people" want reggaeton to do, so much as a case of whether they consider it at all.

I may not have caught everything, but it looks like the reggaeton votes come out to this:

Albums
4 Residente o Visitante
1 Casa de Leones
1 El Abayarde Contra-ataca

Singles
2 "P'al Norte"
1 "Impacto"
1 "No Te Veo"
1 "Yo Te Quiero"

I had to go back and look at my ballot to double check; I voted for both Tego and Wisin y Yandel in the Voice poll, results out whenever.

The thing is, I don't think it's so much a case of whether "non-target-audience music writer people" want reggaeton to do, so much as a case of whether they consider it at all.

I just remember a few people, on ILM and off, making vague comments about how reggaeton could get really interesting, and then not really showing up and mentioning some recent developments that I think are intereting, so I figure maybe it didn't do what they wanted it to do. "It's like hip-hop was in [I don't remember what year, but I think it was late 80's." That kind of comment. I think maybe Frank Kogan was more interested in it as an umbrella for lots of different strands of Latin music, but it still flirts with that quite a bit now. (I don't really follow Frank Kogan closely by any means, so for all I know he has been off writing about it somewhere or other.)

And unperson, you get credit (completely worthless credit, but that's all I have to give out) too for reggaeton votes and remarks. I didn't forget about your votes.

i was the "impacto" vote, i love that song even with fergie -- so catchy. but i admit i listened to very little reggaeton last year. what i heard off calle 13 wasn't quite enough to make me buy it, and whatever else i heard were scattered things on mun2 late at night that i never remembered to write down. there's no excuse i guess since all i have to do is go to youtube to see/hear tons of stuff. this year maybe i'll pay more attention.

what seems most interesting to me culturally if not musically is the apparent ubiquity of reggaeton in north/central america. friends who spent time in mexico and nicaragua last year said they heard it everywhere. most successful puerto rican export since...?

(has there been a compilation since mas flow 2 as good as mas flow 2? because i still listen to that a lot, i'd like another.)

I haven't heard Mas Flow 2, so I have no point of comparison here, but I like the Guatauba University comp from last year a lot, or at least the first half and a few tracks from the second.

Btw, nice to see someone voted for "Aunt Jackie"!

guatauba sounds fun.

yeah aunt jackie, come on. i love that song.

That's Fusssion Musik, who are my new crush band. I alluded to them in my Idolator comments, but I hadn't quite figured out what their deal was when I wrote that. It's Danny Fornaris' group with a couple rappers Audi and LG. Fornaris produced "Se Vale To" and "Mardi Gras" and their album, which keeps getting pushed back and may never see the light of day, is lots of fun. Here's a couple other things by them:

"Cuchi Cuchi" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTzrvtMu_nA
"Vamos Alla" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLeJ9qBymgo
Better quality of "Guatatata" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RJL9aPds-NI

I don't know those guys (though I remember watching that Cuchi Cuchi video before when you linked to it), however, I know I've heard that name "Danny Fornaris" before in a song I like, though I can't remember which one. Actually, I thought he was saying something like "Danny Phonetics," which is too ironic for me to even think about.

those are good, i especially like "vamos alla."

Hey Reverend, guess who produced Broke and Famous?

Incidentally, I found all that stuff about the Oscar D'Leon family connection interesting. Either I hadn't known or had forgotten. It's personally significant since Voltio's "Ojalai" aka "Chulin Culin Chunfly" was the track that brought my attention back to reggaeton when I had decided I mostly didn't like it. (Since then I've changed my mind about a lot of songs I originally didn't like.)

Yeah, I knew Fornaris did at least one song on Broke & Famous. So he produced the whole thing?

Well, according the barnesandnoble.com credits, but maybe I shouldn't trust them. Wikipedia says something else, so I guess it's a matter of seeing what the CD will finally say. (Also, that's probably where I've heard his name, on one of their songs.)

Ha, turns out Fornaris produced the Voltio song I linked above. Whaddyaknow?

http://www.barriomulas.com/blog/archives/2006/06/the_evolution_o_1.shtml

This post, which I read in the summer of '06, is quite interesting in retrospect. Here's what jumps out at me.

Reggae-Rap
Spread via the popularity of cheap, low-budget music videos filmed in open lots, street corners, and caserios, "reggae-rap" solidifies and takes shape. The genre has still to spawn a title of its own. DJs become more dynamic as they flip between break beats and synthetic post-dancehall rhythms. The famous "boom, tak tak" dominates, but remains accompanied by break beats and hip-hop beats. Acts that mix singing and rapping are common sights. Many Noise releases, Playero Vol. 40, Nico Canada, gain popularity playing "melaza" and DJs still own the spotlight. This era lasts from about 1995 to 1999. Many releases feature a house song.

So are songs like "Sexy Movimiento", "Algo Musical", and "Quitarte To", in fact, taking it back? I really don't know jack about pre-mid-2000s reggaeton, so I can't answer that, although I always felt some house in reggaeton (kicks on every beat, yeah), I'd never seen it made so explicit until recently.

Slow, thick, relaxed, and very detailed, a new genre of reggeaton is flourishing. One could say that Residente Calle 13 introduced the masses to this style with his "Se Vale To" song and recently popularized by Danny Fornaris, LG, Audi, and Ñejo. Complex rhythms, countless percussion elements, even more song variations, flanged synthetic sounds (such as those in West Coast rap from the 1990s), and lyrics written with the intention to be listened to, as pointless as they might be. "It's a competition to see who has the funnest lyrics," stated local MC and friend, Atila. While the rhythm is the same, switch-ups feature slight arrangement altercations. The individual elements that make up the popular reggaeton drum line are much more dynamic (muffled, swapped for claps, etc.) It is yet to be known in what direction this new evolution might run due to its recent introduction only months ago. Sample mp3s:

Audi - Pasale Otra Copa f/ LG (2:43)
Audi - Vamos Alla (4:11)
Residente de la Calle 13 - Se Vale To (3:50)
LG - Cuchi Cuchi Caliente (4:00)

I know I listened to the mp3s when I originally read this post, but I guess something didn't stick. I already was familiar with Calle 13 at the time, but not the others. I remembered Audi's name when I rediscovered the rest of those folks, but not the others. Oh well, I was pretty new to reggaeton at the time, and I guess I can't retain everything.

I remember reading that post too, but now I know who more of those people are, so it means more to me. Anyway, that stuff didn't stick with me either.

I think the genre is actually very much in flux, and trying to pinpoint trends is difficult. You've said in one or two places that it seems to be speeding up, but I hear just as many new tracks that are laidback and slowed down. (And there have been fast bachataton tracks for a few years now.) I am not convinced there is some one dominant overall trend, or even a couple of them, but maybe it will be clearly in a couple years. But if anything, it seems like a lot of these performers are just throwing different things out and seeing what sticks ("Should I do more hip-hop? More like house? Slowed down and organic like roots reggae? . . .").

Yeah, I agree with what you say. And when I say "faster", I don't mean all of it is faster, it's just reaching tempos it hadn't before at its top end. Most bachataton tracks I've heard, btw, are at typical 85-105 bpm reggaeton tempos, usually at the slower end of that spectrum, with double-time breaks.

Unrelatedly, I got a very interesting email today that hopefully something will come of.

From the new Bobby Valentin album. Not bad. Nice to see Luisito Carrion back on his feet after the accident he was in last year:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6HZn0zHalA

Rev doesnt it seem likely the increasing house-y ness of these tracks is corresponding to broader trends in R&B/hip-hop? (see rich j's 4x4 mix mentioned in idolator thread)

Definitely, although I hadn't really thought about it that way.

i'm enjoying it as a trend. do you know more songs that sound like that?

It's a three-song trend.

I dunno about that, those are the only ones (I've heard) where it's been so pronounced, but even "No Te Veo" starts with a 4x4 before launching into that weird modified dembow it has. With "Sexy Movimiento" being as big a hit as it is, give it some time. There will be more.

I agree that, at the very least, people will be continuing with it because of "Sexy Movimiento." I don't hear enough to really know if it's a trend or what.

Actually, what I really want are more songs like "No Te Veo", which I haven't really heard imitated.

Hey Rockist, is a*_s*✧✧✧@g✧.c✧✧ a good account to email you at? If I remember right, you have a couple, one of which you never check.

When I finally do so, I will.

I'm sorry but, the samples I've heard from that Jose Lugo CD sound like he is sticking way to close to ye olde salsa dura formula. Just because the current state of salsa is sorry doesn't mean the answer is to try to make the horn arrangements sound just like they did back at the Paladium. (I don't know if that's really what's going on, but that's the vibe I get.) Also, who needs the addition of the slack, smooth Latin jazz tracks?

And Isaac Delgado is a boring singer with a good voice.

I hate to say it, but the more recent salsa releases I hear, the better the new Cesar Pedroso material sounds.

Interesting. I'm trying to figure out what is the answer for salsa--for some, at descarga.com and elsewhere it is trying to sound like back in the Palladium era and others are just looking back to the 70s and even the salsa dura movement is retro itself at this point. I'll have to check out the Pedrosa.

Meanwhile, this Cuban reggaeton by Tirso Duarte (better know as a timbero) is not bad:

http://www.reverbnation.com/tirsoduarteoff

I still think the flow of Cuban reggaeton rapping tends to be really inferior to what I hear in PR reggaeton, but the overall sound here is pleasant. Sort of a salsaton type of thing.

To myself: okay, let's not get carried away with the Cuban music love. Some of the rapping here is pretty awful..

That's more like it! I was afraid for awhile that the Cuban Music Police were holding you hostage and dictating your posts.

Had to hunt around online to find Pedrosa. Of course, he's listed via nicknme--Pupy--and his band Los Que Son Son. Listened on myspace. Sounds good although I'm not yet ready to join ex-NY Times writer Peter Watrous, now at desgarga.com, who calls the new release the most intelligent dance release of 2008 (or something like that).

Had to hunt around online to find Pedrosa.

I posted a link to that album a long while back: http://www.uksalsa4all.com/la_clave_cubana/latest_news_september08.html

I want to emphasize this album in particular, not just his work in general. Does the myspace have the new album? This is the first album I've heard by him that I like so consistently.

Thanks. The myspace site has uhh...let me find it-

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=198904042

And someone on that Yahoo salsero collective group just posted this long but interesting Time international edition article (that may come out in the US in a week). I think the writer jumps to some quick conclusions that may not be exactly correct, but it's interesting nonetheless--

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1862454-1,00.html

The myspace site has uhh...let me find it-

That's old and sounds more like Los Van Van than this new stuff does. Please check out the new album! (Also Los Soneros All Stars, Featuring Cesar Pedroso: La Timba Soy Yo, which I also previously posted a link for.

Have we mentioned that descarga.com is now putting up fairly generous audio samples for a lot of their new items?

I'm checking out a bunch of old Cuban bolero recordings and liking almost all of them to some extent.

I foresee an old age spent listening to boleros.

Ha.

Category 61 - Best Tropical Latin Album(Vocal or Instrumental.) • Cuba: Un Viaje Musical - A Musical Journey -Albita, Rey Ruíz & Donato Poveda[Apollo Music] • Renacer-DLG[Machete Music] • Señor Bachata-José Feliciano[Universal Music Latino] • Frutero Moderno-Gonzalo Grau y La Clave Secreta[2008 Gonzalo Grau] • Back On The Streets... Taste Of Spanish Harlem Vol. 2--New Swing Sextet[Cotique/Emusica Records]

Descarga.com interview with Henry Fiol:

http://www.descarga.com/cgi-bin/db/archives/Interview58?EMFEFfrw;;12

(I haven't read it yet, but this should be interesting.)

Those John Child interviews are long. And you can stream or download Fiol as a zipdrive from his website (you may have mentioned this upthread or maybe I read it in that Yahoo salsero collective e-mail)

Those John Child interviews are long.

And? . . .

That's good as his questions are generally good, I just have to find the time to dig through it all.

Yup. I've reread the Barry Rogers article several times and don't think I ever made it to the end.

Oh wow, old footage of the somewhat overlooked Camilo Azuquita (usually just "Azuquita" for short):

suave
-----------------------------------

[/i]AYALA BEN-YEHUDA
Billboard correspondent, Latin

1. Ximena Sariñana, "Mediocre" (Sei Track/Warner).
2. Alex*Cuba, "Agua del Pozo" (Caracol/EMI).
3. Calle 13, "Los de Atrás Vienen Conmigo" (Sony BMG).
4. Jenni Rivera, "Jenni" (Fonovisa).
5. Forro in the Dark, "Dia de Roda" (Nublu).
6. Kinky, "Barracuda" (Kin-Kon/Nettwerk).
7. Bajofondo, "Mar Dulce" (Surco/Decca)
8. Nation Beat, "Legends of the Preacher" (Modiba)
9. Akwid, "La Novela" (Headliners/Univision)
10. Amandititita, "Amandititita" (Sony BMG).[/i]

I don't get the love for Bajofonda (a project of rock en espnaol superproducer Gustavo Santaolalla)---mostly cliched tango and electronica hybrid cuts plus one with Elvis Costello singing a standard Elvis Costello melody over music that doesn't match up. I like the song with Gustavo Cerrati (from Soda Stereo) singing best. I need to listen to the one with Julieta Venegas again.

JUDY CANTOR-NAVAS
Billboard en Espanol editor

1. Julieta Venegas, "MTV Unplugged" (Norte). The Mexican singer/songwriter shares her moment in the pop spotlight with diverse artists for an album that defines contemporary Latin song.
2. Calle 13, "Los de atrás vienen conmigo" (Norte). The Puerto Rican reggaetoneros pose as clowns in a circus that combines urban, electro and Latin beats with smart social satire.
3. Bebo Valdés & Javier Colina, "Live at the Village Vanguard" (Calle 54/Norte). The amazing story of Afro-Cuban jazz comes alive in the hands of the 90-year-old pianist on a historic concert album.
4. Soda Stereo, "Gira: Me Veras Volver" (Norte). The group that broke down the borders of Latin American rock makes history again on its record-breaking 2007 reunion tour.
5. Curumin, "Japanpopshow" (Quannum Projects). Sao Paulo singer and multi-instrumentalist Curumin's freestyle mix of funk, samba, soul, dance and dub is the now sound of Brazil.
6. Issac Delgado, "Asi Soy" (Machete Music). Havana's top salsero brings his smooth voice and sophisticated dance floor style to the U.S.
7. Aterciopelados, "Río" (Nacional). Iconic Latin alternative duo's musically expansive roots rock plea for the earth heralds a Nueva Canción movement for the 21st century.
8. No lo Soporto, "Avián" (BMG Argentina). Elegant power pop and dreamy electro-ballads from a Buenos Aires female trio to watch.
9. Buika, "Niña de fuego" (Warner Music Spain). The young Spanish lounge singer brings her bedroom voice and dramatic style to flamenco, boleros and jazz.
10. Dan Zanes, "Nueva York" (Festival Five Records) Zanes hosts a fiesta with some of New York's leading Latin bands, performing a set of rootsy Spanish songs for kids to sing.

That Buika cd is nice--kinda like Nina Simone moving to Spain and singing flamenco after listening to bossa nova and fado

LEILA COBO
Billboard executive director of content and programming, Latin music and entertainment

1. Ricardo Arjona, "5to Piso" (Warner Music Latina). Okay, I confess I'm a sucker for Arjona. This set of stories, beautifully done, is a perfect marriage of substance and commercial appeal.
2. Luis Fonsi, "Palabras del Silencio" (Universal Music Latino). Fonsi's best album to date consolidates him as a songwriter and a star.
3. Laura Pausini, "Primavera Anticipada" (Warner Music Latina). An album that vacillates between nostalgia and joy, it is Pausini's loveliest -- and most personal.
4. Cabas, "Amores Difíciles" (EMI Latin). The Colombian singer/songwriter is in his best form, aptly blending styles but never losing sight of radio appeal.
5. Akwid, "La Novela" (Fonovisa). A gem of an album that mixes humor and depth. The best mix of regional Mexican and rap the brotherly duo has delivered so far.
6. Jenni Rivera, "Jenni" (Fonovisa). The banda diva really comes of age here on an album full of guts and personality.
7. Calle 13, "Los De Atrás Vienen Conmigo" (Sony BMG). You'd think irreverent rappers Calle 13 would run out of ideas. Not so. An album full of imagination.
8. Ximena Sariñana, "Mediocre" (Warner Music Latina). A memorable debut from what promises to be a strong female voice.
9. Locos Por Juana, "La Verdad" (Universal Music Latino). The Miami party band is finally getting its day in the sun. A unique sound and swing merits it.
10. Fonseca, "Gratitud" (Emi Televisa). Originally known for his "tropi-pop" sound, Fonseca took a risk with an album that explores many different sonic palettes. The result highlights an artist with depth and great potential.

Ximena Sarinana, from the youtube videos I watched, reminds me of Julieta Venegas and Natalia Fourcade, i.e., bouncy pop. That is a compliment if you're wondering.

The Calle 13 cd is growing on me. I think Mr. Phil (as opposed to unperson phil) plugged the Jenni Rivera on another thread. Laura Pausini is an Italian singer who vocalizes her singer/songwriter pop in many languages.

Taking another listen to the new Soneros All Stars and the new Pupy (minus three tracks though), I think I actually prefer the Soneros All Stars (but Pupy apparently had a large hand in that as well).

And I guarantee one or both of these will be all over the best of lists put out (in, like March 2009) by those Latin music covering writers from The Beat who you like.

(Which doesn't say that much since I think those guys are overly enthusiastic about timba in general.)

You're right. Those Billboard lists above skew more pop.

You're likely right about those writers from the Beat in re to Soneros Allstars with Pupy-- I just found the following The Beat column from Dave Hucker (a UK based writer and dj) online:

This is a great collaboration and he has given the release a completely new dimension, putting this into a totally different league. One of the things Pupy does is create a great big pulsating thump with extra songo rhythmical density and washes of sound. To the production he introduces new elements like members of his own super-tuff band including his young hotshot hipster vocalists Armando “Mandy” Cantero and Jose “Pepito” Gomez, alongside my fave roots Cuban female vocalist Cristina Azcuy (Papi Oviedo/Bana Congo). The result is a sound mixing the best of the old and the new with a modern perspective.

http://www.technobeat.com/HUCKER4/DiggingDeep.html

Here's the link to Hucker's columns

Hucker also likes Roberto Linares Brown, a Cuban who is now based in Toronto. One youtube video I checked out was more traditional salsa, but not this one

Funny, I just found that Hucker write-up this past Saturday. I'm glad someone with a little bit of a readership has noticed this album. I particularliy Pepito's vocals (on Pupy's recording in general), although I've read he has now left Pupy's band.

I think one thing I like about La Timba Soy Yo is precisely the mixture of traditional frameworks with Cesar Pedroso's distinctive contemporary sound. Pupy minus some of the timba (despite the title) is maybe why it works so well for me (although he does have his own sound normally which avoids some things I don't like in timba).

Jody Rosen, the Slate columnist, bigs up Calle 13 in his best of 2008 list and in his exchange with Ann Powers and Robert Christgau

I have heard from pretty much my most reliable source of Latin music leads that the new De La Ghetto album is good, but the three or four tracks I heard from it sounded pretty bad to me. (A couple of them were in English.)

But maybe the Reverend could look into it and report back, if he's desperate for at least one possibly decent "reggaeton" (in quotes because from what I heard it was more hip-hop) album this year.

For those of you who won't see this otherwise, here's a timbales duel between three of the greatest: Tito Puente, Kako, and Nicky Marrero:

And here's something else (cumbia thing Jace DJ Rupture linked to on his mudd up blog)

http://www.lacongona.com/

http://www.reggaetonline.net/reggaeton-top-20.php

this week/last week/weeks on the chart
1. 2 10 Llamado De Emergencia - Daddy Yankee Talento De Barrio
2. 5 2 Me Estas Tentando - Wisin & Yandel La Mente Maestra
3. 10 2 Por Amar A Ciegas - Arcangel El Fenomeno
4. 1 18 Subete - Alexis & Fido Sobrenatural Upgraded 2.0
5. 9 11 Lloro Por Ti - Enrique Iglesias ft. Wisin & Yandel Official Remix
6. 19 11 Virtual Diva - Don Omar
7. 3 18 Na De Na - Angel & Khriz ft. Gocho Showtime
8. 15 9 No Me Doy Por Vencido - Luis Fonsi Ft. MJ Official Remix

9. 4 17 Dance - Angel & Khriz ft. Wayne Wonder Carribean Connection
10. 18 10 Te Hice Volar - Erre XI ft. La Sista Los Brothers
11. 20 12 Pa Kum Pa - Daddy Yankee Talento De Barrio
12. NEW 1 Tiemblo -Baby Rasta & Gringo The Comeback
13. 5 11 Pecadora - Yenziel & Mike SIngle
14. 6 17 Tuve Un Sueño - RKM & Ken-Y ft. Plan B The Royalty
15. 7 12 Cuerpo Sensual -RKM & Ken-Y ft. Don Omar The Royalty
16. 8 15 Vamos Pa'l Agua - Tito El Bambino
17. 11 9 Gracias A Dios - Mach & Daddy Gracias A Dios
18. 12 29 Siguelo - Wisin y Yandel Los Extraterrestres : Otra Dimension
19. 13 10 Veo Veo - Yaga & Mackie Los Mackieavelikos
20. 14 10 Hablaron De Mi Remix- Baby Rasta & Gringo ft. MC Ceja The Comeback

That chart is based on the votes of people who go to the site.

Saw a Washington City Paper ballot vote for Ximena Sariñana (Sei Track/Warner). She's the new Latin-popper who reminds me of Julieta Venegas and Natalia Fourcade

damn. La Onda Tropical is closing shop. It's pretty much where I discovered Latin music. They've got a nice 2008 roundup up. RIP.

That's too bad. It was a nice site

This doesn't sound superb, but given the paucity of recent solid salsa releases (in my opinion anyway), this is one I will probably pick up, the new Luisito Carrion CD mentioned earlier:

http://www.descarga.com/cgi-bin/db/23419.10?W8yHEjnx;;381

(Anyway, it sounds pretty good.)

From “Yo Quisiera” (on Broke & Famous): “I’d like to dedicate this song to all my people down there in New York.” Since when is Puerto Rico north of New York? Okay, I’m being too literal, but the shout out always makes me laugh.

Symbolically Puerto Rico always has to be on top!

RS, you get to start the '09 thread (please), thanks

Oh, okay. Hold on.