Rolling Afro-Latin Music All Stars - Tribute to Afro-Latin Music Thread 2014 (DVD incl.)

Well, these choices on my P&J ballot sound right for this thread, in a rolling way---comments posted on http://thefreelancementalists.blogspot.com

Jazz didn't make the list this year, in terms of obvious titles, but as usual (always?), it was a crucial ingredient of several selections---made a difference with Cotonou*, the way I hear 'em, and Guerilla Toss even, as we shall see--but right now should mention the inclusively, still inadequately-titled Underground Sounds of Modern Brasil: Hip-Hop, Beats, Afro & Dub. The excursions that first swept me up were the penultimate-to-ultimate grooves cruising off Disc 1, both very reliably informed by kosmic Krauts and Miles Davis (most likely). And all of Disc 2 has something to do with various kinds of jazz, as only the Brasilians/Brazilians can iterate ( yes, getting essentalist with it, but there's your classy 2013 buzzword or meme or whatever it is, too).

Key point in the p.r. pitch for Rough Guide To African Disco: "Creative scenesters put their own spin on the disco sound, mashing together the rhythmic pulse of funk, soul and Latin with African grooves; soukous, Afrobeat, township jive and more." Yes! There are a few let-downs, like the very first track, I think, but mostly amazing. Some of my faves are ones I wouldn't have thought to tag as disco, but no prob.

Orchestre Poly-Rythmo De *Cotonou, Volume Three---The Skeletal Essences of Afro-Funk 1969-1980 is
Analog Africa's third collection of tracks from Benin's primo movers of "traditional Voudon rhythms to funk, sato, Latin, sakpata, psychedelia, and Afro-beat" includes reel-to-reel, one-or-two mic recordings in houses, and even outdoors: conditions which might have suggested the "Skeletal Essences" advisory. Still, the reel-to-reel was a Nagra, the outdoors settings were gardens, the sessions often nocturnal; the results are fully charged. They seem like a response to late-night Bay Area FM and UK pirate stations, who maybe turned on those trendy Voice of America and BBC World Service headz to Hendrix, Santana, Meters, James Brown, Sly & The Family Stone, then dialing in electric Miles, P-Funk, Stevie Wonder, the expanding Talking Heads: trace elements, as filtered/reduced by these gray rockhead American ears, of Cotonou's ricochet path around the encrusted periphery of textbook popular music history. Peripheral visions, flickering lightning, skeletal filaments: like Miles slipping in, stealing the scene on his own records, as the background becomes the foreground---not in a New Age sense, or anything rarefied; more like oops upside the head, as the searchlight and spotlight merge. Back in the day, these guys are still re-writing the books, the future----as now, Daddy-o. Keep 'em coming, Analog Africa! (Cotonou's founder passed in 2012, but think there have been some reunion shows in the fairly recent past?)

Not to be snarky but I think that post would have been better on this other thread:

Rolling Outernational Non-West Non-English (Some Exceptions) 2014 Thread Formerly Known as World

I wanna catch up on reggaeton act Arcangel whom I liked years back. I wonder what they sound like now?

New movie based on an old Colombian book about salsa:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jLBTEU1-Eqw#t=204

(A lot more talk about cameras and techniques there than I care about, but it gives you the general idea.)

Arcangel (I thought that was one individual) put out an album last year and it's on Spotify. Not too difficult to find.

Even if some really good reggaeton came out at this point I'm not sure I'd recognize it as being good. It's just not the flavor I'm looking for.

You're right Arcangel is just 1 guy

The 54th edition of the Cartagena International Film Festival (FICCI) will open this year with the global premiere of Colombia’s highly-anticipated salsa film, “Ciudad Delirio.”

Directed by three time Goya Award–Spain’s main film award–nominee Chus Gutiérrez, “Ciudad Delirio” features the prominent Colombian actress, Carolina Ramirez known for her performance in soap operas such as “La Hija del Mariachi” and La “Pola.” Alongside her stars Spain’s Julián Villagrán, winner of a Goya Award for his performance in Spanish action film, “Grupo 7.” Also appearing in the film are distinguished Colombian actors such as Vicky Hernández, Jorge Herrera, Margarita Ortega and John Alex Castillo.

So I looked quickly. Are there two Colombian movies involving salsa or just 1?

Re: Arcangel--Some of the vocals on the most recent Arcangel sound bachata-like--suave pop romantica...I like this better than that trend toward making reggaeton edm-like, but its not exactly stunningly exciting

It's just not the flavor I'm looking for.

Re non-Latino stuff that's in the ILX top albums and songs for last year, I only like the electronic stuff that sounds like old-school African-American house, or has hip-hop aspects. The techno that's just fast club beats does nothing for me, and the spacier avante ambient artsier stuff is ok, but doesn't wow me either. I will stick with my marginal genres of African & Caribbean music (both old-school style with instruments and some new school with beats), Latin pop ala Julieta Venegas, New Orleans r'n'b/brass, and southern soul & jazz vocals.

I did not describe or really mention lots of the synth pop stuff that lots of folks here like. Again, not really my thing. I am bringing all this up here as Rudiph asked me my take on this stuff awhile back.

Old college buddies of mine want to get together Saturday night so no live in DC Pedrito Martinez, NY based Cuban percussionist beloved by New Yorker and others for me.

Those are two different current/forthcoming Colombian salsa films.

I still think you'd like more of the house coming out of the UK can you think. How about something like this? Is it old school enough for you? It's got some more contemporary sounds mixed in, but I think the overall framework and vocals are traditional enough to appeal to you. Kove - Love For You

I'm pretty unfamiliar with house, but I'm sure there's some older Chicago house I would like at this point. When I used to go into the Sound of Market in Phiadelphia, I usually liked the house they were playing, even a decade ago, back when I thought of myself as mostly disliking the genre. Unfortunately, I have had my house awakening since leaving Philly, so I can't walk in and ask what they are playing.

I get the sense the African immigrant community in London is having an impact on the dance music there, even when it's not specifically Afrobeats. (Am I imagining this or did DJ Q say his parents were from Nigeria, or elsewhere in Africa?)

Lise Waxer mentions in her book on salsa in Cali that there is a whole body of Colombian novels and other literature related to salsa, often mixed with political themes as well.

Check out this DJ Q track. His DJ sets and mixes tend to be pretty omnivorous and will probably always have some segments you wouldn't be into, but I think this would be within your ballpark: DJ Q ft. Louise Williams - Through the Night

This will be on the album he is putting out this year.

Thanks. Will listen later

Ha! I just found this. This might actually explain some of the appeal of this stuff to me:

They base their sound around plaintive minor chords that are common in the new pop house scene. "It's an old Chicago and Detroit thing – everything was minor sevenths, jazzy chords," Gibbon says, referring to the mid-80s originators of house music. "Minor chords just sound more clubby, darker, eerier."

And yet this mood has brought more people to dance music than ever before. "These kids who are 19, 20 years old, they get it, they understand it and love the way it's restrained and stripped-back," Robson-Scott says. "They don't think house is some random thing that only older people like – it's part of their culture now. They probably got bored of being murdered with massive wobbling basslines."

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2014/feb/06/gorgon-city-cyril-hahn-pop-house-stars-2014-dance-music

I'm just going to keep propagandizing you about this until you break.

These articles always produce such angry comments:

to be honest, i'd rather the Guardian went back to fumbling awkwardly around proper artists like 3 Chairs than in any way promoting this utterly derivative, awful garage house rip off shite.

That's my new genre: GHROS.

Going further OT, I didn't know Questlove wrote a book about Soul Train. That I might be interested in reading.

Ok, some of that Dj Q stuff is pretty good.

High five! (I don't know where that came from, it's hardly in my vocabulary.) I do like his DJ sets (in general) even more than the individual tracks he's produced, but I'm just not sure what you'd make of some of them. There are links to tons of them on the DJ Q thread.

OK, this paper is kind of awesome. http://www-cgrl.cs.mcgill.ca/~godfried/publications/Percussive-Notes-Web.pdf Some of his other related papers are online, will read them as well and maybe splurge for the book.

Not sure I understand his descriptions of rhythms. Will have to read it again.

Maracuyeah Collective presents special all night party featuring dinner and show - a Sexy tropical serenata with underground avant-bolero genius Helado Negro from 8pm to 3 am at Judy’s, 2212 14th St. NW

I wonder who this is? Will google later, unless someone els knows more

x-post to James Redd-- Rudiph reposted rhythms discussion on the below thread:

boom chicka boom: Rolling Beats, Rhythms, Drums n Handclaps Thread

Where do these out of the blue garage salsa collections come from?

http://open.spotify.com/album/2XDbJnBzN9Q2FHNQ6ri21a

This one sounds pretty good so far.

This is pretty much the only type of "new" salsa worth listening to.

I think I need a copy of this for my car.

It's not new of course, that's the point. But new-to-me. Possibly new to being digitial, possibly not.

Still listening to this compilation and I noticed this one track popped out. It's Kako. That explains it. Higher tier than most of this stuff.

Thanks, curmudgeon, will take a look

x-post-- still need to listen to that Spotify salsa list Rudip posted. I listened to but was not wowed by retro salsa and more on Daptone label band Los Hacheros. They're on that label that brought us Sharon Jones' revivalist soul, and seemed to aimed at a crossover market.

to be

http://www.tickeri.com/events/mayito-rivera-de-los-van-van

This vocalist from Los Van Van is appearing live tonight with a NY band in the DC area, I just discovered. I'm too tired to go...

Also gonna skip Arcangel tonight, and Ivy Queen tomorrow. But I am going to a locally produced effort today called "Remembering the Palladium," that will have live music and dance recalling that NYC mambo palace that was around from 1948 to 1966

The "Palladium" tribute thing was fun. While one of the actors wasn't so great, most of the dancers were good, and the big band was impressive

Speaking of the Palladium, D.C.'s Paul Hawkins and his band opened for Tito Puente there once. Hawkins was a non-Latino African-American who got into mambo in the 50s, became D.C. first African-american dance teacher for Arthur Murray, and he played timbales and congas and sat in with Tito and with Dizzy Gillespie in their DC gigs for years. He just passed at age 79. Here's a tribute piece http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/artsdesk/music/2014/02/27/remembering-paul-hawkins-pioneering-d-c-percussionist-bandleader-and-dancer/

ttp://www.npr.org/2014/02/27/282597908/first-listen-calle-13-multi_viral

some good, some eh tracks

http://www.npr.org/2014/02/27/282597908/first-listen-calle-13-multi_viral

I like some of it but not the cliched reggae at the end. The spoken word from the Wikileaks guy does also not add much.

Nelly Furtado working with Calle 13

I threw a few more comments about new Calle 13 here. Still need to listen to it some more

That's an old thread btw, Furtado is not on new Calle 13

http://www.npr.org/blogs/ablogsupreme/2014/03/05/285931990/possessed-by-joy-an-american-drummer-in-cuba

haven't read all of this or checked out the linked videos yet.

Gawker's car blog, Jalopnik, is all pissed off that Residente pushes his Maserati off a cliff in Calle 13's new video.

I think next year I am going to start a 2015- thread, with an open-ended period of rolling. I don't see much point in having a new thread each year.

Skimming the new album now. Calle 13 just don't seem that interested in music (based on this album but also on some of the earlier ones). If Residente wants to use Calle 13 as a vehicle for spoken word, that's fair enough, but it kind of leaves me out in the cold. Or maybe it's plenty musical but just in a Latin Alternative way that bores me.

Maybe they could do a "re-disovering our boricua roots" album that would win me back. Bomba, plena, jibaro, reggaeton, veteran salseros wheeled in with oxygen tanks. . .

Also bad taste in guitar solos.

Ha. They went with Latin folkies and Tom Morello and a Native American as musical guests this time. Someone needs to interview Visitante, because he does most of the music programming I am pretty sure

ECM doesn't put its music on Spotify.

Should I start a new open-ended thread per the Rudiph note above:

Rolling Afro-Latin Music 2015 and onward: Salsa, Bomba, Merengue,Reggaeton, Bachata, Latin-Jazz and more

Please do.

Rolling Afro-Latin Music 2015 and onward: Salsa, Bomba, Merengue,Reggaeton, Bachata, Latin-Jazz and more

I have no idea where to put this but searched Barbes and there was mention on this thread. I was in NY last week and went to Barbes on Wed to see the Mandingo Ambassadors and it was incredible. They're there every Wed and would highly recommend. So fun. http://www.mandingoambassadors.com/

Cool. Barbes nightclub hosts some Latino acts which is why it got mentioned on this thread. But probably goes better on this 2016 "global" "whirled" thread where old-school Guinean dance music led by guitarist Mamady Kouyate is more likely to be appreciated. Rolling Outernational Non-West Non-English (Some Exceptions) 2016 Thread Once Known as World Music