“AGUA DEL POZO” by ALEX CUBA- More Pop, Hold the Salsa

He may wear an Afro and he may be Cuban, but Alex (Puentes) Cuba is definitely not Afro-Cuban, at least not his music… well, not much anyway. This is pure Latino-pop, Cuban style, gone north to British Columbia, Canada, for special seasoning. Latin music hasn’t seen pop hooks like this since Gloria Estefan or Ricky (who?) Martin, Shakira notwithstanding- or maybe notwithshaking, her own considerable hips. His lyricism, his romanticism, his optimism- and his pure pop hooks- are all imminently notable. Nelly Furtado took note, and booked him as a collaborator on her new Spanish-language album Mi Plan, title song cowritten with- you guessed it- Alex Cuba. Mae Furtado didn’t raise a fool for a daughter; this is a good career move for Nelly, deflecting anxieties over how to follow her previous smash hit album while moving on to that lucrative Shakira turf as an extension of her own more-adult-than-Britney-but-still-sexy-as-Hell middle ground. Don’t underestimate Canadian loyalty in her nurturing of Alex either. They’re both immigrants.

It’s obviously a good move for Alex Cuba, too. The man has got some commercial instincts, in addition to his considerable musical talents. The middle ground is obviously where mass popularity lives, by definition, and that’s the turf he claims on this album. It’s seems to be a shift he’s comfortable with also, away from strict Afro-Cuban music toward ballads and boleros and trova and… silly love songs. The first song on the album ‘Amor Infinito’ makes clear the intent- amor infinito… que siento contigo... que habla de mis sentimientos (‘the infinite love… that I feel with you… that speaks of my sentiments’) and weaves its way through the entire album.

Alex hasn’t left his Afro-Cuban roots totally behind, though, certainly not in the two songs co-written with his twin brother and sometime collaborator Adonis, the title song and Vampiro. Thought maybe 'Agua del Pozo' (‘Water from the Well’) would be reflective and existential or maybe something deep and meditative as if coming from the Dalai (‘deep sea’) Lama himself? Think again. It concerns itself with the usual Afro-Cuban obsessions of moving and shaking, butts not politics, ‘me gusta como te mueves… sacando el agua del pozo’ (‘I like the way you move it, taking water from the well’). So much for deep thought, but it DOES feature hot Santana-like guitar licks.

‘Vampiro’, with the help of some brassy riffs, flirts with the dark side a bit- esta noche quiero estar contigo, amarnos escondidos… ser vampiro de tu amor (‘Tonight I want to be with you, hidden away loving each other… being the vampire of your love’)- but not much. Most of Cuba’s lyrics are playful and dreamy- almost childishly optimistic and naïve- and affirm that ‘happy ending’ faith with little but symbolic intervention, like the dreamy light pop of ‘Pide Un Deseo’ (Make a Wish)- porque una estrella cae, porque puse mi arma en el cielo de vencer ella (‘because a star falls, because I shot it down just to get her’).

Even when Cuba tries to get mysterious and metaphysical as in ‘Fiesta de Religion’ his optimism and light smooth jazzy touches hardly miss a lick, talking about ‘donde se hablan los verdades’ (‘where the truths are spoken’), more credit than a lot of people would give religion, even Santeria. Ever the romantic, his faith lies more typically in love, as in the closing song “De Manera Que,” dame un poco de tu fe…hazlo de manera que… siento que no cambian los anos que hice mi amor (give me a little of your faith… so that… I don’t feel that the years are passing while I love you”).

About the only thing ‘wrong’ with the album is that it’s maybe a bit too long, and that’s a spurious complaint, one easily lived with, like too much of a good thing. The salsa-lite numbers sink in effortlessly, even if the slower numbers take an extra listen or two. All he really needs now is a big hit to carry him over the top, and whether he or Nelly or someone else sings it doesn’t really matter. There are half a dozen songs on "AGUA DEL POZO" that could potentially chart out on the Latin top 40, so it’s just a matter of time. 'Si Pero No' is maybe the best bet since it’s already hit the iTunes download charts and you don’t exactly need an MA in Spanish Lit to understand the indecisions of life and love.

I don’t think we’ll be talking about the ‘Kamloops Sound’ any time soon, but Alex Cuba has got a busy career ahead of him. The question is, “Are we ready?” The next question is, “Could he do it in English without losing that saborrrrr….?” Stay tuned… but first, give it a listen, "AGUA DEL POZO," and prepare to get hooked. Now if only the US and that other Cuba would settle their differences…

"Agua Del Pozo" written & performed by Alex Cuba http://drop.io/alexcubaustrack2

(Author’s note- Pardon any mis-translations, but I can only translate what I can hear, and we ‘journalists’ don’t get lyrics sheets. Sometimes the CD beta-versions we get don’t even have song titles! So I do the best I can. Just last week I finally heard the correct lyrics to ‘Smells Like Teen Spirit’ for the first time from Paul Anka’s version- though I think maybe my own lyrics were better. Still I think lyrics are important, however tentative or partial. I for one don’t believe that the final solution to the world’s- and world music’s- ‘language problem’ is ‘English Only.’ So I persevere. Tamashek anyone?

On another note, I’m including a free song download for the first time. If it’s hassle-free, then I hope to do it more, artist willing. Considering that I frequently blog up from remote corners of the world, ‘hassle-free’ is not always the operative concept. Lastly, thanks to those of you who follow my blog, especially those of you who let me know one way or another. This blog’s for you. Enjoy.)

MAKE MINE SALSA ON RAI; HOLD THE POLITICS

I don’t know who has better salsa music, LA or New York, but at some point the question becomes superfluous. They say it was created in New York by Puerto Ricans, or maybe in Cuba, but it’s a universal genre by now, widespread in all Hispanic countries and beyond, as if language carried culture embedded within, regardless of a theoretical Chomskyan ‘meta-language.’ I won’t go so far as to talk about a ‘Latino’ race as did Yari More’ last Friday at McArthur Park, but the point is valid. There’s so much good salsa music in LA that they have to distinguish themselves, and to be sure there ARE differences, usually referring to the dance that they accompany, but also to the regions they come from. Hispanic culture, not unlike Anglo, has a universal aspect as well as individual differences native to the individual locales. I won’t go into the different types of salsa, of which ‘LA’ is one, but that’s about all I know. Yari More’ is Colombian, and his salsa style may very well reflect that, with its ties to the big band era and popular cumbias, but his own self-subtitle probably says it best, the ‘romantic of salsa.’ And that he is, after many years as a balladeer. The music may not be as ‘spicey’ as some or as funky as others, but show off Yari’s own vocal talents and those of his wife Christina.

I don’t think the Levitt Pavilion at McArthur Park planned a ‘Semana Colombiana’ or anything like that this past week, but they certainly got a dose. Yari More’ was preceded there last Wednesday by a vallenato group called Very Be Careful, weird name but good stuff. Maybe the group’s name has some hidden meaning, so I won’t rag on it. They’ve got a lot of loyal fans, so they’re doing something right. For those who don’t know, vallenato is a Colombian folk style, the exact opposite of salsa, if that makes sense. It’s a very rural story-telling style with roots going way back to the wandering minstrels of Spain, by whom news was carried from town to town in the medieval era. VBC carries on this tradition albeit with the changes brought by circumstances of time and space. Ricky Balboa carries the load on vocals and accordion, and has an amazing talent. He is accompanied on stand-up bass and various percussions in addition to back-up vocals. Unfortunately a disproportionate load falls on Balboa’s shoulder. In addition to the inherent limitations of the genre, he must carry the bulk of the load on both vocals and lead instrument. He could use some more help on one or the other or both. But all told, they’re great. Catch them around LA, when they’re not playing festivals in Japan or Europe.

LA even has some world music that isn’t Latino of any form, but you won’t find the amount of African music here that you would in, say, New York, and what you do find may lack some authenticity. Usually that means reggae, but others make the effort also. ADAAWE did so last Thursday at McArthur Park. They consist of seven females every shade of brown from every corner of Africa, including Israel, which is geologically correct, if not politically. In their faces you can find traces of the horn, the bulge, the desert, and the coast. In reality, they’re probably far removed from the source, but do an admirable job of evoking it. This is percussion only, so the possibilities are a bit limited, but what they lack in Western-style ‘songs,’ they make up with energy and spirit. Make no mistake, though, this is a female group first and a percussion group second. If you’re a hard-core percussionist or drum-circle enthusiast, this might fall short of expectations. Still, they’re good fun and educational at the same time. Check ‘em out sometime around LA.

But the real treat last weekend was not at Levitt Pavilion, either LA or Pasadena. The real treat was at Cal Plaza for Grand Performances. Not only do they have some great performers, but it is a killer venue also. What it lacks in natural acoustics it makes up artificially. The split levels and broken surfaces combine with the waterfalls and surrounding high-rises to not only dramatize the setting and backdrop, but also dampen the sound and not let it boom or reverberate, which could be disastrous downtown. The high-rise neighbors don’t complain; they come out and listen. Son de Madera was there Friday, which I missed, but I’ll catch them out in the McArthur barrio this Wednesday. Saturday night rocked with Rachid Taha, the world-renowned Parisian-based Algerian who sings mostly in Arabic. They say he’s socially conscious, but I can’t really tell. My Arabic’s a little rusty, since we didn’t speak it much around the house. It’s not really ‘Rai’ music though, even with all the traditional instruments.

Taha is a master of synthesis, and does it thoroughly. The Arabic-language songs seemed to have a French pop-rock feel and the effect is splendid, harsh guttural Arab consonants blending with crisp French melodies. On the other hand, the few songs he sang in French seemed to have a more typical Algerian ‘rai’ feel to them musically, sweeping strings leaden with overtone. Either way it works. If any art is the art of combination or juxtaposition, then this is one more example. He’s played rock, punk, ballads, and blues; he’s dined with farmers and factory workers, and met with the ministers of government and masters of ‘rai.’ His new album is called ‘Rock El Casbah.’ That says it all. Unfortunately they don’t let blogger floggers like me get up close to get good pictures, so you’ll have to use your imagination.

Si voce fala a lingua Portuguesa ista e uma boa semana. Grand Performances is again the hot ticket with Tcheka playing at noon on Friday and Waldemar Bastos with Ricardo Lemvo at 8pm Saturday. Tcheka is a Cape Verdean singer singing in the island nation’s brand of Portuguese creole. Bastos and Lemvo come from another ex-Portuguese colony, Angola, blending African rhythms with Latin sensibilities in trying to make sense of the realities of that formerly war-devastated land. Brazil Brasil is at Pershing Park downtown at noon Thursday also. The Dave Pell Octet and Orquesta Charangoa are over at LACMA this Friday and Saturday evening at 6 and 5pm respectively. Then there are Son de Madera at McArthur for some rockin’ Mexican son Jarocho on Wednesday evening 7:30pm, and Filipina jazz artist Charmaine Clamor (‘my funny brown Pinay’) on Thursday if that’s your style, but I’ll probably wait for Pete Escovedo next Tuesday at Hollywood and Highland 7pm to get my jazz rocks off. See you there. It’s all free.

p.s. For those of you just checking in after a long absence, the major changes to this blog may have surprised you. Don’t worry; I’ll get back on the road and write some more travel stuff soon. What you may not have noticed are some of the minor changes- I’m now dealing Latin girls in addition to Thais. I know I know- salseros need love, too, but I’m starting to feel like a pimp. I have no control over Google ads you know. Actually I’m starting to think maybe Google knows something I don’t, about me that is. This is getting spooky.