Rumba Argelina

Amazon.com
Authenticity is a tricky construct in pop music. In Rumba Argelina, guitarist and composer Fain Dueñas, wind player Vincent Molino, and vocalist Benjamin Escoriza, the core of the Spanish group Radio Tarifa, blend traditional North African music, flamenco, and a dash of rhythms from the New World, most notably Cuba, with a contemporary pop sensibility. The results sound surprisingly organic--even when some of the mixes take disorienting turns. "Oye China" suggests a son or guajira--until an accordion and a mysterious wind instrument (bansuri?) come in. When the song turns again, however, it evokes a vallenato. "Soledad" alludes to flamenco but also to Brian Eno. Then again, as Dueñas & Co. define it, this is border music, the music of an imaginary radio station in Tarifa, the southernmost point in Spain. What it suggests depends on your point of reference--but leave that for musicologists. Most important, Rumba Argelina is a delightful, rich, sensual experience, armchair traveling at its best. --Fernando Gonzalez

Tracks:

Rumba Argelina
Oye China
Lamma Bada
Manana
La Canal
El Baile De La Bola
Soledad
La Mosca
Tangos Del Agujero
Nu Alrest
La Pastora
Ronda De Sanabria
Bulerias Turcas
Nina

Amazon.com

Authenticity is a tricky construct in pop music. In Rumba Argelina, guitarist and composer Fain Dueñas, wind player Vincent Molino, and vocalist Benjamin Escoriza, the core of the Spanish group Radio Tarifa, blend traditional North African music, flamenco, and a dash of rhythms from the New World, most notably Cuba, with a contemporary pop sensibility. The results sound surprisingly organic--even when some of the mixes take disorienting turns. "Oye China" suggests a son or guajira--until an accordion and a mysterious wind instrument (bansuri?) come in. When the song turns again, however, it evokes a vallenato. "Soledad" alludes to flamenco but also to Brian Eno. Then again, as Dueñas & Co. define it, this is border music, the music of an imaginary radio station in Tarifa, the southernmost point in Spain. What it suggests depends on your point of reference--but leave that for musicologists. Most important, Rumba Argelina is a delightful, rich, sensual experience, armchair traveling at its best. --Fernando Gonzalez

Customer Reviews:

delicious sound.......2007-02-13

I like this album very much... Close your eyes and listen to the songs.. you will think that you are somewhere between Granada and Marocco!

a musical place I'm always happy to return to.......2006-05-04

If I ever get invited to be on that NPR Harrisburg radio show "Desert Island" where you play selections of the 10 albums that you absolutely must have with you to continue your life in the deepest, happiest, most connected way possible (or something like that), this will be at the top of my list. Where it's been for the last 9 years, a refreshing fountain always ready when you need it. And you can dance to it.

Music from the south of Spain!.......2005-02-03

Great music that combines the Gypsy, Moorish and Mediterranean influences with some Cuban rythm! If you are proud of your roots like me, you will enjoy the album and the other two that follow.

An Exotic Combination : Spanish & Arabic.......2002-04-25

Deep-rooted, authentic music you might expect to hear in some far off land ... The stringed instruments, wind-blow instruments, drums, percussion & vocals provide just the right blend of natural sounds. The raw, earthy male vocals remind one of haunting gypsy music - the liner notes provide a translation: lost love, yearning to be recognized and fulfilled. Passionate emotions, almost groaning from within, rumbling like a volcano ready to erupt, revealing feelings only Meditarranean male vocalists can produce.

"Rumba Argelina" the mysterious title of this CD unfolds like a bud which blooms in the spring: the rain showers come and go, the green leaves unfurl on the trees, the flowers bloom, the cycle of nature is complete. The music here is fresh, original, exotic and mysterious. If gypsy or Middle Eastern music appeals to you: you will love this CD. Erika Borsos (erikab93)

Bridging cultures.......2001-10-27

For some strange reason I began listening to this disc even more after the 9/11 events and it has been a little unsettling. The looks one gets from listening to what some mistakeningly may think is Arabic music is odd. The music itself is hauntingly beautiful has a result. There is not a weak song on the disc and each has a unique flavor reflecting the Moorish influence resulting from Spains proximity to North Africa and the indelible mark left from the Islamic occupation for 700 years. The music is a remarkable combination of instruments, both old and new world, coming together to create a synthesis of sound reflecting the duality of Spanish culture. Images of the Alhambra, Christian motiffs mixing with geometric tiles, fretwork windows revealing orange and palm trees, pools of water and distant mountains with white buildings in the foreground, all this brought you by Radio Tarifa. There are not many more beautiful discs than this. Some of the songs have a spiritual feel, each is transcendental is some way. Each track takes the listener to faraway lands, a different time period, exotic images slightly tarnished by the modern harsh realities of a post 9/11 world. To say this disc is genius is not hyperbole, it is simple yet complex, a dense and fluid arrangement of songs for the time traveler, truly unique and enchanting. The opening track "Rhumba Argelina " is a perfect example of the gitano experience that awaits. Not sure? Check out track two, "Oye China," with it's lament and melodic interplay between the musicians. A truly fantastic piece of music to be enjoyed by all who love world music.

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