Blog: La Onda Tropical

Vallenato/Cumbia: Felipe Pelaez, Renzo Guerrero

May 15, 2007, 10:45am La Onda Tropical
Renzo Guerrero - Vuelvo a Buscarte (Hola Peru)
To my own suprise I noticed we've never written about the wonderful carribean music called vallenato . It's sun-drenched and joyful afro-latin folk, very popular in its native Colombia. You'll recognize it by the distinct sounds of the accordion, the guacharaca and thumping African drums. One song that recently caught my attention is "Borracha" by Felipe Peláez . Hasty guitar plucking, quick-paced congas and a contagious chorus is all it takes to make this one of the feel-good factors in my summer! Renzo Guerrero is in a totally [...]
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Artist:Felipe Peláez
Title:Borracha
Link Text:"Borracha"
File Name:borracha.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Artist:Renzo Guerrero
Title:Vuelvo a Buscarte
Link Text:"Vuelvo A Buscarte"
File Name:vuelvoabuscarte.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps

Rock Chapin: Malacates Trebol Shop, El Clubo

May 10, 2007, 7:29am La Onda Tropical
A small Spanish lesson: my nickname, Chapín, is actually Central-American slang for guatemalteco (resident of Guatemala). So it's not hard to guess what rock chapín means: in this post we'll have a look at Guatemalan rock music! The debut of Malacates Trébol Shop was one of the first latin rock albums I bought, so forgive me if the following review is a bit emotionally biased ;) Malacates started out making fun-filled ska and punk music, but on "Déjame Llegar" we hear a more mature poprock sound. [...]
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Artist:El Clubo
Title:Me Cansé
Link Text:"Me Cansé"
File Name:mecanse.mp3
Bitrate:96 kbps
Artist:Malacates Trébol Shop
Title:Déjame Llegar
Link Text:"Déjame Llegar"
File Name:dejamellegar.mp3
Bitrate:160 kbps

En La Misma Onda

May 8, 2007, 12:45pm La Onda Tropical
Remember our devastating review of the new Jennifer Lopez album? It caused a lot of discussion on our partner site BlogCritics - read the pros and cons here . The sunny weather is a nice occasion for VivirLatino to have a listen at their favorite summer tunes for 2007. This is a very well written review of Techarí by Ojos de Brujo . Masala likes Fulanito so much they used 3 new tracks in their latest [...]
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Merengue: Fulanito, Kalimete

May 4, 2007, 9:15am La Onda Tropical
Kalimete Como ella lo baila
It's been ages since I posted some tropical tunes. So, in honour of the drought record breaking today here in Belgium (35 days without rain! weeha!), here's some steamy merengue. Though merengue is suffering popularity at home (bachata and reggaeton appeal a lot more to the Dominican youth), songs with a high fun factor still manage to become big radio hits. The two hottest bands of the moment are Fulanito and Kalimete , both excelling in fast-paced, minimalistic mambo with nonsensical lyrics. And slightly irritating vocals too ;) Still it's irresistible on the dancefloor, and [...]
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Artist:Fulanito
Title:Mira
Link Text:"Mira"
File Name:mira.mp3
Bitrate:320 kbps
Artist:Kalimete
Title:Como Ella Lo Baila
Link Text:"Como Ella Lo Baila"
File Name:comoellalobaila.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps

Lost in MySpace

Apr 29, 2007, 3:14pm La Onda Tropical
Our own MySpace page is doing quite well, but essentially MySpace Music exists to find new bands. When every kid that plays three guitar chords has its own page, discovering good music between the general sludge can be challenging. So the selection below is not representative at all - just remarkable findings for you to enjoy. Maui y Los Sirenidos called their disc Flamenco Sumergido - and that's what it sounds like: jazzpop drowned in Andalusian influences. Check out the very excentric front lady Maui in the psychedelic video [...]
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Reggaeton/Hip Hop: Calle 13 - Residente o Visitante

Apr 26, 2007, 11:59am La Onda Tropical
Their self-titled debut launched them as one of the smartest and most innovative acts in reggaeton. Merely 14 months later, Calle 13 is back with Residente o Visitante , the Puertorican rappers' sophomore album. We told you already how eagerly anticipated the release was, and now we can safely say: it was worth it. Rapper Residente (René Perez) has found his style in clever, satirical lyrics, and they're the first thing you'll notice on the album. He will make you laugh with his witty wordplay, and even [...]
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Link Text:"Pal Norte"
File Name:palnorte.mp3
Year:2007
Link Text:"Sin Exagerar"
File Name:sinexagerar.mp3
Year:2007

Semana Electronica Conclusion

Apr 22, 2007, 6:48am La Onda Tropical
We conclude our little electronic special with the announcement of the contest winner. The Luz Mob CD goes to: Joris from Tilburg, The Netherlands Thanks to everybody who (so massively) participated, and better luck next time. I hope you enjoyed reading La Onda this week, we've put quite some time into it, and the results were overwhelming (all visitor records broken). We'll probably do something similar in the future! (However, we were a little disappointed to see nobody commented on our posts this week. But you can make that up by showering [...]
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Electronic: Gotan Project - Lunatico

Apr 20, 2007, 7:55am La Onda Tropical
Gotan Project - Diferente
A new century, a new life for tango. That's what Philippe Cohen Solal (France), Eduardo Makaroff (Argentina) and Christoph H. Müller (Switzerland) must have thought when they founded Gotan Project ('Gotan' being Rioplatense argot for 'tango') in 1999. Mixing traditional, Astor Piazolla -influenced tango with smooth club sounds and basslines, in 2001 they came up with the startling debut La Revancha Del Tango that would give them world wide fame. Followers like Gustavo Santaolalla's Bajofondo Tango Club arose, the "Electrotango" movement was born. In [...]
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Artist:Gotan Project
Title:La Viguela
Link Text:"La Vigüela"
File Name:laviguela.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Year:2006

Electronic: Moenia - Solar

Apr 19, 2007, 7:00am La Onda Tropical
Moenia "Lo Que Tu Digas" Music Video
No, it hasn't been easy for Moenia . Mexico just wasn't ready for experimental synthpop in 1992. They could only emerge from the underground electronic scene in 1997, with the nationwide success of single "No Puedo Estar Sin Ti". Ten years later Moenia is Latin America's most successful electronic band, with 10 remarkable albums in their catalog, including the first latin 'remix album' ( Moenia Mixes ), and a critically acclaimed tribute album to latino rock of the 80's and 90's ( Stereo Hits ). Although inspired by European electro pioneers like Kraftwerk , their music [...]
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Artist:Moenia
Title:Lo Que Tu Digas
Link Text:"Lo Que Tu Digas"
File Name:loquetudigas.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Year:2006

Electronic: Buscemi - Retro Nuevo

Apr 18, 2007, 6:00am La Onda Tropical
Buscemi - Bollywood Swing King
Here in Belgium we have all the luck: two true masters of latin lounge music regularly provide us with their much-needed chillout tunes. Sven Van Hees and Buscemi have both played sets all over the world (including latin america), and since their first releases over ten years ago little changed in their style, or in their success. We're gonna review Buscemi's most recent record (which is all over the radio here), so you'll have to check out Sven Van Hees on your own. Retro Nuevo is Buscemi's fifth album, [...]
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Artist:Buscemi
Title:Não Falo Português (Ft. Fay Lovsky)
Link Text:"Não Falo Português"
File Name:naofaloportugues.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Year:2006
Artist:Federico Aubele
Title:lluvia
File Name:lluvia.mp3
Bitrate:213 kbps
Year:2007

Electronic: Federico Aubele - Panamericana

Apr 17, 2007, 6:50am La Onda Tropical
Argentinian songwriter Federico Aubele was discovered by Thievery Corporation , leaders of the Eighteenth Street Lounge label, when Aubele boldly gave them his demo at a party. An impressive debut ( Gran Hotel Buenos Aires ) and countless appearances on chill-out compilations and movie soundtracks followed soon. Aubele traveled the whole world, and being a constant foreigner "made him long for Buenos Aires and the Americas as a whole", giving birth to his equally impressive follow-up Panamericana . The Panamericana is the 25,000 km long highway system connecting all North and South [...]
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Electronic: Luz Mob - Luz Interpretations

Apr 16, 2007, 7:00am La Onda Tropical
Luz Mob - La Subienda
Luz Fleming, aka Luz Mob (sounds cooler, doesn't it?) was born and raised in San Francisco, but if I were to invent his biography myself, judging by his new (instrumental) album Luz Interpretations I'd say Frisco is just his current residence, the last stop after a long journey through the Carribean and Central-American area: it seems as if he had learned cumbia in Colombia, absorbed ska, dub and reggae in Jamaica and picked up some reggeaton here and there, before he finally added a jazzy electronic touch to all this in the United States. Sounds like [...]
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Artist:Luz Mob
Title:The Selecter
Link Text:"The Selecter"
File Name:theselecter.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Year:2007

Contest: Luz Mob

Apr 16, 2007, 6:00am La Onda Tropical
At the end of this special week, one winner will find Luz Mob 's intriguing instrumental album Luz Interpretations in his or her mailbox. All you have to do to participate, is send an e-mail with your name & address to: laondatropical@gmail.com . And please mention "Contest" in the subject. This friday, the innocent hand of El Guïri will pick the winner. Luz Interpretations is the second album of US-based electronic artist Luz Fleming, aka Luz Mob . His latin-influenced ambient instrumentals is "not just [...]
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Semana Electronica

Apr 15, 2007, 4:45am La Onda Tropical
There's one genre that has been shamelessly overlooked during the 22 months this blog has been running: electronic music. Considered indispensable for dancing, chilling or listening in most of the Western world, Latinos never really adopted the 'monotonous' white music. Top DJ's like Chilean Ricardo Villalobos had to move to Berlin before getting the attention their talent deserves. On the other hand, Western electronic artists embraced traditional latin elements, mixing them up with (mostly) loungy beats, to much success on countless compilations ( Cafe del Mar , Putumayo ,...). During our special Semana Electronica [...]
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Crossing Over: Beyoncé, Shakira, Alejandro Fernandez, Don Omar, Rell, Zion, Akon, Daddy Yankee, Fergie

Apr 13, 2007, 9:00am La Onda Tropical
Don Omar - Calm My Nerves [ El Pentagono ] ((SkSvR))
Sometimes we just have to give in to the acts being pushed by the music business. And a lot of crossing-over is going on between the Anglo and Latino industry lately. An overview: R&B meets Pop Latino Beyoncé is pretty serious about marketing herself into the latino audience (as we reported earlier ). Not only has she recorded a (stale and uninspired) r&b song with that other pop queen of the moment, Shakira - it's called "Beautiful Liar", check out the videos below. [...]
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Link Text:"The Way She Moves"
File Name:the_way_she_moves.mp3
Artist:Beyoncé & Alejandro Fernandez
Title:Amor Gitano
Link Text:"Amor Gitano"
File Name:amorgitano.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Artist:Daddy Yankee ft. Fergie
Title:Impacto
Link Text:"Impacto"
File Name:impacto.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Artist:Don Omar ft. Rell
Title:Calm My Nerves
Link Text:"Calm My Nerves"
File Name:calmmynerves.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Year:2007

Pop: Estrella

Apr 10, 2007, 1:08pm La Onda Tropical
Estrella - Tan Solo Tu Videoclip
Estrella is a young pop artist from Sevilla with a great voice. She grew up hearing her mother sing flamenco, and now she tried to combine that with modern black music in an original way on her self-titled debut album. She describes it herself as 'soul flamenco', but to me there is an essential component of modern pop involved too. No doubt, her vocal performance is impressive, best compared to an Andalusian version of Christina Aguilera. The difference being: Estrella is a purely natural talent, she learned everything from listening to old flamenco records. "Tan [...]
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Artist:Estrella
Title:Tan Solo Tú
Link Text:"Tan Solo Tú"
File Name:tansolotu.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Year:2006

En La Misma Onda

Apr 5, 2007, 11:35am La Onda Tropical
A collection of latin links from around the blogosphere. - About Latin Music is wild about Venezuelan salsero Victor Hugo. - IndieLondon loves the musical testament of Ibrahim Ferrer just as much as we do. Another review here , in Dutch from Nu.nl . - Slant Magazine dislikes Jennifer Lopez just as much as we do. Not surprisingly, her album flopped on the charts. - Latin Gossip rounds up the rumors in the [...]
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Cubaton: Gente de Zona

Apr 3, 2007, 12:03pm La Onda Tropical
Bamboleo - El Bueno Soy Yo
I've been wanting to post this song ever since I went to Cuba last year . You can imagine how hard it is to find Cuban music sometimes. (Side note - with iTunes supporting DRM free music, things will be a lot easier and more legal soon!) Gente de Zona is a typical cubatón band, incorporating timba elements into a straightforward reggaeton sound. Just how I like my beats: exotically flavored, smooth on the ears, and verrry contagious. "Soñé" was the perfect summer hit: sunny music [...]
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Artist:Gente De Zona
Title:Soñe
Link Text:"Soñé"
File Name:sone.mp3
Bitrate:192 kbps
Year:2006

Pop: Jennifer Lopez - Como Ama Una Mujer

Mar 27, 2007, 5:00pm La Onda Tropical
What a load of major releases this week. Ibrahim Ferrer , Juan Luis Guerra , Jennifer Lopez (reviewed below) and Los Tigres del Norte (probably not reviewed) are all considered masters of their genre. Como Ama Una Mujer is Jennifer Lopez' first Spanish album, so expectations were quite high. But I can be very short on this album: not my cup of tea. Lopez has often changed styles, but from the mainstream latino sound of "Let's Get Loud" and the pop of "Love Don't Cost a Thing" to [...]
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Artist:Jennifer Lopez
Title:Te Voy A Querer
Link Text:"Te Voy A Querer"
File Name:tevoyaquerer.mp3
Bitrate:128 kbps
Year:2007

Merengue: Juan Luis Guerra - La Llave De Mi Corazon

Mar 25, 2007, 2:13pm La Onda Tropical
When Juan Luis Guerra sings, the world listens. Ever since Bachata Rosa gave him global fame, everything he touches turns in to gold. Grammy nominations and critical acclaim have been piling up, even for his evangelically inspired 2004 album Para Ti . And with reason, to me his music has always represented joy, sun and energy. With La Llave De Mi Corazón , Guerra throws himself onto the Anglo music market. Spanglish is ubiquitous throughout the record, two tracks are even entirely in English (he has to work on his accent though). [...]
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Artist:Juan Luis Guerra
Title:Cancioncita de Amor
Link Text:"Cancioncita de Amor"
File Name:cancioncitadeamor.mp3
Year:2007
Artist:Juan Luis Guerra
Title:La Llave de Mi Corazón
Link Text:"La Llave De Mi Corazón"
File Name:lallavedemicorazon.mp3
Year:2007
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