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VARIOUS ARTISTS
Mondo Flamenco (Mondo Melodia)
Reviewed by DJ Johnson
Who knew? (Flamenco buffs, that's who.) It seems that right now, as we speak, in Spain there's a war going on between two camps regarding Flamenco music. One camp is occupied by the purists who don't believe anything should ever change, that nothing new should ever be introduced, and that all new artists should only honor the past and attempt to reach the level of mastery the greatest players of those bygone years achieved. In the other camp, they're having a meeting behind the PA speakers and the computer running the Pro Tools studio software. Some people in each camp would probably like to pitch tents somewhere between, but there's safety in numbers.
If you're a card-carrying member of the purist camp, this CD will piss you off and make the veins stick out on your temples and generally make you very entertaining to the rest of us. Lighten up, grandpa. There's some traditional Flamenco here to make you pucker your lemon clenched lips into some version of a smile and nod in approval a few times. Then run quick, because you might accidentally hear Pata Negra using synths in "Blues de la Fronteira" or a string section behind Aurora Vargas' "Mi Chacha Dolores." God forbid an innovation get caught in your throat.
Don't get too worried. It's not like these are really ground-breaking innovations here. They're interesting meldings of sounds but most of them have been done before. This collection does a nice job of introducing you to some of the possibilities explored in recent years, but for the open minded (camp two), its real value is as a very nice start-to-finish CD. In the end you realize the mood hasn't been broken, from the traditional guitar-only pieces to the most unusual interpretations of the form. The general spirit of the music remains unbroken throughout, and perhaps somebody in camp one needs to make that observation and tell his or her friends.
Track List:
José Mercé (Del Amanacer) * Camarón (Yo Vendo Pescaito) * Paco De Lucia (La Cañada) * Diego Carrasco (Nana de Colores) * Tomatito (Armonîas del Romañe) * Dorantes (Orobroy) * Enrique Morente (El Linguahe de las Flores) * Carles Benavent (De Perdidos Al Río) * Ketama (Vengo de Borrachera) * Tino Di Geraldo (Bulerías del Norte) * Remedios Amaya (Me Voy Contigo) * Aurora Vargas (Mi Chacha Dolores) * El Lebirjano (Coge la Onda) * Pata Negra (Blues de la Fronteira)
© 2002 - DJ Johnson