With their unique blend of Latin music, hip-hop, R&B, and pop, Yerba
Buena made a big splash with their debut album, PRESIDENT ALIEN. While avoiding Rock en Espanol cliches, the follow-up, ISLAND LIFE, boasts a pan-Latin sound that bespeaks the musicians' familiarity with the traditions of Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and more. The pace is generally frenetic throughout the album, and the vibe a steamy one, as percussion, horns, and guitar vie for attention on one percolating, polyrhythmic workout after another. Unlike many Latin acts that have made the crossover to a wider audience, Yerba Buena never seems to be pandering to the gringo market. Only a couple of tracks, the suggestive "Sugar Daddy" and the equally salacious "Bilingual Girl," feature English-language vocals, and there are no tacky rock trappings grafted on. The eclecticism of ISLAND LIFE depends most heavily on the
aforementioned variety of Latin musical roots, though there are
undercurrents of funk, reggae and, at one point, a bit of Fela Kuti-style Afrobeat. Uncompromising but completely accessible, ISLAND LIFE moves further down the inroads Yerba Buena made with PRESIDENT ALIEN.
Yerba Buena: Andres Levin (guitar, keyboards).
Additional personnel: Peret (vocals, acoustic guitar); El Cigala, Ajay Naidu, Fulanito, Joe Bataan, Orishas, Celia Cruz (vocals); Les Nubians, M1 (rap vocals); John Leguizamo, Montse Cortés, Rossy DePalma (spoken vocals); El Nino Josele (acoustic guitar); Ile Aiye (percussion).
5 Stars Latin Music I like the CD, One of the best Latin Music of 2005. It's a Mix with spanish Rumba, Belly Dance, and Much More. Submitted by cubanito2080 (Miami, Florida, USA) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
the best latin album of 2005 PEOPLE,WHAT A GREAT LATIN FUSION EVEN BETTER THAT PRESIDENT ALLIEN,YERBA BUENA SHOWS THE BEST WORK,MIXING ALL LATIN RYTHMS Submitted by YOSYMATA (MIAMI BEACH) Was This Review Helpful? YesNo
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