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CD Review
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CD Now.com, CD Review >>
Not long ago, Afro Peruvian music -- the music of the descendents of African
slaves brought to Peru -- was unknown outside its own community. But following 1997's The Soul of Black Peru (on David Byrne's Luaka Bop label),
Afro Peruvian culture, songs, and artists (most notably chanteuse Susana
Baca) have all started to enjoy their share of worldwide critical acclaim.
Sangre de un don is a triumphant debut outside the Peruvian market, an album
that doesn't owe much to Byrne's compilation, but doesn't stray too far away
from it, either. The program (a mix of classic and not-so-classic songs) is
presented by Afro Peru, a dance troupe turned into a music ensemble that has
enjoyed many fine moments performing this music in concert halls. The group
features veteran percussionists and guitarists, but the stars are the vocalists Monica Dueñas and Eilna del Rio, who can turn raw material into powerful songs like diamonds cut by a jeweler. Check out "La Ruperta," "Samba malató," and "Mama Nugué," and you'll understand what all the fuss is about.
The rhythms are sensually folkish, elegantly festive at times, and occasionally primal. The lyrics -- with their takes on everything from love to racial pride to slavery to colonialism -- have the deceptive simplicity of fairy tales. Most songs adhere to standard formats with steady beats and catchy melodies. Even the combination of instruments --guitars, cajón, quijada de burro (which, literally, is the jawbone of a donkey) -- marks Afro Peruvian music as a world devoid of complexity. But it is a world all its own.
Eliseo Cardona
CDNOW Senior Editor, Latin 05/01/01
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