Peru Negro

Jolgorio

Times Square Records

www.rockpaperscissors.biz

The jubilant celebration that is Afro-Peruvian comes to life on this vibrant CD. Afro-Peruvian music, a hybrid of African, Indian, Latin and European, has been evolving for about 200 years, and we hear its wonderful fruits in the newest release from one of its chief cultural representatives, Peru Negro. Jolgorio is "a state of celebratory frenzy" in Spanish, and that title is apt, as every song sets your feet, if not the rest of your body, tapping. The rhythmic music is based around the sound of the cajon, a wooden box of agricultural origin came into use when Peru's slaves were forbidden to use drums in the 1700s. Adapting with the times, Peru Negro has added other instruments, such as the flute, that have become mainstays in contemporary Black Peruvian music.

Jolgorio is absolutely alive; you cannot listen without sensing the movement and energy that must accompany the group's live shows. The music cannot really be separated from the movement. While Peru Negro recorded this CD live in a studio, dancers performed facing them to dictate mood and rhythm of the songs. Throughout the thirteen high-energy tracks, the feeling is one of celebration.

With an upcoming US tour and a rich cultural heritage, Peru Negro has much to celebrate.


Reviewed by: Adrin Fisher