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CD Review
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Sing Out!, CD Review >>
Despite how it sounds, Charanga Cakewalk isn't a band. It's one man, Michael Ramos, who's had long experience playing in rock bands, helped out here and there by a few friends. A longtime resident of Austin, Texas, Ramos grew up with Latin music, and over the last few years has found himself drawn back to it. This is the result, filtered through a modern sensibility that uses samples, loops and live instruments for something that's more than electronica (or lounge; never mind what the title says). It's an engaging disc, bristling with ideas and short melodies. Real percussion mixed with loops brings the rhythms alive, and one of the secrets to the disc's success is that Ramos never goes overboard to impress--he stays focused on the tunes. Still, when he covers "La Negra Celina," by Cristobal Perez, the change of pace is apparent, going from downbeat to lush orchestration--even within the small group, the saxes gliding over the melody, and George St. Claire's vocal in a perfect 1940s Latin style. It's a disc of surprises that reveal themselves gradually, like poking through a garden with many hidden corners and joys. You don't have to like lounge music to enjoy it (the lounge is in your head); just have a mind that's open. 04/01/05
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