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8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A world of music, 5 Jul 2004
I think it was Time Out magazine which described Ozomatli as the best live act in the world. Having never seen them I can't vouch for that (although they manage to get the quote on every poster and advert, but who can blame them.) Having said that, there is a taste of what they are like live on this CD, as the last track is a live version of the first track - 'Believe'.The track 'Believe' has a very Arabic feel to it, which is unusual enough for an American band, but Ozomatli do like to mix up their genres so the parts which would normally be played by the violin on a real Arabic song are played on a distorted electric guitar, and there is a rap break in the middle. The second track is in a similar style but has a Santana-type feel to it. (Ozomatli did play some concerts with Santana, and collaborated on an album track) Track 3, Street Signs, is a Latin hip-hop track and track 4, 'Who discovered America' is more of a straight Latin/Santana song. Track 5, 'Who's To Blame', is based on the Egyptian Rhythm which most dancehall reggae artists like Elephant Man and Sean Paul have used, and then track 6 is more traditional Latin music. Track 7, 'Saturday Night' has an old school rap vibe to it and track 8, 'dejame en paz', is a real fiesta of percussion-heavy samba, which sounds like it would be fantastic live. Track 8 slows it down again with another Latin song, 'Santiago'. Santiago segues into a remix of 'Ya vien el sol' which is like latin reggae - the rhythm is very reminiscent of Murder She Wrote by Chaka Demus & Pliers, but of course there is a twist with typical South American drumming and plenty of scratching. Track 11 is a short piano piece leading into a very straightforward, and old-fashioned sounding bit of big band Latino music, which leads straight into the very Cuban-flavoured Cuando Canto. (Note - at this point the track list gets confusing because two tracks listed on the sleeve play as one track). Finally there are two bonus tracks: the first is Como me Duele, which has some really catchy horn riffs in it, and the other is the live version of Believe. So if you are looking for a latin, hip-hop, rock album with some Arabian and reggae sounds mixed into it you need look no further than Ozomatli's Street Signs.
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