Rodrigo y Gabriela Area 52 artwork

Rodrigo Y Gabriela and C.U.B.A.

‘Area 52’ (Rubyworks )

3
By Daniel Ross 20 Jan 2012

The infectious pairing of Mexican guitar virtuosi Rodrigo Y Gabriela with a 13-piece Cuban jazz orchestra is one that will have ludicrously tasteful “world music” enthusiasts creaming their hessian trousers, but that’s not to say there’s nothing for anyone else to enjoy here. Indeed, there’s an admirably chaotic air to C.U.B.A.’s contributions, from atonally clonking piano on the opening ‘Santo Domingo’ to brass pomp on ‘Master Maqui’. Elsewhere, mis-steps like the sticky Santana-worship on ‘Hanuman’ are far less palatable, but when the combinations match up, it proves exactly how impressive this band have become.

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