Last year Mexican musician Natalia Lafourcade decided to cast off modern pop sounds and investigate the rich musical history of her Latin American heritage. Her album Musas included folk inspired originals plus covers of songs by legendary Latin musicians like Violetta Parra, Agustin Lara and Simon Diaz. It went on to win the Latin Grammy for Best Folk Album as well as becoming a huge commercial success. Her second volume appears less than a year afterwards, the haste of recording partly because of the advanced ages of her collaborators Juan Carlos Allende and Miguel Pena of Los Macorinos (both in their eighties) and also due to the renewed creativity Natalia found in this project. In the songs of the past she found not only her roots but a way forward for her music. Continue reading “Album Review: Natalia Lafourcade – Musas Vol 2”
Album Review: Flor De Toloache – Las Caras Lindas
Frustration with the male dominated culture of mariachi music led Mireya Ramos to create Flor De Toloache – an all-female band of musicians who together have fused Latin music in a distinctive new way. On Las Caras Lindas there is a joyful spirit that is uniquely feminine and surprisingly modern too. Continue reading “Album Review: Flor De Toloache – Las Caras Lindas”