Orishas
A lo cubano
Universal, 2000
This young Cuban vocal quartet is based and records in France, which helps to explain the great production values on this, their slamming debut release. Still, this group wants you to know that they are not Cuban exiles. In fact, they performed in Havana last December, and their remake of the Buena Vista Social Club's signature tune, "Chan Chan," is a runaway hit on Cuban radio. Orishas call their version "537 C.U.B.A." and it's a celebration of the island nation from afar, 537 being Cuba's long-distance telephone exchange. The song is also brilliant marriage of Cuban pop and hip-hop that sounds as fresh and exciting as anything currently happening in either of its root genres.
Orishas take their name from the deities of the African Yoruba religion, Santaria, which thrives in Cuba centuries after it was brought over by slaves from Nigeria. The evocation of Cuba's African side--made explicit in beautiful percussion passages--is not exactly controversial: the word is that Fidel himself practices Santaria. But this combined with the fact that Orisha's lyrics strongly evoke the black experience in Cuba, gives the music a certain edge, an important element in hip-hop.
Best of all is the way A Lo Cubano blends the sophisticated harmonies and rhythms of Cuban pop with hip hop aesthetics. Roldān's classic sonero vocals are part of a continuum that spans attitude-drenched rap and the harmonized call-and-response arranging that has animated Cuban music for over a century. While plainly hip-hop, songs like "Represent" and "Orishas Llegó" stand up to anything Cuba has produced for sheer tunefulness and musicality. "1.9.9.9" unfolds in close to pure Afro-Cuban rhythm, but even the more familiar hip-hop grooves in these 15 dynamic tracks exude undertow and sensuality distinct to Cuban music. This is a welcome departure from so much international hip-hop, which just mimics the American style in a different language.
Contributed by: Banning Eyre for www.afropop.org
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