(01.30.06)
Being of Latin blood (Cuban-American), I thought I might find some joy in this collection; after all, it claims these songs are not only ‘Latin’, but ‘Legendary’ as well. To my discontent, I was instead assaulted by an abysmally low quality collection of rusty Toyota low-rider pollution. Calling these songs ‘Latin’ equates to calling crunk hip-hop ‘African’ – while the statement may be true from the standpoint of lineage, it hardly sums up (or does justice to) the culture in total.
I’m not going to bother pointing out specific tracks, or dwell on the fact that the mastering process seems to have ripped out most of the bass on the disc. I’m simply going to say the following: Celia Cruz, Tito Puente, and Even Arturo Sandoval have gotten more play in the Latin Clubs of Miami (which is about as Latin of a city as any in the world.) Those artists are undoubtedly legendary, as their contributions to music extend far beyond their genre or cultural limitations.
This CD also reminds me of a recent DJ assignment I had — a corporate party for a very reputable international hotel chain. All night long there was a battle at the DJ booth over which shitty music would be played next — Reggaeton?…Haitian?…Crunk Hop? I then watched, rather befuddled, as a racially polarized crowd danced only to the music of their corresponding nationalities. What does that have to do with this CD? Nothing, other than the bad taste I was left with on both accounts. At least the gig was paying.
I’d also like to make it a point to say that commercially available DJ/Artist Presents CD’s are generally in poor taste and are usually motivated by capitalism, so eat me.
Coconut FM is out now on Essay.
