 |
|
This update contains the generally excellent “Brazilian
Groove” (Putumayo) and we could cite Los Mocosos, Kid Frost,
C.U.B.A. among an extensive list of performers to create music
that is reflective of the roots and contains genuine in-time performances.
Some of it is contrived, to be sure…and ephemeral…but
then so is all music irrespective of genre or era. The paradox,
however would seem to be irreconcilable when it comes to Euro
house. The very nature of the music which relies on automatic-pilot
rhythms and predictable cliché elements to create a background
ambience paradoxically produced at high decibel levels for socialising,
dancing or getting out of it mitigates against creative performance.
More often than not the metronome is the meat in the Pavlov dog
experiment….you ain’t supposed to think about it,
mate, 1 2 3 salivate.. An interesting experiment which does require
a couple of cerebral steps is to compare the skill of African,
Latin, Brazilian or Caribbean dancers raised on polyrhythms to
that of the conventional club crowd raised on a metronome. No
prizes for guessing the winners. Dancing isn’t exercise.
On Latin Groove (Obsessive) Latin elements are given the house
treatment by various DJs from France, Italy, UK, Sweden, Argentina
and Brazil.
Confronted with the juxtapositions of Afro-latino rhythm and melody,
it has to be admitted that there is some fairly deft cutting and
pasting done around the metronome here and there, but I didn’t
detect any signs of genuine rhythmic groove until the last four
selections, 2 by Nova Fronteira under the aegis of Italian keyboard
player Michel Chiavarini where interplay and a fluid intensity
develops in tandem with the beat. The closing number “Close
Your Eyes” featuring Brazilian songstress Bebel Gilberto’s
cool emoting easily takes the prize.
