Customer Reviews

City Zen

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Need a cheap way to get to El Tigre, Argentina? Pop in City Zen. Since I don't speak Spanish the rhythm and laid back vibes of the album are what I have to go on, and I can listen for hours. I was first turned on to Kevin Johansen about a year ago with a copy of the CD with Puerto Madero and Guacemole on it. While City Zen is missing a song with the hook of Puerto Madero, it makes up for it with "Buenos Aires Anti-Social Club" and the not-just-a-little-bit Hawaiian "Oops." "Gem In I" is just a good, catchy song. If you're a little too use to Top 40 Radio, this might be the perfect escape for you. Put it on, close your eyes and picture Buenos Aires.

How can I express in a sentence Kevin Johansen's
music, is just a great musician, I have no words
for him, his unique style of music takes you into
another different world, if you want to reach the
clouds listen to his music drinking some mate,
it's just heaven, I swear it!!!

I have heard already "Sur o no Sur" from Johann and it really is a close call in knowing which one of the two albums is better. "City Zen" has exceptional music and lyrics crowned by superlative recording. If you have a good stereo you will enjoy the amount of detail and effort put into this record.

I came across Kevin Johansen courtesy of a free sample CD I got at a retail music outlet store. The sampler had three of the five English language songs on this CD; "All I Wanna Do Is You", "Push Your Luck" and "Everything Is (Falling Into Place)". I might not have gone ahead and bought the full album if I had known that seven of the twelve songs on it are in Spanish but I've grown to love it now.

Johansen is not the best singer in the world but he has a beautiful singing voice; a deep baritone voice that drips with the richness of kindness and warmth. He's delightfully peaceful to listen to and if that's the vibe he was going for (the album is called "City Zen" after all) then he has scored a bullseye as far as I'm concerned. I have no idea what the Spanish songs are about (and am too lazy to find out) but they are pleasant enough sounding and the music, presumably played by The Nada, is very well produced. It's clean, clear and full, and with acoustic guitar and bass much to the fore it's right up my street.

The three English songs that came on the sampler are still my favourites though "I Don't Know" and "The Gem In I" are also really nice. I especially love the way Johansen let his 7-year old daughter sing backing vocals on "Everything Is". It adds an added level of innocence and purity to the whole album. Nice wholesome stuff. I'll be checking out his other CDs now, for sure.

The other reviewer came to this album without knowing Johansen's music and loved it... so I'm writing this more for other Johansen fans. NONE of the things that made The Nada or Sur o No Sur such great albums are on display in City Zen. The funky, sometimes jazz-influenced sound from the previous albums is replaced by a very mainstream, Latin-pop, rather bland sound, and the clever lyrics that alternated Spanish and English are also gone. Instead, there are clunky rhymes, often strained, that I found honestly painful to listen to... heavy, and lacking grace or any sense of play. Compared to the other two albums, this is a huge disappointment, and a little strange-- it's as if some other, far less talented or even interested musician has taken over Kevin Johansen (I do mean interested-- this album sounds like they were bored making it).

His style is called "subtropicalista." It's a smooth, gentle, relaxing style that combines guitar, saxophone, strings, and humor. The songs alternate between Spanish and English; sometimes in the same song. Kevin was born in Alaska then raised in Buenos Aires. He's the first Alaskan to be nominated for a Grammy in the Latin-pop category. It's nice to hear the music of someone who knew what he wanted to do, then did it and succeeded. Easy listening and good for anyone wanting a good Latin music feeling.

A real MUST HAVE! I can't stop listening to it. The 3 CDs in his collection are great, he mixes different styles, spanish and english, and his voice is unique.