Kilo

Orishas | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 29, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Universal Latino
• ASIN: B0007UDD16
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #174,704 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Since its 1999 breakthrough, the Cuban rap trio Orishas has been hailed as one of Latin hip-hop's true saviors. But the group's intoxicating third album, El Kilo, is about more than DJ scratches and looped samples. In fact, that's not at all what it's about. The group eschews studio tricks for live instrumentation on El Kilo, and it makes for a heady, well-rounded effort. El Kilo crackles with passion and urgency from beginning to end, and the album transforms Orishas into a wholly unclassifiable, strikingly original music machine. Blaring horns highlight album opener "Naci Orishas," and the pensive title track rides a simmering, soulful groove. Rappers Yotuel and Ruzzo play wonderfully off each other, and vocalist Roldan anchors every song with his playful vibe. A kitchen sink mix of soul, reggae, bossa nova and salsa inform Orishas' sound. There's even an appearance by Cuban rapper Pitbull on the raucous closing track, "Quien Te Dijo." The album's lyrical and musical poetry, however, belongs wholly to Cuba's three hip-hop heroes. --Joey Guerra

Product Description

For anyone that still thinks Cuban music is all about the 1950's and big bands, or the misty-eyed recollections of the amazing Buena Vista Social Club think again. Orishas are 3 young guys that, if they weren't such great singers, could be in a boy band! They love their Cuban musical roots and revere the singers of the past, but they have found a way to use these influences within a totally contemporary sound. Wrapping hip-hop beats with swathes of funk and some of the purest Latin grooves they cap it all off with their soaring vocals and samba rhythms. Universal. 2005.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Orishas Best: Hip-Hop Cuban Style, May 14, 2005

By 

Juan Mobili (Valley Cottage, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Kilo (Audio CD)

My knowledge of Hip-Hop is far from a scholarly and my passion for it has always been specific to certain people. Whether it was Public Enemy and early Ice-T toward the beginning, Lauryn Hill with and without The Fugees, or Eminem and Outkast in more recent times, my ears always stay with people who enrich the style and had something significant to say.

This is not to say that there have not been many others like them, which I simply lack enough knowledge of, nor the fact that I can absolutely expect and dig great grooves and some serious Funk. Now, you can add Orishas to my list of stunning Rap/Hip-Hop, and I strongly urge that you add them to your list. These guys combine powerful words and an impressive breadth of musical influences to create a sound that has achieved a new peak with El Kilo, their third album.

A little bio about these guys: they are Cuban, residing in France, and a trio since their second album, Emigrante, which was criticized by some or the absence of Flaco-Pro--an original member who departed after their debut "A Lo Cubano."

Yet I don't expect anyone to miss their fourth member after listening to El Kilo.
If you, like me, appreciate the richness of R&B and Soul references that Outkast's Andre and Big Boi brought to their music -to the point of creating such distinct new sound- you will find a similar and deep pleasure with the Orishas' generous inclusion of Latin rhythms.

Please be clear, this is no sampling of the Miami Sound machine or Ricky Martin Disney-approach to Salsa. What you will find is plenty of great "old school" Rumba, Son and Guajira, reminiscent of the glorious Buena Vista Social Club recordings.
The rapping and singing are also astounding, sensual and smooth at times, and nothing less than chant-like in others, the Orishas rock and sway with the best of them.

Great cuts abound. Particularly, the "Naci Orishas," "Distinto," "El Kilo," and "Stress," all of which are prime examples of their rapping/singing skills and of the remarkable band backing them up, specially the horns, bass and percussion.
The rest of the songs don't fall far behind, for example "Amor Al Arte" and "Al Que Le Guste," plus -at least in the Spain CD edition as track #15- you get the powerful chant and message of Zone Internationale, featuring the French rapper Rohff.

All in all, these are some the best sounds to groove to all year long, and a certain inclusion on my "best of 05" music list.

Hip-Hop not only has been here to stay, for long enough to have everyone notice, but it can; be stopped to speak new languages.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Look at The BIG Picture..., May 26, 2005

By 

Anónimo (Austin, TX.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kilo (Audio CD)

I guess I am among the minority in thinking that these guys know exactly what they are doing & they are progressing quite deliberately with each album. I acknowledge that it is an unpopular belief that Emigrante (their second release) is indeed a progression & a step in the right direction. As impressive as 'A lo Cubano' is, it is still their first record and as any creatively strong project, they learned from their mistakes early on & decided not to depend on the guaranteed formula of their first success. Indeed, they lost one of their MC's between album one & two but the fact remains that (in my humble musical opinion) the absolute & undeniably strongest musical force in this ensemble is without a doubt: Roldán. His mastery over melody, harmony & over all musical sensibility to give a song the absolute hook, is unrivaled in ANY hip-hop SINCE 2-Pac, and that is a bold statement my friends. This new effort from the trio is absolutely on point & a creative continuation from Emigrante, just as that one was from its predecessor, regardless of the knee-jerk reaction most fans & critics had to it because it was missing an original member and because it wasn't a carbon copy of the first release. Again, as an artist you are damned if you do/damned if you dont, if you repeat what you did before you are being safe, if you grow, you are losing your way, how do you win that battle? There has been absolutely NOTHING missing, melodically, lyrically, musically, beat-wise, hook wise or production-wise since the first album regardless of any absence in personell. These guys are still at the very forefront of ANY hip-hop, it just so happens that they are Cuban & incorporate masterfully & very melodically some of the sweetest aspects of Afro-Cuban music (Batá, Son, Guaguancó, Son Montuno) into R&B tinged Hip Hop. This new album proves that they are right where they need to be musically & lyrically. The soul, funk & R&B influences are more evident in this effort, but the fact remains: these guys are at the Top of their Game. This is Hip Hop at its finest, regardless of language, influence or commercial outlook. Mainstream hip hop could learn a few lessons from any and all of their releases. A Lo Cubano is a great record, but so is Emigrante if you let it live its own life without comparison, El Kilo exists upon the exact same principles: progression, progression, progression...life is evolution & growth, the sooner we acknowledge it, the better we'll understand each other as artists & as human beings. Paz, Amor y Música...

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensacional!!!!, February 13, 2006

By 

Juliana Moore "Julidivi Latina" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Kilo (Audio CD)

This album makes my heart shake!!! I can feel it in my blood! I have always been a fan of Orishas (since A lo Cubano), and so far I consider this album a huge growth of the trio, The combination of Hip-Hop and Cuban, old time Cuban, latin flavor and modern sounds is sensational. There is nothing better that music that can be felt in the stomach, in the soul... The kind of music you can turn on as loud as you can and still sounds perfect! Love the voice colors, and the lyrics, that are indeed very sentimental when it comes to understanding just a tiny bit of the Cuban situation, their lifestyle, their swing and the Cuban Groove. This is a wonderful tribute to their culture because it has added on to it in a very positive modern way.
I don't really care what savvy musicians can say, with the little knowledge I have, I feel that the harmony is beautiful and powerful, Is amzing how even some songs are a bit on the sad side, they still make you happy and make you look forward to the next... as one of the songs says, Always looking forward to their next step.