Amazon.com
You wouldn't imagine that a pair of Paris-based brothers could utterly abandon themselves to so rarified a style as the ineffably sexy and romantic
bolero. The story began when Sébastien Martel and his sibling Nicolas visited Cuba and Mexico, respectively, and were seduced by two different branches of the tradition. They were soon performing together, joined by bassist Sarah Murcia. Their acoustic, authentic yet idiosyncratic interpretations caress the heart, nibble at the ears and make the hips itchy. Shakers, hand-drums and chimes fall gently over relaxed but insistent male and female vocals, plucked strings, woodwinds and fiddles. The present set is a tribute to the late Miguel Angel Ruiz, a censored composer, sculptor and poet whom the brothers had befriended in Cuba. It was recorded at home with guest turns from Ruiz¹ singing daughter, Idelis, plus Ibrahim Maalouf on trumpet and Vincent Segal on cello and percussion. Tapes of Ruiz's own voice surface amid
Yorubachants, acerbic chordal changes worthy of Astor Piazzolla and wah-wah guitars that would not sound out of place in a Spaghetti western. This audaciously beautiful, resolutely honest album unfolds like a night-blooming tropical flower, as grandly intimate as a Latin chamber opera. --
Christina Roden
