Cape Verde music reviews

This second of the Tinder label's Cape Verde collections starts out predictably with a morna by the inimitable Cesaria Evora. Familiar names abound, like Tito Paris, Maria Alice, and the island's latest pop diva Fantcha, as well as local superstars Simentera (whose single track here shows how much they deserve even wider recognition), but there are surprises to be had as well. From the lesser-known column we get treated to the raw and rootsy Voz de Cabo Verde, who sound like a Portuguese brass band on parade in New Orleans. These scant two minutes are almost worth the entire price of the record. There are jazzy grooves from Mobafuco, some flamenco-inspired guitar riffs from Mindel Band, and full-blown gypsies-in-the-Atlantic pop from Katchupa Rica. The very Brazilian ensemble of Luis Morais offers clarinet, cavaquinhos, percussion, and bass in a lively dance tune. The album follows the folk-pop of the island in all its variety, but what it lacks is some of the more truly traditional sounds to round out the view. --Louis Gibson

With the boom in world music it's easy to forget that some of the best music from "there" is being made in the U.S. Alongside the large number of Portuguese that populate Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts is a vibrant local community of Cape Verdean expatriates, playing the music the way it was played when they or their parents left the island, preserving and sharing the music with their fellow islanders and their new neighbors. This collection features some wonderful bands. Toi Grace and the Verdatones (you gotta love that name) offer a smooth and mellow pop style, heavy on the saxophone. Celina Pereira offers morna in a sultry voice over a simple guitar, bass, and fiddle backing. One of the showstoppers of the set is the hot fiddle sound of Alberto Rodrigues and his band, a real roadhouse sound full of smoke and whispers. All through the set are subtle variations on the Afro-Portuguese sound that has developed on the island and is now growing in the States. --Louis Gibson