Producer Michael Ramos created Charanga Cakewalk, an approach to
\nmusic from a totally different angle. Unbound by musical boundaries
\nor genre restraints, Charanga Cakewalk cooks up a musical dichotomy
\nof Latin beats combined with electronic synthesizers and then folds
\nin traditional world rhythms. This unusual blend results in a
\nunique and diverse sound solely belonging to its owner.<\/p>\n
Ramos was always surrounded by music, surrounded by Mexicana at
\nhis home in Texas but becoming riveted to rock. He has toured with
\nthe BoDeans and the Rembrandts and worked with John Mellencamp. Why
\nis this important, you ask? It shows his diverse roots, which come
\ninto play on this release.<\/p>\n
His music has been classified as kitsch, but I found nothing of
\npoor quality or mundane here. The Latin influences of his
\nupbringing carry the song “Belleza,” which incorporates a small
\ntouch of Hawaiian-type sounds to create a number that has energetic
\nmovement and makes you want to shake your butt.<\/p>\n
“Mexicanos” is another danceable song. Due to the African-like
\nCumbia backbeat, you feel like you’re missing out on something if
\nyou don’t tap your foot to the tempo. “Chispas” is a techno-driven
\nsong, joined with a breath of Spanish rap by Becca Rodriguez. David
\nPuckingham plays hearty Spanish guitar to back the rap, making this
\ndefinitely an odd song but an excellent choice for the CD.<\/p>\n
“Volcanico” is exactly as it sounds – hot and steamy. J J
\nBarrera feverishly plays the bajo sexto and bass while David
\nGrissom dives into the guitar and comes out smiling. Like Ramos
\nsays, the song is a new invention full of warmth and unusual
\ncolors.<\/p>\n
Ramos and Rey Arteaga duet the vocals on “Carmela.” Although a
\nbit too silly for me musically and vocally, it just once again
\ndisplays the diversity of this man’s talent. Why should he always
\nbe serious anyway? But then doing a flip-flop, “Romanticos
\nDesesperados” is a sultry romantic dance number that reiterates the
\nagreeable nature of his exceptional repertoire. It is Latin-based
\nbut indicates lots of imagination. Michael Longoria provides the
\npercussion and hits it hard, never letting up.<\/p>\n
Effortlessly, Ramos keeps the tone of this CD consistent
\nthroughout — it is highly charged and he never tires in his work.
\nOften CDs will piddle out near the end but he does not disappoint –
\nhe starts out on a high-intensity and the conclusion is no less
\nenthusiastic, using melodica, guitars, horns and accordions to make
\na flamboyant style definitely all his own.<\/p>\n
Obviously Ramos’ plan is to stir up the music world and invite
\nthe entire globe into his fantastic vision. This furthers the
\ndifficulty in categorizing his music into any particular genre,
\nmaking this a full meal that is a welcome surprise. You’re never
\nheard anything quite like it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":46,"featured_media":27159,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"artist":[7199],"rating":[5613],"class_list":["post-38505","review","type-review","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","artist-charanga-cakewalk","rating-rating-a-minus"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/38505","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/review"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/46"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38505"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review\/38505\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38505"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=38505"},{"taxonomy":"rating","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyvault.adishjain.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rating?post=38505"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}