Sin Chisme by Arte Mixto

on Ahí-Namá Records
reviewed by Jacira Castro

For those of you who are not familiar with Arte Mixto, this group comes from the Cienfuegos area in Cuba.  All of the members are graduates of the National School of the Arts where they had the opportunity to study classical music as well as traditional Cuban music. After graduating they formed their own group with the idea of combining not only these two diverse forms, but also of adding in elements of flamenco, jazz, samba and other musical forms.

The result is a highly talented, professional and innovative group.  I've been listening to my copy of this CD now for months, ever since it came out, and it is one of only six lucky CDs that rides around in my car with me.  Although I routinely swap out the other five, this one has survived several rotations because it is so musically complex that every time I listen to it I hear nuances I had not noticed previously.

To begin with, the lead vocals are superb, the harmonies blend and fuse and complement each other with ease.  Then there's the director, Aléxis Correa, whose violin weaves its magic throughout the entire CD, as well as the fact that Aléxis composed seven of the tracks on this album. These elements alone would make this CD one to add to your collection, but wait!  There's more!

Julián Urquiza is one of the lead vocalists and the guitarist, but he is also the most talented author of three of the numbers, including the romantic number, Amarte más, which speaks right from the heart.  Lead vocalist on this track, Erisbel López, is complemented by the chorus and the Charanga violin, as well as Julián Urquiza's accomplished guitar playing. There is even a chorus that is a "Nuptial Mambo"! Note to you men who are thinking of proposing to your loved one: play this song in the background while you are down on your knee! 

This album is "retro", yet at the same time refreshingly "avante guard". Drawing from their rich Cuban musical roots, they have effectively infused elements of Timba, Mambo, Jazz, Ballads, and even added a healthy dose of social commentary. In the track entitled El dinero, author Alexis Correa sends a message of diminished morals in the general populace and the pitfalls of greed, as well as the value of faith, spirituality, true love and self-reliance, concluding that with perseverance one can obtain one's goals.

La moral se disfraza, (morality is disguised,)
ya no tiene cara. (it no longer has a face.)
Se corrompen los hombres, (it corrupts men,)
y un niño también. (and a child too.)
El dinero es la magia, (money is magic,)
la llave de sueños (the key to dreams)
Una pesadilla (a nightmare)
que ya es realidad (turned into reality)

What I can tell you is that with this third CD, Arte Mixto has achieved the kind of success that you can't measure with money. For those with distinguished taste in salsa, for those who know a bit about music, I promise you will not be disappointed with this CD! I highly recommend adding it to your collection!

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