PRICE:
$15.00
IN STOCK
ARTIST
TITLE
Americano
FORMAT
CD

LABEL
CATALOG #
EX 201CD EX 201CD
GENRE
RELEASE DATE
8/19/2002

"The legendary John Beltran returns after a lengthy pause with his best album yet. John makes music influenced by his attitudes towards life and listening habits plus tace elements of dancefloor experiences both past and present. So far he's produced four LP's and earned himself rave reviews and a cult following amongst those ready to look for something beyond the dance within so called dance music culture, although the beats, breaks and bass of the floor usually bubble up through his tracks no matter how reflective they might initially seem. The new album Americano opens with the sultry blues of 'Dreamin', where deep jazzy keys are supported by a low slung groove. This is followed by the recent single 'Caboclo' - a more uptempo number that still manages to sound dream like. 'Siesta Key' should unlock the door to anyone's quiet inner sanctum, its long drawn out textures help strip tension out of the listener. 'Bossalude' sees John updating the traditional bossa sound with deft electronic processing and flourishes. 'Soul Sketching' drips Detroit soul (both the old and new varieties) with its warm keyboard intro. The pace of the track is delivered by a drum n bass break whilst live keys hang and fill the spaces between the beats. 'Watercolour Dreams' releases the pressure, with its lilting keyboards lapping away any tension. 'Expecting Rain' continues the aqueous theme; the treated vocals become the chant of a medicine man incanting for the life supporting liquid. The impact of September 11th is still reverberating through the American psyche, and on 'A Better Place' one can hear John's tribute to the victims and survivors of the tragedy. The album closes with the sweet lullaby refrain of 'Dreamin'."