August 2006Issue 392



Techari

by Ojos de Brujo

Product information
Diquela
Star rating
****

Techari

Out of cosmopolitan Barcelona comes one of the most exciting new world fusion bands. Ojos de Brujo (Eyes of Wizard) call their music ‘jiphop flamenquillo’ but this flamenco hip-hop base serves only as a platform to launch into a plethora of musical genres. On their third album Techarí (‘freedom’ in Caló, a Gypsy language), their sound is more eclectic than ever. On a rigorous flamenco instrumental core, Ojos fuses hip-hop, bhangra, acid jazz, Arabic, reggae and even heavy metal rhythms and harmonies. Thanks to exceptionally talented musicians, a wonderfully tight rhythm section that includes a human beat box and Indian vocal percussions, and a flamboyant performance from singer Marina la Canillas, these wired minstrels pull it off brilliantly. Growing recognition has also helped Ojos recruit guests such as guitar legend Pepe Habichuela, Cyber from Asian Dub Foundation, Senegalese rapper Faada Freddy, Nitin Sawhney and Cuban pianist Roberto Carcassés. And while flamenco’s lyrics usually focus on the joy and suffering of life, Ojos’ are refreshingly politicized, dealing with issues of social justice, immigration and globalization.

Thankfully for the non-Spanish-speaking, the record comes with a CD-ROM, which includes the lyrics in 14 languages.




also by...
THIS AUTHOR

Taima

Language Tools
Powered by Ultralingua

Join over 30,000 people just like you. Get e-mail updates about new content, action alerts, contests, and more!

other articles
FROM THIS ISSUE

One laptop at a time?
A small but powerful $100 laptop designed for school children in the Majority World.

Bolivian land returned to the people
Two million hectares have been earmarked for women and indigenous peoples.

Paradise Regained
Chagos islanders resist superpowers

The trouble with models
View from Lagos by Ike Oguine

The privatization of Patagonia
Fences are marching across the Patagonian wilderness, displacing indigenous peoples and turning pure water into private property. Tomás Bril Mascarenhas reports on another conquest, this time by foreign investors.

recently
IN THIS COLUMN

Rishte
An album with a range of references stretching from a lazy Delta blues to the yearnings of Urdu devotionals. By Najma Akhtar and Gary Lucas.

Judy Sucks a Lemon for Breakfast
Guitars blast, synthesizers go mad and a group of gospel harmonizers strain for the heavens as sitar strings twang. By Cornershop

Also worth a mention...
CDs that didn't quite make a full review, but are still worthy of a mention.

The Rough Guide to Afrobeat Revival
Starting where founding father of afrobeat Fela Kuti left off, this album features energetic tracks of sweaty inventiveness.






Voices from the margins:

Multimedia: video, podcasts, and more.


Subscribe to NI now!