Recommended Listening With Damian Erskine : Marvin Diz | “Habla el Tambor”

Meet Reviewer Damian Erskine –

Marvin Diz
“Habla el Tambor”
www.marvindiz.com

Alright, I live in two worlds.  I am a Latin music addict.  I can’t get enough of it, it’s the best of both worlds in my humble opinion.  It’s got deep pocket and groove like funk, but with interesting harmony more akin to Jazz.  It can also get as complex as the best (or worst) fusion, without ever seeming sterile…  Just deep.  That said, I also have not always known where to look for modern Salsa and Cuban music that isn’t too hokey.  A great drummer friend of mine turned me onto this disc and I’ve been wearing it out!

I’ve seen many of the musicians on here via youtube searches leading from one Cuban drummer to the next (check out the “Profiles in Greatness” series….  wow!).  The list of musicians on the disc is astounding and too long to list, but this is the best of the best of the NYC Latin scene.  These are the guys who have taken this music to the next level and you need to explore it deeply!

While the disc is VERY listenable, I suggest you also check out the track, “Homenaje A Congueros Y Timbaleros” and try to find the one (it’s probably a 16th note later than you think it is…  Keep tapping through the transition from the A section to the B section and it should line up!  good luck).  The Percussionists are astounding and the bassists are just wonderful.  I immediately began transcribing bass lines from almost every track…  I just had no choice.