If the Gypsy Kings had talent and soul...
vaughna | Portland, OR | 12/13/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"they would hope to aspire to some day sound as good as this. They'd probably never get this good.After having seen these guys live I bought their CD, knowing that the recording would never match the performance. I was pleasantly surprised. 'Children of the Revolution' have a distinct, and unclassifiable sound only gets better with age. Most CD's begin to tarnish well before the hundredth listen, not this one. Vissili's lead vocals are incredibly moving, as is the passion in Eric Jaeger's guitar. The group as a whole has a great amount of intuition and play together wonderfully.I feel fortunate to have stumbled upon this group at such an early stage in their career. If enough people hear them--or see them live, I feel quite sure that I'm going to have to stand in line for tickets to see their sold out shows in the not so distant future."
Great CD, but they're even better live..
Nicolas Pottier | 10/12/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Albums are a funny thing. It seems that there's plenty of bands out there who can put together a good sounding album in the controlled environment of a studio with infinite remixes, takes and fades. But giving that same level of performance to a live audience is what sets the 'musicians' apart from the 'bands'. Children of the Revolution are some fine musicians indeed.I first heard of them through a friend of mine who was acquainted with the lead singer. Intrigued I bought their CD and was pleasantly surprised with the ethnic variety of music which varied from driven flamenco guitar to vocal solos. The entire disc is a gem, a keeper through and through and one that my friends invariably love when I play it for them. Many of the songs are sung in other languages, but that doesn't take anything away, their meaning is all too clearly spoken through the music.I recently saw them live locally... and I left even more impressed. They put on a killer show in all respects. Incredibly good balance between the instruments and vocals, with flawless performance on all fronts. You really need to see them in person to appreciate the music to it's full extent, and see their flamenco and belly dancers as they add visual delight to the already incredible experience. It was a fun show as well, they drew the audience in and by the end everybody was participating and having a good time enjoying the music.I have no doubts that these guys will go far, they are extremely talented, approacheable and put on amazing shows with their truly unique blend of world music. Highly Recommended."