Terrific Follow Up!
bordersj2 | Boston | 05/05/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Wagon Cookin's a group out of Spain that specializes in some funky nu-jazz sounds. The group consists of Luis and Xavier Garayalde and has a slew of guest vocalists/musicians in their releases. "Appetizers" came out back in 2002 and was a good debut for them. It was a bit different from what I expected after hearing the breathtaking track "Lua" off of Glucklich vol 5, but still quality through and through. The theme to this one? Just by looking at the terrific cover, track titles and pictures inside (of an iron, pretty girl painting, cup of coffee, toothbrush, etc.) it's the little things and thoughts of everyday life for different people that makes living so special... that many take for granted.
"Everyday Life" is a great follow up to "Appetizers". It's alive, festive, and just an extremely fun album. It isn't in all Spanish or English or Portuguese, it's a combination. The album starts out with the soulful title track before bridging into Agua Do Coco. Amarelo is a lazy sounding track reminding of the colors of life, light, and the warmth of your heart. Also... heavy on clarinet thanks to Javier Garayalde! "Agua de Lluvia" follows up, nice flute and guitars. One of the more melancholic releases in the cd but still with plenty of spirit to it. Other top tracks to me were "A Palavra", "Pedra De Toque" and especially "Birds". The song starts out with sweet chirping in the background, Mariella Santago using her voice as an instrument, Tam-Tam and nice effects. You really get a sense of the atmosphere of the song and the way it ends, you feel like you're in the countryside of Brasil. In fact, that is the common theme of the cd (other than "Everyday Life"). Although some of the titles are in both Spanish and Portuguese. The reason for the sound of the cd being as authentically Brazilian as it seemed was because the cd was actually recorded in Salvador, Bahia.
I HIGHLY recommend this. Anytime I just want to hear pure, simple, good music, I put this on. This is a different sound altogether than "Appetizers" so anyone that's interested in that sound and expecting the same, this won't be exactly like it. Also, anyone expecting the same sound that was on "Lua" shouldn't do so either. This is it's own, original, fantastic, sound. If you do have this and enjoy it, by all means check out Glucklich 5 for "Lua", "Appetizers" and I'd actually also recommend "Jazzinho", Soul Quality Quartet's "Dip", A Bossa Eletrica's "Eletrificacao" and maybe even Banda Favela's "O Ritmo Misturada" too."
Track Listings (11) - Disc #1