Cuban hip-hoppers
Orishas made a splash with their debut,
A Lo Cubano. For their sophomore effort, there are no radical changes, just a refinement of style. Singing remains as important as rapping, in a manner true to their Cuban heritage, and though there's plenty of booty-shaking bass in the mix, the beats are spiced up by liberal doses of real percussion, bringing a complexity and springiness to the music that's rarely seen in hip-hop. The approach here is far more confident -- they know what they want to do and how to achieve it -- and they're not afraid of allowing guest stars, like salsa idol
Yuri Buenaventura, to strut their stuff. The closest they come to experimenting with the sound is on "Que Bola?," with its psychedelic backward loops and phasing. And while there's nothing as immediately arresting as "537-C.U.B.A." on this disc, each cut builds with repeated listenings to make a more satisfying experience.
Orishas speaks with the tongue of the gods. ~ Chris Nickson