Andina: The Sound of the Peruvian Andes, Huayno, Carnaval and Cumbia 1968-1978

It's become fashionable – or at least SEO-savvy – to give records epic subtitles. This album's subtitle is ‘The Sound of the Peruvian Andes, Huayno, Carnaval and Cumbia 1968-1978’ and it is less exact than it sounds. Does the word carnaval refer to the Amazonas dance-step, or is it simply an umbrella term for party-friendly? And, while the Andes are certainly the abiding influence, the 17-track compilation features several bands from the deserts of Lima. But let that not count against the great music on offer here.
From the late 60s, Peruvian bands took indigenous rhythms and reshaped them with twangy electric guitar, big-band brass, keyboards and tropical percussion. The results are vibrant and varied, from Los Compadres del Ande's manic, mambo-inflected ‘La Mecedora’ to the psychedelic instrumental ‘Todos Vuelven’ and Los Sabios del Ritmo folking-up a popular criollo tune ‘Cholita’. Andina is a fiesta to celebrate the birth of Peruvian pop, and it wraps up with the incantatory Quechua-language ‘Toyascha’ by Conjunto Kori Cinta de Huancavelica.