Black Roots

This second album from Julio Montoro y Alma Latina is a slick and unashamedly commercial Latin American album from the versatile Havana-based outfit. Leader Montoro has previously recorded with Eliades Ochoa and also Johnny Ventura. He is primarily a guitarist, composer and arranger, but also adds keyboards and backing vocals. His group's main vocalist is the well-travelled singer Dayana Botello.

The album is an eclectic release with a selection that includes salsa and son as well as plenty of musical fusions. They describe some of their tracks as world music and they also include some funky jazz, ska and reggae rhythms. While it's all very accomplished it is fair to say that some of the arrangements are close to Latin pop and suffer from slight over production. Opener ‘Sambembere’, for example, features a guest acoustic guitar solo from Congolese guitarist Papa Noel, which is lost in a compressed production. Black Roots is a polished album that some listeners might find middle-of-the-road, particularly during the Kenny G-style smooth-jazz saxophone passages.