Rios de Norte y Sur

Rios de Norte y Sur (Rivers from North and South) is the second album from New York City's Radio Jarocho and features Zenen Zeferino – a noted poet and musician from Veracruz. What exactly Zeferino brings to proceedings is hard to say unless you're fluent in Spanish, but the band play up a storm on their jaranas (Mexican guitar-like instruments of different sizes). Acoustic double bass anchors the sound, adding eloquent jazz touches to tracks such as ‘El Misterio’ and the ensemble singing works well. The band perform with a dancer who knows the Veracuz region's traditional dances; there's an African influence in Veracruz music, due to descendants of slaves long being based there. Rios de Norte y Sur is a highly recommended album of 21st-century Mexican folk with arrangements that add subtle suggestions to the influence of music heard in the US.