Malena – Fried Samba
Funky lounge/jungle rhythms trot along in a friendly enough manner without being all that captivating and a confusing wind element doesn’t do a great deal to attract attention, in opener ‘No Llores Mas’. Ambient and uplifting Brazilian vocals have Maleena skirting towards the impact of the Thievery Corporation without replicating their mastery. They end up coming across a little like a lethargic Basement Jaxx. It’s as though they have been made aware of these shortcomings and in the epic, vocal free, samba and acid jazz conjoining ‘More Afro’, they start to show adventure and tempo building ability.
Some Underworld instrumental masking gives the wistful epic ‘No Me Digas Nada’, some consistency that flows into the slow building, pedestrian soul vocal toed ‘Que Dificil Es’, but there’s still a slight flatness that lingers. Having been consistently noticed since their Latin House veined early days of 2001, Maleena seem to have hit a bit of lazy rut, as the 8 piece backing band’s contribution is probably the least emphatic and noticeable than in any other of this once fresh outfit’s past material.
A digital toe and deftly clattering percussion brings mystery and an instrumental heartbeat to the fore in standout offering, ‘Flute Juice’. The Latin rhythm and a more experimental slant moulds well together. This gives a hint of the adventurousness that could revive this cosmopolitan troupe appeal.
Malena, you sense, do possess the ability in them to be spectacular but they need wrestle themselves out of the lazy pedestrian slump that they seem to easily fall into.
By Dave Adair
Second time i've seen this review!!! Still cracks me up the "doesn’t do a create deal to attract attention"
Thought i might let you see the reviews from Fat City and Dusty Grooves. I've checked the spelling for you!
FAT CITY:
Ten tracks from Malena on the hit factory that is Freestyle, authentic latin grooves given a modern studio polish, some sweet soulful vocals and not afraid to add a little bit of club rough and tumble, this is a great sunshine album that works at home and will also get people sweaty in the club – A HIT!
DUSTY GROOVES:
Nothing fried about this samba — as the groove is clean, lean, and never greasy at all — a great British reinterpretation of older Brazilian jazz, with a few key contemporary elements thrown in for good measure!
The set's the sort that always seems best coming out of the UK — really classic-styled rhythms updated just a bit by some younger contemporary players — partly with one ear for the dancefloor, but often with a lot more sensitivity than you might expect. The jazzy elements really make this one sparkle — and include saxes, keyboards, trumpet, and a bit of guitar — all played warmly and with a good deal of feeling.
There's a bit of beats on the set, but never too much so to get in the way of the small combo grooving — and titles include "More Afro", "Suavemente", "Fried Samba", "No Me Digas Nada", "Flute Juice", "Supanova", "Querria Mentir", "No Lorres Mas", and "Que Dificil Es". © 1996-2008, Dusty Groove America, Inc.