Search - Abel :: Alegria Musica

Starts off weak, gets better, never quite peaks....

Daniel W. Kelly | Long Island, NY United States | 10/25/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I'll start off by saying, if you're looking for 2 hours of peak hour diva anthems for your next big party, look elsewhere. This is much more club-oriented music, but there are a couple of stand out gems to be found.



Disc 1 isn't your usual disc full of circuit anthems. The first half is mostly soft house and Latin house with little vocal. Finally, at track 6, we get something more progressive and big club oriented. Seven is a hard tribal track, and for me, the party finally starts on track 8-rosabel teams up with jeanie tracy again. I'm a little disappointed in the mix though, it's a fairly stripped down tribal mix, so I'm hoping a CD single is released with a fuller, more anthem-style mix...sort of like the perfection that is the next track, "I Am Tha 1" featuring club diva Inaya Day. This song is filled with hard-edged attitude. The track that follows has only a sample of vocal, but it has a groove that will keep you moving. The final track on disc 1 is a hard-hitting Latin vocal track with a "na na na" or "la la la" repetition that's so catchy it's annoying after a while.



Disc 2 opens with the hard, tribal Richie Santana mix of "Design" by Origene, a moody, track with an alternative rock vocal sound. Tony Moran and crew give us a bangin' tribal chant track with "return to the latin x-press". What follows is a series of hypnotic grooves, rhythms and sounds that immerse you in a club experience-if you close your eyes and sway back and forth to the beat, you can practically feel like you're there. Only problem is...this goes on for pretty much the rest of the disc, and eventually it becomes indistinguishable, and you're pretty much waiting for a huge peak hour anthem to come in and save the day. The dark and hard "give it to you" does the trick, but it's just way too late in the game with only 2 tracks remaining.



With some moments of the true club-goers experience, this two disc set really could have benefited from more peak hour anthems. Track times:





CD1

1. The entrance (2:40)

2. con la musica (5:56)

3. Tropicana (6:33)

4. Will I (6:41)

5. Ya Salio (6:35)

6. Sun rising up (7:44)

7. Gattaca groove (5:27)

8. Stand strong (8:40)

9. I am tha 1 (5:12)

10. Outro lugar (6:43)



CD2



1. alegria drama switch (:54)

2. Design (7:49)

3. Return to the latin x-press (5:21)

4. Tribal groove (6:29)

5. ghost (6:14)

6. Rhythm intoxication (8:28)

7. amp (5:14)

8. El tigre (6:06)

9. Dream catcher (6:58)

10. Give it to you (4:44)

11. no surrender not retrait (5:13)

12. untitled works 2 (6:26)"

Abel is the best DJ these days - and this CD is better than

rosscali | Berkeley, CA | 03/12/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Nothing can compare with the live atmosphere of a party and the music mixing in with the scene, but this CD has great mixes that can be heard over and over again, making ABEL stand out as one of the hottest DJ on the house dance scene today. This album's second CD has party type mixes that rival the sounds heard in clubs where Abel spins, and is more rewarding than his previous CD release."

Great, but the 1st Alegria was much better...

J. ARCA | 12/30/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Disc 2 is consistent of the progressive style of the 1st Alegria CD, which we expect from Abel. Disc 1 is more laid back, Ibiza Tribal Jazz, then transitions to Vocal Circuit music. Lots of complex percussions throughout, but does not compare to the energy of the previous CD. Compared to other mix CD's released this year, this is one of the best.



The best live set I've heard from Abel, or any dj for that matter, was at Alegria on Black Party weekend 2005. I wish he included the songs he played that night."