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October 22 - 29, 1999

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***1/2

ONDA SONORA: RED, HOT + LISBON

(Bar/None)

I put off writing about Onda Sonora for several weeks because I wanted to see whether it really was as splendid as it seemed. But tested in the car and on the beach and even in the boudoir during this glorious Indian summer, August's initial conclusion sustained itself -- damn if this AIDS-fighting compilation doesn't conflate Portuguese culture's myriad offshoots with a near-perfect blend of trad and pomo.

As far as albums go, successful integration is usually the product of flow, and for most of the 23-track disc, savvy segues titillate as much as the music itself. Several of its pleasures are based on drastic shifts. By the end of the drum-intensive collaboration between General D. and Funk n' Lata', you need a breather. Like a curtain being wafted open by a evening breeze, there's Lura, a Cape Verdean newcomer pining her way through "Nha Vida."

Some relationships seem natural. Madredeus's ethereal harmonies beg to be laced with ambient electronics, and Spanish producer Suso Saiz does just that. But other gems are out of the blue. I never thought I'd have to go to Portugal to (finally) be convinced by k.d. lang, but she sure fados better than she twangs. And I didn't even mention the ghostly love song made by Vasconcelos and Cantuaria. One of the year's best albums.

-- Jim Macnie
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