Vinicius Cantuaria & Bill Frisell
Lagrimas Mexicanas
One Music

“Lagrimas Mexicanas” is a new collaboration between Brazilian guitarist and vocalist Vinicius Cantuaria and American guitarist Bill Frisell. I am familiar with Frisell who has engaged in many interesting projects over the years, but Cantuaria is a totally new name, He brings his vocals, acoustic guitar and percussion while Frisell brings his guitar and tape loops to this recording.

The music is in part a result of Cantuaria moving to New York from his native Brazil and being struck by an amalgamation of sounds emanating from the streets of New York City. In particular, the diversity of Spanish-speaking people affected him.

Cubans, Puerto Ricans, Colombians, Venezuelans, Mexicans and countless others formed a rich multicultural collage which is reflected in the songs here. The two collaborated in fusing traditional Latin rhythms with improvisational jazz methods.

Cantuaria’s vocals convey a dreaming romanticism with his guitar and soothing vocals supported by Frisell’s atmospheric painting of sound with his guitar both from his own runs and his use of effects.

The results are delightful and enchanting performances with a light Brazilian rhythm often underlying the performances. The delights include “Calle 7” inspired by Cantuaria’s strolls down 7th Avenue in Park Slope Brooklyn as well as the lightly textured instrumental “La Curva.”

The title track has an irresistible and infectious rhythm with Cantuaria overdubbing his vocals against the loops and mesmerizing interplay between the guitars.

While I am not conversant in Spanish or Portuguese (although the closing “Forinfas” is in English which had a definite untutored charm), “Lagrimas Mexicanas” captivated me throughout. Recommended.

I received my review copy from a publicist. This review originally appeared in the May 1- June 15, 2011 Jazz & Blues Report (Issue 335). Here is a video of Vinicius Cantuaria & Bill Frisell