Peer Validated

Pictured: Buena Vista Social Club, even older and latin-ier than Yo La Tengo. 

Ok, this may be a weekly thing for me, or until I get completely tired of it, but why does everything we review have to have come out in the last 3 months?  I’m assuming the answer would be that we are in fact an mp3 blog, and if you wanted to hear old stuff, you could just go to the public library with the rest of the huddled masses and get cds for free.  Still, there’s something to be said for music that can have some staying power after the 3 months that it’s on pitchfork and the following pitchfork wannabees (us.)  Anyway, here’s to trying something new.  Or old.  Whatever. 

Buena Vista Social Club is a sort of band/recording/documentary/music genre/club.  I mean, the Buena Vista Social Club actually existed, and then was the same name of the band and documentary that came out in 1998.  Yeah, it’s confusing.  Anyway, the important thing to realize is that it was a bunch of old cuban people who make kick ass latin-jazz.  Actually, they’re all dead as of July, 2007, but for a while they were making kick ass latin-jazz.  Besides being cred shit to reference, BVSC also has the added bonus of making you feel completely amazing whenever you drive in your car.  It can turn the whitest activity (buying a wireless card) into some sort of weird, bongo infused, latin love fest.  Just don’t catch your dad listening to this, it could look completely disgusting. 

Candela is a track off of Buena Vista Social Club’s first release, and it’s by far the best track on that album.  It starts off with some weird herky-jerky acoustic guitar part, and then builds with that totally sweet chant-singing that cuban people love to do.  Well, maybe not all cuban people love to do it, but these cuban people like to do it, and they do it a lot.  A lot.  Anyway, that’s probably enough analysis.  If you’re at work, crank this up and see if you can start a dance/block party.  Just like you’re living in a coke commercial!