Rumba Sin Fronteras

Afro-Cuban rhythms/percussion, atypical of what you would hear on commercial radio, highlight this album with some tracks housing a saxophone. The basic tracks making up this album were obtained in a one-day session during his 1998 US tour and the booming percussive sounds are said to have been influenced by the heavy bass sounds emanating from cars driving by in the Mission district of San Francisco.
All in all, Rumba Sin Fronteras (or Rumba without borders) presents Quinto's spectacular ability to shift between rumba, abakua and other such rhythms while bringing in other talented musicians. A definite for “world music” lovers.

the good: if you're liking the afro-cuban beats, this album is well recorded and put together
the bad: a bit off-key on track #6—don't know if it was on purpose
the ugly: nuthin'
potty-mouth tracks: none detected

(note: rating numbers are out of 10 and following each track description)
1.La Gorra (The Hat): singing about a “cat” taking his “hat”--could very well be anoter guy taking his lady; starts slow and then speeds up (8) 2.Bolero En Medio Del Carnaval (Bolero in the middle of Carnival): begins with percussion and then lets the sax take over; very meditative track (8) 3.A Esos Senores (To those Gentlemen): heavy african-style drums; quite fast (7) 4.Sosa En El Pais de las Maravillas (Sosa in the Country of Wonders): instrumental; brings in the xylophone and synthesizer (7) 5.Aspirina (Aspirin): heavy drums again; all percussion (6) 6.Solo Mi Arte (Only My Art): synth+ drums w/ an underlying well-defined bass line (7) 7.Caridad (Charity): slow start; afro rhythms take over; he's calling on all “rumberos” 8.Water Please: percussion-driven track (6) 9.Mi Derrota (My Defeat): talking about unrequited love (7) 10.Cuando Baila Cachita (When Cachita Dances): drums on the intro, then joined by vocals, xylophone and an accordion (8)

review courtesy of rE\dOx