Rating:
Genre:
Latin
Release Date: 10/11/2005
In the 21st century,
banda's more experimental artists are incorporating so many different influences -- everything from
hip-hop,
funk, and
soul to Afro-Cuban
salsa and Dominican
merengue -- that some purists feel
banda is becoming watered down. But what is watered down to one person is expansive and forward-thinking to another, and accusing
Yolanda Pérez,
Rogelio Martínez,
Jenni Rivera, or
Banda Jerez of watering
banda down is sort of like saying that
Miles Davis watered down
jazz or that
Rubén Blades watered down
salsa. Besides,
banda still has plenty of traditionalists, and
Grupo la Flama usually fits that description on
Sin Ella (Without Her). The exuberant
"Sonríeme Otra Vez" has a very
disco-ish quality, but more often than not, this 31-minute CD uses
banda for
ranchera purposes -- and Mexican traditionalists should have no problem with the way
la Flama approaches familiar songs like
Jesús Plata Lucio's
"Lágrimas y Botellas," Paulino Vargas'
"Asómate a Mi Copa," and
Eva Torres'
"De la Tierra al Cielo." Sin Ella (Without Her) is an album that usually plays up the
ranchera side of
banda and does so without apology. However, it should be noted that
la Flama hasn't been describing
Sin Ella as
banda but rather as a "nuevo estilo" (new style) termed "tierra caliente." What do they define as "tierra caliente?" Essentially, it is downsized
banda -- not
duranguense (which is Durango, Mexico's very recognizable way of downsizing
banda), but Sinaloa-influenced music that uses fewer instruments.
Grupo la Flama (as opposed to calling themselves Banda la Flama) consists of six players and two singers on this album -- and a large banda would have a lot more players. Nonetheless,
la Flama brings plenty of
banda brassiness (much more than one gets with
duranguense) to
Sin Ella, a 2005 release that should please
banda fans even though
la Flama doesn't consider it
banda.
~Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
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