Think urban music and chances are it's R&B and hip-hop that spring to mind. But that's a thought limited to North America and Europe. Latin music has developed its own urban sound in recent years. Yes, it draws from the sources above, but they're only two facets of the whole. Add in the burgeoning reggaeton genre, rock, ska, and dance music, as well as regional variations from cumbia to samba, and you have the fuel for a very hot fire. This excellently compiled disc explores many of those -- although, as the notes admit, it's not comprehensive. There's some material that doesn't work too well; Asilo 38 try too hard to sound tough and gritty with their rap, only to become clich‚d, while El Otro Yo del Otro Yo's rock sounds disturbingly like early R.E.M. with anemic radio reception. Much of the rest is exciting, like Ska Cubano's thrilling, melodic mix of ska and Cuban music, or Zona Marginal's hard-hitting "No Mas." It's the kind of disc where every tack brings a surprise, be it the electronica of Holger Hiller's "Macome (Yoruba BPR Mix)" or the massed overdubbed samba percussion of Arakatuba's "Riva (Gringo Jo Remix)." Ska is also a big component here, a beat favored by many bands, like Doctor Krapula. What this proves is that urban Latino tastes are far more varied than some other cultures -- and they make a hell of a lot of good music. ~ Chris Nickson
