Salsa Music Album: Gerardo Contino “Somos Latinos” Review
Gerardo Contino put together an impressive group of quality musicians, named them “Los Habaneros”, and recorded 7 tracks that showcase what they are capable of doing with Salsa and Timba.
“El abogado de la Salsa” and ex-singer of NG La Banda left Cuba to live in New York City in 2009 with the aim of getting his own group going. “Somos Latinos” is the realization of that dream. Now, let’s do a deep dive in some of the facts stated above.
“Los Habaneros” was the original name Gerardo Contino gave to his group, which at the time was an all-Cuban group. The group has evolved, and currently includes musicians from other countries, like the much seeked-after musicians John Benitez (bass) and Luisito Quintero (timbales). Roberto Quintero (Luisito’s brother) adds in the conga to provide Los Habaneros huge horse power!
A degreed lawyer in Intellectual Property, Gerardo Continuo regularly auto-proclaims himself as the “Abogado de la Salsa” through the 7 songs in “Somos Latinos”.
What I Liked About “Somos Latinos”
High Energy Salsa – this album has aggressive arrangements with well written songs that make you want to move your feet.
Salsa Romantica y Dura – Gerardo has a keen sense of how to combine some Romantic themes in a powerful Salsa arrangement that will get you dancing. There are also themes more related to “barrio” themes, like the powerful Timba “Se Preguntan”, and songs like “Venimos Comercial” and “Siempre Latino”.
Great Singing – Gerardo Contino delivers in all cylinders in “Somos Latinos”. Gerardo has a good voice and he uses it to bring emotion to each song. He can get sentimental in romantic parts of songs, and provide radioactive energy in hotter Salsa movements. Gerardo provides original and inteligent “soneos” that keep songs interesting and enjoyable through the end .
Favorites – my clear favorite is “La Chica Red Bull”. I was curious of this song just because of the title. Its starts like a Salsa Romantica, then moves into a nice coro and Salsa Dura swing, with a timba-like mambo, where Gerardo’s charisma overflows through the song! This is Red Bull energy Salsa! I also like the message and rhythm of “Siempre Latino” and “Amor de Adolecente” and “Se Preguntan”.
Suggestions for Gerardo Contino on “Somos Latinos”
Short CD – although this is on-purpose, the album includes only 7 songs. As Gerardo told me in an exclusive interview with Latino Music Café, “this is my 1st CD and my opportunity to show people what we can do.”
As I explained to Gerardo, the concept of releasing short CDs is being used in Korean music (K-pop) to get new artists to start status in a matter of months. The K-pop model is to release EP’s (usually between 4 -5 songs) and release 2 or even 3 a year. The shorter time in between new songs keeps the band in the music charts as well as in the public eye.
Although Gerardo Contino didn’t have this exact concept in mind, he is trying to put together a follow-up CD shortly that will keep fans tuned to his music. “Somos Latinos” is his introduction card as a solo artist!
My Recommendation of “Somos Latinos”
I liked this CD very much! This CD showcases Gerardo Contino’s talent as a singer and as a producer where he demonstrates a keen sense of what is good danceable Salsa music. His background as a Timba singer with Cuban group NG La Banda is felt by the high energy he brings to “Somos Latinos”, adding inteligent “soneos” to the songs and injecting second “coros” that keep songs interesting.
In addtion to Gerardo’s singing, the music in this CD is superb, anchored in the strong rhythm (piano, bass) and percussion (conga, bongo, timbal) sections. Gerardo’s music is refreshingly authentic and original, and I believe his unique Cuban style along his keen sense of what Salsa dancers want will make him a favorite of Salsa music fans.
If you want to enjoy 6 strong Salsa songs (the other song is a bolero), I do recommend checking out what “El Abogado de la Salsa” brings to the Salsa music scene with Los Habaneros “in da house”. As I said, I realy enjoyed “Somos Latinos”!