Complete Album Review & Pick of the Week goes to Sal Negro “This is my Neighborhood” AYIZE SONGAA RECORDINGS
When we hear the name Sal Negro, we quickly know the titles of “Afro and Cuban” together of which becomes synonymous with his famous “Afro-Cuban Experience Shows. Sal is back in 2020 armed with a masterful thirteen-track collection of music ranging from downtempo, jazzy grooves, soulful house, and more. There a few collaborations in this project with artists such as Diamondancer, David Angel & Jesse Szabo respectively, that made music magic together for this wonderful package. Let me begin my review and journey by setting the mood right. Let me start by lighting up a candle and a cigar as I pour myself a glass of Cognac on the rocks.
The introduction to this wonderful package is a piece by Sal & David Angel entitled “Just around the Corner”. This opening piece is a funky display of instrumentation that flows like fine wine. This track is right down my alley and to those that enjoy downtempo grooves, this one if for you. as we go into the next track which is a sensual vocal piece featuring one of house music’s queens of spoken-word, Diamondancer. What a deep track this is entitled “My Brother (For Hope, For Love) is one of my favorites offered in this package and not to take away from the other great pieces as all tracks were produced to reflect a part of Sal Negro’s experiences while living in his neighborhood. Track three also delivers another gem by Diamondancer as she throws down serious spoken-word gem and is perfectly titled “The Ghetto Has No Color”, this track here takes a closer look into the ghetto life with all ethnic backgrounds living together despite our differences.
