Susana Baca: Eco De Sombras : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Susana Baca is more than an Afro-Peruvian diva, though her rich, evocative voice certainly earns her the title. On her second album, Eco de Sombras (Echo of Shadows), this melancholy voice of the African diaspora continues to open borders, combining the historic sounds of black Peru with the contributions of avant-garde musicians such as keyboardist John Medeski, guitarist Marc Ribot (Los Cubanos Postizos) and bassist Greg Cohen (Tom Waits, John Zorn). Baca's Peruvian band still sets the beat, but the improvisational noodlings in the background on a track like "Panalivio/Zancudito" suggest new, playful tensions between convention and an eclectic New World. Mournful and luminous, Baca weaves disparate elements together on love plaints such as "De los Amores" and rhythmic poems such as "Golpe E' Tierra." On Eco de Sombras, Baca captures history even as she transcends it. (RS 838)

NEVA CHONIN