It's hard to think of a more restless pop album than Juan Manuel. Stylistically, this disc is all over the place. Despite its lounge and kitsch elements, the spirit of this wildly eclectic CD is closer to playful exuberanc... more »e than it is to camp. The opener, "Nordic Laser," recalls both New Orleans piano man Esquerita and the Terry Riley/John Cale collaboration Church of Anthrax. The mellow and funky "Shampoo" is propelled along by a groovy tabla part. "Human Disco Ball" and "Bassass (International Stereo)" feature four-on-the-floor rhythms and vocoder vocals, while "Supercombo Electronico" rocks out, Beastie Boys-style. "Arpoador" sounds like the Miles Davis classic In a Silent Way, but with an added layer of Latin and Indian percussion. "Graceland" manages to squeeze in an accordion and a sample of the Gil Evans Orchestra and still make it work. You name a musical genre and there's a good chance it's represented here. "Good Bye Happy Farm," the disc's closer, not only sports some nice old-fashioned Southern soul organ, but includes barnyard animal chatter, too. It's as if this duo from Monterrey, Mexico, didn't want to leave anything out. A perfect album for your next party. --Fred Cisterna« less
It's hard to think of a more restless pop album than Juan Manuel. Stylistically, this disc is all over the place. Despite its lounge and kitsch elements, the spirit of this wildly eclectic CD is closer to playful exuberance than it is to camp. The opener, "Nordic Laser," recalls both New Orleans piano man Esquerita and the Terry Riley/John Cale collaboration Church of Anthrax. The mellow and funky "Shampoo" is propelled along by a groovy tabla part. "Human Disco Ball" and "Bassass (International Stereo)" feature four-on-the-floor rhythms and vocoder vocals, while "Supercombo Electronico" rocks out, Beastie Boys-style. "Arpoador" sounds like the Miles Davis classic In a Silent Way, but with an added layer of Latin and Indian percussion. "Graceland" manages to squeeze in an accordion and a sample of the Gil Evans Orchestra and still make it work. You name a musical genre and there's a good chance it's represented here. "Good Bye Happy Farm," the disc's closer, not only sports some nice old-fashioned Southern soul organ, but includes barnyard animal chatter, too. It's as if this duo from Monterrey, Mexico, didn't want to leave anything out. A perfect album for your next party. --Fred Cisterna
The genious inside the music of that Jonaz and A. Rosso
Horvilleur | Miami | 10/18/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"these two guys do nothing but impress me everytime i hear a new track, and i've been waiting for this release for a long time now. Juan Manuel's probably their best effort, at only their second release it was made to proove that this two alternative-minded mexican dudes are all about changing the flavor of music in the rock en español scene. They can't keep their tracks simple, that's for sure, they over-do them ocasionally, but that's what I truly love about this band. They're probably best compared to Japan's 'Cornelius', Venezuela's 'Los Amigos Invisibles' + 'King Chango' or even the one and only icelandic diva (who i admire the most of all artist) Bjork. enough said, if you're not afraid to experiment with the sounds that come from your headphones, this album is quite a treat. Do not expect any friends or people you know to enjoy this album, for P*Mosh's music is meant to be listened to by you and you alone."
Frighteningly good second album
Daniel Sutton | Los Angeles, CA, USA | 12/14/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"With a more laid back (in general) style than the first album, Aquamosh, this release shows a maturing of style as the band progresses. As in the first album, as many styles as possible have been virtually crammed into the tracks on this record, encompassing disco, rock, jazz, rap and as many others as possible; the band retains its retro sound but (and here's the really impressive part) manages to produce an album which sounds almost completely different from the first release, to the point that I, personally, find it difficult to say which album I prefer, or which is better."
Plastilina Mosh - Juan Manuel
Felipe Cussen A. | Santiago, Chile | 12/03/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Este disco es una excelente muestra de lo que puede convertirse el kitsch a nivel musical. A través de una variedad de ritmos (latino, disco, hip hop, dance, incluso medio rockero), logran conformar un conjunto de obras que podrían estar al borde del mal gusto pero que, en sus manos, se convierten en excelentes canciones, con una gran producción, delicadeza, y sentido estético. Para hacerlo se basan en diversos instrumentos: sampler, teclados antiguos, guitarras distorsionadas, scratch, baterías programadas, y ocupan muchas veces voces rapeadas o vocoder para enuncar textos completamente absurdos. Por eso mismo, siempre da la impresión de que estuvieran realizando una parodia de la música que han escuchado toda su vida. Pero esto no le quita calidad a lo que hacen sino que, al contrario le da una nueva dimensión, una profundidad adicional."
Sophomore effort - to the International Disco!
Alek Grabinski | San Jose, CA | 06/23/2001
(4 out of 5 stars)
"PMosh returns with another masterpiece. Where Aquamosh was the perfect soundtrack to an afternoon on a Baja beach, Juan Manuel provides the audio ambient for the long night at the disco clubs. So there is no doubt about the universality of music, on this album we're treated to lyrics in English and Spanish, and some lovely female voiceovers in Portuguese and Italian. While the opener, "Nordic Laser", is irritating in its sloppiness, the rest of the songs (even the barnyard closer) are meticulously crafted and full of the same sonic details as, say, Beck's Midnight Vultures. Disco is king on this album."