"So La Li" is Key!
C. Goetz | Santa Cruz, CA | 03/15/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"For those familiar with 3 Mustaphas 3 all I need write is that "So La Li" continues faithfully in the footsteps of the world music masters. Sabah Habas ain't no slouch and neither are the Jugala All Stars.For the rest let me put it this way, this is an excellent album. It mixes Inodnesian (specifically West Java) music with just enough western sensibility to make an accessible and delightful set of recordings. The musicianship and production quality are top notch. If you have heard Sabah's previous release "Jalan Kopo", this is more Sunda and less Sabah. The humor and irony takes a back seat to the music. The pop elements are subdued & the Jugala All Stars get a chance to shine forth with brilliance. Also, there are no English lyrics this time around.But what does it sound like? -Take a series of fluid and often brooding bass lines, then layer on top intricate hand drumming, a fiddle & a kacapi (a kind of harp) using haunting Indonesian scales, smoothed over by absolutely sublime bamboo flutes and mellifluous Asian vocals. The rhythms are catchy and will have grooving where you stand (or sit), and the melodies are full of a sweet nastolgia.One warning: this is not straight pop, there are a few places where "So La Li" will challenge the ear. The challenge does not lie in the music itself, but in the passion it expresses. The listener is brought into a very intimate space with a very foreign culture (unless of course your Javanese). Parts can be a little scary at first, but there is plenty of levity to balance it out. This is one of those special albums that unfolds and grows the more one listens."