The Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective | Fiesta at Caroga! zip download

The Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective has released their debut album, Fiesta at Caroga! Available as a zip file download which includes wav sound files and pdf artwork.

Brian Stark and Jose Guzman crafted 6 original compositions. Each track tells a story that pays homage to salsa musical forms such as Descarga 2, Xipirona Cha-Cha, and the highly energetic tune El Volcan. The Caroga Arts String Orchestra joins the group for the last two tracks of the album, Cariño and Baile Bailekita.

Artwork by Alejandro Rodríguez Art! Alejandro's album cover captures the rawness of the concert venue's wooden structure.

This project is partially supported by the City of Chicago DCASE Grant.

The reviews for Fiesta at Caroga are coming in!!
"Fiesta at Caroga is a multicultural journey that pays homage to the roots of Afro-Caribbean music while embracing the contemporary flair of jazz and world music. The Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective has created music that makes you want to move and resonates with the soul. The ensemble’s talent and commitment to celebrating and evolving the Afro-Caribbean music tradition bring this album to life. Each track tells a story, a narrative that weaves through the history and future of two rich musical genres."
- 5 Finger Review

"….this album simmers with a wide variety of tasty flavors. With a three member percussion team, there is a lot of percolating undercurrents throughout, with horns gliding over the simmering sounds on " "El Cañaveral" and Devey powerhousing his way around "Descarga 2". Stark is bold and bright on "Baile Bailekita" with the front line soft and seductive on the romantic "Carino", simmering over on the aptly titled "El Volcano". Picante power."
- Jazz Weekly

"….with its complex writing and precise rhythms, revealing, for the listener who gets lost in their dreams, a blue sea and a lingering sun, a form of ethnicity maintained by the percussions and enchantment delivered by the brass instruments. The music also knows how to be mysterious, tender, or poetic. José Guzmán, a guitarist as impressive as he is discreet within the group, presents remarkably intelligent compositions that prove that Afro-Cuban music in its jazz form still has many secrets to reveal to us."
- Paris Move

• Model: Fiesta at Caroga! - zip
• Manufactured by: Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective
• Condition: New