'Souls Alive in the 305' by Jose Conde
Jose Conde lives alongside and in between many genres. His publicist calls his music “global eclectic pop” and that’s as tight a label as anyone can pin on him.
Conde emerged from New York’s Afro-Cuban scene, traces of which can discerned in the chic disco-esque title cut. And yes, he sings in Spanish and English. But then it gets really interesting. Conde deploys vintage organs and a Moog synthesizer to conjure up a sound located somewhere outside time and place. “Fallen From Eternity” is an easy-going contemporary evocation of ‘60s soul, while “Grito Ambiental” takes on ‘60s garage rock with a sultry Bo Diddley-like shuffle. The urgency of rock propels “Monocultura” but the delivery is suave and cosmopolitan.
And then there’s “Sound is Sondido,” which sounds like an empathetic riff on Lou Reed. Souls Alive in the 305 is a pleasure from the opening track through the final notes.
