Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Malo - Ascencion. 1974 USA-California


A couple of years ago I went on (and on and on) about Malo's debut, and some reminiscence of my time near East Los Angeles in the late 90s. At this point, I'm inclined to rate that album second only to the almighty Chango release for best Latin Rock. Curiously, I never picked up their other 3 albums until now. Ascencion is the last from Jorge Santana and crew. Arguably it's a more consistent album, though it doesn't have the insane high of 'Just Say Goodbye' or the gorgeous beauty of 'Sauvecito'. But it also avoids the more traditional Latin pop style as well. Ascencion combines the best of Latin rock and horn rock for a fantastic album. Every track is very good, but the opening 'Offerings' and closer 'No Matter' are highlights where we hear Jorge plug in and wail. There's some strong Hammond work here as well. And the 3 piece horn group is also on fire. Excellent album for fans of Latin rock.


Ownership: LP: 1974 Warner Bros. Single sleeve with eye catching artwork. Pulled out of a local record store's $1 bin.


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