NEW RELEASE OF THE WEEK

HERMANOS GUTIÉRREZ – SONIDO COSMICO

On their latest album, Sonido Cosmico, Hermanos Gutiérrez embark on a sonic exploration that defies the conventional boundaries of instrumental music.

The collection is a richly textured tapestry, interwoven with the intricate threads of Latin rhythms and ephemeral atmospherics: each track a vignette, a carefully crafted narrative without words, where the brothers' transcendent guitars speak in a language all their own.

There is a subtle sophistication in the way Hermanos Gutiérrez fuses the elemental with the experimental. The album resonates with the echoes of their Latin musical heritage, yet it is undeniably contemporary in its execution, both nuanced and expansive.

Sonido Cosmico stands as a reflective mirror to the band's evolving artistry, united by music across age and geographical divides: a sound mosaic as celestial as its title, an expression of a band that has found its voice in the vast universe of modern instrumental music.

SOUND PICK OF THE WEEK

BETTY DAVIS – CRASHIN’ FROM PASSION

In the 1970s, Betty Davis defied genre and gender by pushing her voice to extremes and embracing the erotic. She articulated a kind of pre-punk, funk-blues fusion that had yet to be normalized in mainstream music – a style that few musicians have come close to replicating.

As one of the first Black women to write, arrange, and produce her own albums, Betty was a visionary who disregarded industry boundaries and constraints.

Raw, unapologetic and in full control, Betty paved the way for generations of future artists who said “funk you” to the music industry and social norms.

In 1979, when Davis entered an L.A. studio to record her fifth and final album. Looking for a fresh start, Davis relocated to Hollywood to focus on songwriting.

Before long, British manager Simon Lait (Toni Basil), offered to fund her next project.

The resulting album, Crashin’ From Passion, was her most musically diverse, blending elements of reggae and calypso, jazz, dark synth-pop, and even disco.

Equally exploratory are Davis’ vocals, as she trades in her signature sass and snarls for more nuanced stylings.

The featured albums are available from Sound Records which can be found in Wellington Street, Douglas.