A characteristically bold first signing to Chris Blackwell’s Rx label, brothers Jean and Richard Shepherd have created an American equivalent to Manu Chao’s global fusions out of their multicultural Nuyorican background. The title track is typical of the whole album, opening with an insistent riff played on a 10-stringed Puerto Rican acoustic guitar, which then surges forth into deep salsa and dance-floor funk. Elsewhere, Afro-Latin rhythms meet rock guitars, dub reggae fuses with Brazilian house and cumbia goes clubbing. They sing entirely in Spanish. But don’t let that deter you. Like Manu Chao, Radio Mundial make music that is irresistibly sexy, easily accessible and, above all, fun.
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