The Guardian in the UK have given the new Asere album 4 stars…

Asere: Junio Groove
(Astar Artes)
4 out of 5

Robin Denselow
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 4 February 2010 23.20 GMT

Asere continue to surprise. It’s been well over a decade since this young Cuban band were discovered and promoted by the Colombian singer Toto la Momposina, and they have gone on to shake up the Havana music scene, carefully balancing a respect for the traditions of Son, the dominant Cuban dance style, with unexpected new influences. This is a seven-piece band who play great, slinky and rhythmic dance music, but can use the same rhythms as the basis for the thoughtful Tumbao Sangreao, dealing with the problems and loss caused by the 2008 hurricanes, and can show their respect for the New York salsa scene with Rubén Blades’s El Cantante, made famous by Hector Lavoe, or a song by the Cuban-influenced Henry Fiol. Then, in total contrast, there’s Harissa, an intriguing instrumental piece in which Son is mixed with Spanish and Middle Eastern influences, with the flamenco guitar flurries of Andres Valdes matched against furious violin improvisation from Alexis Lefevre. Then there’s the atmospheric, rhythmic and half-spoken Yo Naci En El Solar, a tribute to Havana’s black neighbourhoods, and the laid-back, gently moody title track, featuring the horn work of the band’s musical director, Michel Padron. This is Asere’s fourth album, the follow-up to their collaboration with percussionist Billy Cobham; they are sounding as fresh and adventurous as ever.