Lila Downs - Border (La Linea)

List Price: $11.94
Our Price: $8.21
You Save: $3.73 (31%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.80 (click here)
Category: Music CD
See more new music releases

Music CD Cover

Free Music Notes for Border (La Linea)

Free Music Review: Exotic Mexican and indigenous sounds from Lila Downs
Hit: 5 Stars

"Sale Sobrando" (Good For Nothing) is a song about the indigenous experience, from the time of Cortes to the massacre in Chiapas, and the racism encountered: "your face is dark but you want to be white/but you really like your taco and tortillas." The title is explained in the last three lines: "Tourists and foreigners come here in vain/what do they worry for-human rights?/if justice here is good for nothing?"

She puts in her husky Billie Holliday-like emotion in Cuco Sanchez's "Corazoncito Tirano" (Little Tyrant Heart), whose instrumentation veers towards country. She asks, "whose mouth is erasing/the kisses I gave you, little tyrant heart?"

The mid-paced ballad "La Nina" (The Girl) is dedicated to the women workers, and tells the psychologically debilitating effects of a maquiladora worker, who only gets Sundays off. The song ends on a positive note of hope, that someday, those days will be over: "one day you will be equal to everyone."

"Hanal Weech" (Eat, Armadillo) was performed at the concert and it's an upbeat cumbia sung in Mayan. The spoken interlude, translated in English goes, "You, beautiful woman even though you are very attractive, the day will come when I leave you because you smell like an armadillo. But if you put some perfume on, I'll come back to you." She explained this and it drew laughter. Celso Duarte's violin plays heavily here, and Lila's voice has a comical, child-like tone. One thing that I wonder: what do armadillos smell like?

A Woody Guthrie medley, "Pastures Of Plenty/This Land Is Your Land" is sung in English, and she did this in concert. She does the second song with a jazz-ish melody, something like late 80's Sade, except with a Latin beat. But there is also a rap that questions the definition of being American. "When did you come...long long before the buffalo walked?" or "Say you're American, but what does it mean?"

"El Bracero Fracasado" is a quick mariachi number about someone who made it past the border with nothing but the clothes on his back, and went through hunger and hardship only to get sent back where he has nothing.

The elegiac "Transito" (Transit) is a sad look at someone far from home who works "in this valley of asphalt and lead", where the factory prospers, but not the workers. "Smoke" is about another massacre of people that hasn't stirred human conscience. "Now everyone's waiting and hoping for justice/but will there be goodness when men kill their own?" she asks.

The sad torch song "La Martiana" based on a Zapotec song, is an entreaty to a young girl. Lila briefly recited excerpts of this before singing it, "Little girl, when I die/don't cry over my grave/because if you cry I will haunt you/but if you sing to me, my life/I will always live. I will never die." My favourite song here.

"La Llorona" (Crying Woman) is a melodic harp and guitar ballad and features the many aspects of Lila's hearty voice, soaring high octave, to low and smoky Holliday-style register, to that shuddering with emotion. Another favourite, and also on the Frida soundtrack.

The bonus track is an exotic cover of "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps", or "Quizas Quizas Quizas" in Spanish, most popularly done by Doris Day. Lila sings the verses in her hearty mid-register Spanish, the chorus in a softer register, in English.

Most of the lyrics are printed in both Spanish and English, so that's a big help. In all cases, Lila's able to capture the emotion of the lyrics and music. Her voice soars, rings harshly, and even quivers with emotion. And the Mexican and pre-Columbian instruments enhances this album with an exotic flavour. Gracias, Lila!

International Music CDs

• Music > Styles
• Latin Music
• Pop
• Rock