Women In Salsa III

Latin Beat Magazine, June-July, 2003 by Jesse Varela

WOMEN IN SALSA III: On Friday March 28, "Women In Salsa III" (with Cha Cha Boom, Orquesta D'Soul and La Familia) celebrated the contributions of "mujeres en música latina" at La Peña Cultural Center in Berkeley. Most of these ensembles performing are labs for Latin pop hybrids that fuse salsa dance music with a new perspective and personality.

Cha Cha Boom's debut CD's Afro-Caribbean Beats serves as the underbelly for horn-laced arrangements fusing funk, soul, rock and Latin jazz. The voice of Molly Skuse evokes a variety of moods, but her sensual rendering of The Door's Light My Fire is most cool. Drummers Michaelle Goerlitz (timbal) and Dana Hinchfield (congas) anchor time and tempo on the largely all-original tunes.

Ditto for ODS--Orquesta D'Soul--who performed last year at the Michigan Women's Music Festival and locally at Great American Music Hall, 850 Cigar Bar, Voodoo Lounge and other spots. Led by Marina Garza, a gifted trumpeter and songwriter from Texas, the group features the voices of Lisa Jiménez and Nikki O'Shaughnessy. Two years ago, the band released a fine debut titled Remember Me, that received decent radio airplay.

La Familia is an Oakland-based salsa band that performed last year at La Estrellita Restaurant near Lake Merrit. It features percussionists/co-directors Sylvia Sherman and Roberto Medina, with lead vocalists Kristal Gray (a founding member of Los Cenzontles who sang and recorded with Los Lobos) and Violeta Contreras. Rounding out the group is Chris Gonzáles Clarke (tres), Raul Perales (bass) and Isaac Peña (trumpet). In between bands there was a floorshow with dancers "Mujeres in Motion" and "Women's Rueda y Mas."