Camden Music - Classical and Jazz | Ozomatli

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The Review - MUSIC - Classical & Jazz with TONY KIELY
Published: 26 June 2008

10-piece sound is Ozo smooth

REVIEW: OZOMATLI
Jazz Café

OZOMATLI wasted no time on their opening night at Camden’s Jazz Café, seeming determined to get the party started from the off.
The multi-award winning Latin/hip-hop crossover group kicked off the night’s proceedings with a carnival-flavoured samba beat and immediately grabbed the crowd, punchy horn lines overlapping a great rhythm section, which included two drummers and two percussionists – Ozomatli are definitely all about the beat – in a fervent display of hype and energy.
Playing a mixture of material from their back catalogue as well as from their latest release, Don’t Mess With The Dragon, the band easily slid between traditional South American-influenced dance beats and lively party hip-hop.
Although mostly adept at authentically crossing and mixing genres, including hip-hop, samba, reggae and funk, there were rare moments when Ozomatli seemed to lose their focus a little, with one tune’s bouncing ska beat borrowing more from modern punky forget-me-pop like Blink 182 than from a group like The Skalites.
Solid solo spots from trumpeter Asdru Sierra and Ulises Bella on sax and clarinet, both of whom doubled on vocals, definitely provided some instrumental highlights, but it was when Ozomatli entered their full-on, get-your-hands-in-the-air hip-hop mode that they really seemed to shine and enjoy themselves.
Tre Hardson added a genuine West Coast feeling to the latter part of the set, but from an original member of seminal LA-based group The Pharcyde, the audience could hardly expect less.
We were left in no doubt as to the enthusiasm on offer, as the final tune ended with the whole band playing percussion and brass out in the middle of the dancefloor to raucous cheers.
A bigger venue wouldn’t have suited this but the Jazz Café is just the right size to accommodate a decent crowd while still managing to feel intimate.
A little less showboating from the band might have helped in places, but in general this was a tight set of solid grooves and great rhythms from a group who clearly loved what they were doing.
John Lyons

* Last chance to catch Ozomatli at the Jazz Café, Parkway, NW1, tonight (Thursday). 7pm.
020 7485 6834

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