A Mucha Honra

With 2005's El de Nayarit, Ezequiel Peña went from being a banda/mariachi/ranchera recording artist to being a banda/mariachi/ranchera/norteño recording artist. El de Nayarit was not a change of direction for Peña, but rather, an expansion; the Mexican singer didn't give up banda or mariachi by any means, but he pleasantly surprised his fans by demonstrating that he could provide norteño as well — and the generally favorable response that El de Nayarit received in the regional Mexican market indicated that Peña should continue making the accordion-powered norteño style part of his musical game plan, which is exactly what he does on 2006's A Mucha Honra. It would be inaccurate to describe this 34-minute CD as norteño-oriented because norteño does not dominate the album. Rather, norteño is an attractive, important part of a big picture that still includes banda and mariachi — and Peña remains a charismatic, expressive storyteller whether he is embracing norteño on "Voy a Tirarme a los Vicios," "Valente Quintero" (a Rosendo Monzón Quintero corrido) and "Quisiera Amarte Menos," banda on "El Sauce y la Palma," "Ambición" and "No Volveré" or a mariachi/norteño blend on the title track. But whatever the instrumentation — whether Peña is surrounded by norteño accordion, mariachi trumpets and strings, or banda's big wall of brass — A Mucha Honra is a consistently pleasing addition to his catalog. Clearly, Peña did the right thing when he opted to keep exploring norteño without forgetting about either banda or mariachi.