Las Más Bailables del Sonidito / Las Mas Bailables del Sonidito

"Party music" is a term that one seldom hears in connection with regional Mexican music. From prominent ranchera themes like romantic disillusionment, heartbreak, infidelity, and betrayal to the outlaw imagery that has characterized so many corridos, Mexican music has a long history of dealing with very serious and weighty subject matter. But on Las Más Bailables del Sonidito, the Hechizeros Band offer a regional Mexican approach that generally thrives on feel-good escapism. You won't find any ultra-melancholy rancheras on this club-friendly 2009 release; nor are there any corridos about ill-fated criminales who took a bullet in the head when they made an unsuccessful attempt to steal someone's horse. Exuberant party music reigns supreme on Las Más Bailables del Sonidito, which makes no secret of its desire to get the listener on the dancefloor. Granted, the Hechizeros Band aren't regional Mexican purists; their energetic sonidito music has been influenced by Mexican duranguense, but there is a definite tropical influence on infectious tunes like "Charanga y Mambo," "Como Se Mata el Gusano," "La Cumbia del Río," and "Cumbia del Conejito." Some of that tropical influence comes from Colombian cumbia, some of it comes from Afro-Cuban salsa, and some of it comes from Dominican merengue — although the fact that Hechizeros have more Caribbean and African appeal than most regional Mexican artists doesn't mean that they don't have a regional Mexican orientation. Of course, some regional Mexican listeners will no doubt complain that lyrically, this 30-minute CD doesn't have a lot of substance, but there is no law stating that every Mexican artist who comes along has to be Antonio Aguilar or Los Tigres del Norte. Hechizeros' primary goal is to have fun, and they accomplish that goal with likable results on Las Más Bailables del Sonidito.