Prohibido

With cards a little bit closer to his chest than usual, Issac Delgado presents Prohibido, his first release with the Lusafrica label. After making a name for himself with NG la Banda, the edgy, flagship timba group of the '90s, and several successful solo albums, Delgado has both experience and authority. Pushing fewer envelopes than in previous projects, Prohibido is a very sophisticated and polished album, and undeniably 100 percent salsa. Delgado's voice has profited from age and comes across simultaneously as cool and smoky, confident and wizened. He has the regal presence of an artist whose place in history is assured. His performance is relaxed, never fiery nor aggressive. This combined with the sleek, flawless performance of his band makes for product that goes down like a well-aged wine — complex, mature, and very smooth. Though fans of his earlier work may miss the funky, progressive elements to which he owes some measure of his success, Prohibido is a fine work unto itself. It need not ride any coattails; it can stand up on its own as an excellent work of modern salsa. ~ Evan C. Gutierrez, Rovi