CMJ New Music Report

"New York's tropi-pop quintet Grupo Fiesta is among a handful of U.S.-bred Latin bands that have fully embraced the marriage between catchy American pop with the hip-shaking irresistibility of Latin dance rhythms. Never mind the bleached out, non-threatening pop of Ricky Martin and Jennifer Lopez, Grupo Fiesta is the kind of band that could help redefine what Latin pop means in this country. Led by Ecuadorian-expat guitarist/songwriter Cecilia Villar, Grupo Fiesta strikes a perfect balance between Afro-Latin dance-hybridized salsa, merengue and danzon-with a jam-oriented pop sense. Sueño ("Dream"), the group's debut album, highlights Fiesta's ease at writing accessible bilingual dance grooves that flow with sensual and soulful Latin balladry, where the clave or the cowbell keeps time. Cindy Padilla sings about idealistic dreams - romantic ("Digame") or universal ("Truenos Distantes") - with her soothing, sugary vocals. The last two tracks, "Distant Thunder" and "Look Away," are English translations of earlier songs found on the disc. Sometimes a word-for-word translation of a song doesn't have the same feel, but here Padilla's malleable vocals bend words just right, holding on to the song's original intent."