El Guincho - Alegranza

Multiply the title by 10 because happiness doesn’t even begin to describe this one. El Guincho is a man who leaves others to stew in melancholia, tempts out the sunshine, smatters it all with showers in the form of snaking rhythms and kicks off the conga line party.

Some are short blasts of bitter (‘Antillas’) and others roll in their own joy (‘Kalise’) but hey, slow down, stop smiling for a second and see that this isn’t where El Guincho really shines.

While a woozy Sangria shine drips off every joyful shout for the large part of the album, the ace ‘Fata Morgana’ comes on like Why? before drumming itself into a steely frenzy. It’s almost a shame that there aren’t more moments like this because the blend works even better than the majority of the likeable tracks, matching sample technology with a live ferocity much like the Oakland maverick. ‘Buenos Matrimonios Ahi Fuera’ – a sinister playground, muddled in the same magnificent manner in only scattered sections, highlights that unfortunately much of the album can become repetitive and, ultimately, a bit forgettable.

It’s still head and (shaking) shoulders above any ‘world music’ set but yep, missing too many of those party-tricks that really make it something more than a holiday fling.