Life > November 29, 2007

By Walker Kalan | Contributing writer

I was once on a beach in South Carolina talking to a hippy from Oregon who’d seen Manu Chao at a music festival in California. The name seemed vaguely familiar. “Manu Chao?” I implored, mildly interested. “Who, er, what’s that?”

“Manu Chao, man. You don’t know Manu Chao?

(As if he’d know the day of the week or month if I’d asked him.) “Can’t say I do. What kind of music does he play?”

“He’s, uh, he’s world music.”

“Could you be more specific? It’s a big world out there.”

“Yeah, he’s Latin. But he’s everything — funk and French and reggae — so he is world music! … Dude puts on a groove-ass show!”

I’ve learned not to put too much stock into sensational hippy-talk (especially when he or she has been dabbling in controlled substances). I feigned interest and went on my merry way. Fast-forward several months to a Friday afternoon, sometime earlier this semester.

There were about 10 minutes left in my beginner-level Spanish class. In the back of the classroom, most of the athletes were fast asleep, and la professora, determined that we get our money’s worth, popped in a strange foreign tune by a guy named Manu Chao.

How did I know that name? I searched the depths of my memory, and there it was, buried beneath a few random redneck encounters, my run-in with the hippy in Charleston!

Most of my classmates seemed grateful to have a break from the textbook, but it was clear no one understood what the hell Chao was singing about.

Mañana? Did he say mañana? I know mañana!

So we had learned a few words after all. A couple of us giggled and the teacher’s face blushed bright red as Chao continued singing, “Me gusta marijuana, me gusta tu!”

Despite my aversion to the label “world music,” Manu Chao, who sings in Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, English and Arabic, fits the classification better than any other artist I can think of.

Chao’s fifth solo effort, La Radiolina, released in September, is an eclectic hyper-rhythmic set of tunes laced together with a distinct Spanish flare. The album reached No. 2 on the charts in France and Italy and No. 1 in Spain, but, not surprisingly, only climbed to 71 in the U.S. This 21-track collection presents a happy marriage of energy and concision.

Each song favors an audience with short attention span and the repetition never overstays its welcome. The second song, “Me llaman calle,” driven by dueling Flamenco guitars and a rolling baseline, describes Chao’s street roots and dedication to the people.

He sings, “Un dia me vendra a buscar/A la salida un hombre bueno/Dando la vida y sin pagar/Mi corazon no es de alquilar” For all non Spanish speakers, that can be translated as“One day I will look/Upon leaving a good man/Giving life and without paying/My heart is not for rent.”

“Rainin in Paridize,” the album’s most successful single and one of three tracks sung in English, is Chao’s most political arrangement. My one qualm is that a siren (Is there anything worse than hearing a cop siren when you’re driving down the highway?) blares in the opening seconds, but quickly fades. “Rainin” is driven by an 80s pop rhythm with a snappy electric guitar and tight, lively drumming. The lyrics, however, are anything but poppy. We are exposed to problems in Africa (“In Zaire, was no good place to be/Free world go crazy, it’s an atrocity”; “In Congo, still no good place to be/They killed Mibali, it’s a calamity”) and the Middle East (“In Palestina, too much hypocricy; In Baghdad, it’s no democracy/That’s just because, it’s a U.S. country”).

“El Hoyo,” one of my favorites, is a upbeat and an unexpected mixture of punk and mariachi sounds. I know what you’re thinking, that’s a really weird combo, but the entire album is filled with strange, unique musical fusions. Chao’s idiosyncratic melting-pot style, is especially evident in “Siberia.”

Part-English, part-Spanish, the rock piece is accented with foreign-sounding synth noises and a flat, buzzing trumpet, is a fresh sound for tired ears. If you’re looking for some good “world music,” or you want to strike one up with friends abroad or impress that one hot foreign exchange student, Chao and La Radiolina comes with high recommendations.

If you’re less adventurous or just a xenophobe, try putting a few songs on your iPod next time you go for a jog, they’ll put some energy in those legs.