Rupa and the April Fishes: eXtraOrdinary rendition (Cumbancha/Elite)

Gotta say on first listen this was definitley not my kind of music.

It is a global meltdown of French chanson, gypsy music, tango, some vague French-Pacific suggestions, upbeat Latin rhythms and a bit of art music thrown in. All from a band based in San Francisco.

It just sounded a bit too all-inclusive and cafe-friendly (missed anything, Rupa?) -- but then I gave it time.

I still hear a rather more chipper and light Six Volts in here (if you get that New Zealand reference) and styles are skimmed across emphasising surface enjoyment rather than depth -- but there is a place for such wine-toasting pleasures in life and these people offer that, and probably not much more.

They'd be hugely popular at a Womad is my guess.