Nicola Cruz combines ancestral Latin American cosmology and traditional Ecuadorian music for his new album: Siku
Prepare yourself for something very different. Prepare yourself for Ecuadorian producer, Nicola Cruz and his new album: Siku. Cruz takes you into the jungles and over the mountains of South America to discover the sounds of its Andean and African roots. Siku explores the rhythms, cultures and oral traditions of South America through music. The album is cinematic. Guttural at times, and delicate at others.
The album is named after an ancient Andean wind instrument which is highly symbolic in ancestral rituals. Made up of two separate and complementary parts (the arca and the ira), the siku instrument is a physical representation of duality — an essential element in the indigenous world view. That duality comes through in this album in many ways. Mixing musical genres like samba, cumbia or arabica music for example. Or combining Hindu and Andean traditions together. Or just simply by bringing organic and electronic sounds together. The dual element is also reflected in the recording process for Siku. The record was made on the road, in different cities, and with many people together.
Check out one of my favorite tracks from the album below and head over to Nicola Cruz’s Bandcamp page to buy the (very nicely designed) 2x LP.
Nicola Cruz – Siete
