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RUSSIAN

Underwood (Ундервуд) "Опиум для народа" (Opium of the people)
Grand Records, 2007
Underwood, a group from Sevastopol (Russian-speaking Ukraine), formed in 1995 and relocated to Moscow in 2000 at which point they produced four albums in seven years. Their 2001 debut single "Покуситесь на президента" – Try to kill the president ("Wanna become a state secret?") pokes fun at... Putin.

Take "Рок-н-ролльный возраст Христа" (Rock-n-Roll Age of Christ), which spent months at the top of Nashe Radio’s Chartova Dyuzhina: Душа моя, скажи, что все не даром / Что можно жить и песни петь и щеки подставлять / Опять хорошим людям для удара (Tell me darling that it means something that I can live my life, sing songs and turn the other cheek to good people). "Товары и услуги" (Goods and services), which in a milder version, went onto Chartova Dyuzhina in early February 2008, is even sharper: Дорогая, я купил тебе хуйню / Хуёвей не бывает и дешевле тоже / А завтра мне пора на войну / Я уйду пораньше, и вернусь попозже... (My dear, I bought you this piece of crap / It couldn’t be crappier or cheaper / Tomorrow I’m off to war / I’ll be leaving early and getting home late.)

Both songs, along with a number of others on the album, are set to old time (American 1950s) rock-n-roll accompaniments. "Goods and Services" takes an additional whack at the fifties by including a line (both music and lyrics) from the 1990 Kino retro-style song Когда твоя девушка больна (When your girlfriend’s sick). The group’s inclusion of one of Russian’s top three dirty words (ху...), especially in such a soft tune, caused quite a stir in the Russian music blogosphere. If, as a teacher, you plan to use the song in class, you’ll have some explaining to do, especially since the radio play version is not available either on the CD or for download. Underwood’s latest songs are available for free on their site. The album under review can be legally downloaded from www.zvuki.ru. Those who order products on the Internet from Russian sites are advised not to use direct debit cards. Use intermediaries such as PayPal or credit cards with access to limited funds.
- Recommended by Richard Robin, the George Washington University, Russian Music Review Editor

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SPANISH

Mujer de Cabaret, Puerto Plata (2007)
Puerto Plata (a.k.a José Manuel Cobles) has been playing son music in the Dominican Republic for 60 years, and his style is reminiscent of the Dominican music banned by the dictator Rafael Trujillo before 1961. Puerto Plata plays with some truly excellent guitarists and other musicians, and the recordings are simple and not overly processed.
If you like the previously reviewed Pedro Luis Ferrer, from Cuba, you should give Puerto Plata a try. Like traditional merengue, Puerto Plata uses his music to comment on serious social and political issues (one track is a commentary on September 11), but the sound is decidedly upbeat. This kind of music is the essence of summer—kick back in your lawn chair, close your eyes, and you won’t be able to help imagining yourself on the beach, sipping a drink out of a coconut. It’s also great for dancing or driving (windows down all the way, please!) You can read about Puerto Plata and hear a sample here.
- Recommended by Abbe Spokane, Center for Applied Linguistics

Yo canto, Laura Pausini (2006)
La primera canción, "Yo canto" del album del mismo nombre, le da al oyente una sensación de alegría y optimismo la cual sigue durante todo el album. El estilo de pop rock europeo es para levantar a una de la silla para bailar. La voz de Pausini es dulce y lleva mucha emoción a la lírica clara y poética. Según Wikipedia la cantante italiana empezó su carrera en 1993 con "La solitudine" en italiano, luego en 1994 empezó a grabar en español. Yo canto ganó el Grammy 2006 para el Album Pop Latino del Año.
- Recommended by Andrea Varricchio, West Chester University, PA, Spanish Music Review Editor

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