snobb
Quite an unusual album for Dave Holland or better to say - Spanish flamenco guitarist Pepe Habichuela album with some help from Dave Holland. Both musicians played some concerts together in 2007 and later decided to return and record their music as an album. Their accompanying musicians are almost the same as during their earlier concerts - Carlos and Josemi Carmonas on acoustic guitars and percussionists Israel "Piraña" Porrina and Juan Carmona.
As you can expect, the music on this album is mostly flamenco with three acoustic guitarists, two percussionists and Dave Holland on bass. Possibly the best way to imagine this is to just think about the well-known McLaughlin/Di Meola/De Lucia "Friday Nights..", but "Hands" not only has three acoustic guitars, but also a three-member rhythm section as well.
A great thing with this album is it is recorded by authentic Spanish music artists, many of whom come from families of flamenco musicians where the musical tradition is passed from generation to generation. It gives the musicians a very natural and deep understanding of the material. None of this sounds like folkloric adaptations for tourists. To be honest, there is not much space to hear Holland's bass, but the whole album sounds like a really great release for fans of acoustic guitar music.