Iberian joys are delivered by Miguel Esponza, as he leads with guitar and palms his band through a wide variety of Mediterranean originals. The core team of Dianne Betkowski/cell, Randy Hoepker/b and Andy Skellenger/perc is joined by Howard Levy/hrm-p for a handful of tunes as well as some one-off guests, as if you’re at a late night smoky village in Spain and waiting for inspired musicians to join the stage.
What puts the fuse into this fusion band is the melding of exotic percussion such as tabla, congas, cajon and timbales from Skellenger and Mario Moreno as on the festive “Bubble” and fiery journey of “The Storm”, while Levy’s harmonica adds texture to the to the scene as he’s featured on both of these as well, while Espinoza himself brings Andalusian passions on the folksy “Nagi Yate’ (Spirit World)” and impassioned “Sunrise”. Flavors wafting in the musical market