Reviews

Flamenco purists may balk at the Gipsy Kings, since the famed French band conquered an international audience with a decidedly pop flamenco style that works in rumba, Cuban son and even reggae, especially on the group's excellent new CD, Pasajero.

JOHN F. RHODES/DMN

The Gipsy Kings, including Nicolas Reyes, turned the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center into a multicultural block-party venue Monday night.

But you'd have to be truly miserable, not to mention persnickety, to slam the Kings' joyous, energetic performance Monday night at the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center. Before a large crowd that looked mighty close to the hall's 2,056 capacity, four Gipsy members backed by a keyboardist, drummer, percussionist and bassist offered about 90 minutes of songs from Pasajero and the group's career repertoire.

Led by brothers Nicolas and Andre Reyes, the ensemble displayed the fluid, sultry and graceful Spanish guitar picking it's known for as well as the rhythmic, passionate wall of sound that sustains its up-tempo numbers.

Barely three pieces into the show, the Reyes siblings egged the crowd to stand and clap in synch with the beat. The audience didn't have to be told again. With the exception of a few slightly dull ballads, the gig was one rousing flamenco tune after another.

The show was also a coup; it was the first stop on the 2007 North American tour. In fact, the Gipsy Kings dined Sunday night at The Mansion on Turtle Creek. They didn't seem to care about a little football game dubbed the Super Bowl.

That makes them all the more refreshing. Tracks from Pasajero sparkled at Monday's concert, particularly "Amor" with its liberal use of congas and percussion plus flamenco-meets-tropical vibe. "Café" sported a chugging rhythm, some syncopation and slamming percussion. "Pasajero" had the percussionist sitting center stage on the boxed drum he was playing adding an even more international flavor to the fierce, explosive song.

This is happy music, folks. That's one reason the Gipsy Kings seem to appeal to a varied constituency, from urban Latinos to suburban Anglos. They were all at the Meyerson dancing up a storm.

Also, the palatability of the Kings' music must be credited for the band's long-running dominance. Because the group fuses flamenco with elements of other international rhythms and largely creates hook-filled, feel-good tunes, it reaches beyond the niche support that organic flamenco enjoys.

All that analysis went out the window, though, when the Kings' launched into "Djobi Djoba" and "Bamboleo," the signature cuts. "Djobi Djoba" immediately drew claps and hollers from the crowd, and the hearty congas got them up and moving.

"Bamboleo" came during the encore, of course. By then there was dancing in the aisles and old-fashioned merriment. The Gipsy Kings' brand of flamenco turned a classical music hall into a multicultural block party.