Rupa and the April Fishes

Rupa and the April Fishes start out eXtraOrdinary rendition with a distinct sense of place — San Francisco — combining street sounds with music and the wail of an emergency siren. After that, it would be difficult to put the music in a single location. Sung in a mix of Spanish, French, English and occasionally Hindi, the songs are complex and visual in their fusion of sounds and ideas. Inherently fun, there is also something deeply sexy about it — Rupa’s husky voice and a combination of tango, cumbia, chanson and swing inherently move the hips — with dark sounds and deep rumblings underneath the most celebratory of songs. "Poder” is about the struggle along the U.S.-Mexico border, bringing out the mariachi-esque horns. "Yaad” drifts along with a deep, liquid melody, recalling the death of Rupa’s father. Perhaps it’s her other life as a doctor that gives Rupa such an emotive sense in her songwriting and the ability to create an album that is organic in its complexity.