Phases and Stages

Los Curanderos Y Mary Welch

Curame (Gulf) Danceable, Latin-flavored tunes dominate Curame, Mary Welch's debut with her band Los Curanderos, and a better backup band a singer couldn't ask for. Playing with blazing energy, Los Curanderos include Mat Temple, Roberto Godinez, Jay Bolsega, Ernie Durawa, and Jeff Huckabee. Unfortunately, Welch's petal-light voice often struggles to keep pace with the percolating musicians. She hits all the notes, and her voice is undeniably pretty, but in a contest between Welch's lead vocals and Los Curanderos' musical muscle, it's nearly a smackdown. It's a different story on the handful of slow-tempo tunes. Welch's voice billows on "No Me Vallas a Enganar"; the country ballad "Crazy," sung in Spanish with a Latin percussive overlay; and especially on the achy-breaky, "No Te Vallas." While the latter is a fine showcase of Welch's singing and songwriting talent, the tune ends in a disarming whimper. It's an unsatisfying finish to an otherwise remarkable song, and as the last cut on Curame, an even stranger way to end an album.