Latin Music

The world's largest music companies have expressed interest in buying Univision Communications Inc.'s music unit, with an auction expected to pick up this week, sources familiar with the matter said Monday. Potential bidders will start looking at the books of the Latin music unit. Univision decided in February to put it up for sale, according to a report in the Financial Times on Monday. The Los Angeles-based Spanish-language broadcaster is trying to trim debt since its $12.

THE first track on Calle 13's new album sounds like a lovely Baroque chorale -- unless one speaks Spanish, in which case it becomes immediately evident that it's an ornate canon of the filthiest words in Puerto Rican street slang. That segues into a blend of hip-hop beats and Argentine tango, with the catchy chorus, "Turn up the satanic music!"

Maroon 5 "It Won't Be Soon Before Long" (A&M/Octone) *** For a band that sold more than 4 million copies of its first album, Maroon 5 sure gets called "irritating" a lot. The rep is partly because of singer Adam Levine's busy, successful pursuit of L.A.'s most visible young blonds, but it's also because the band deploys its Wild Cherry-flavored dance hits with such sweat-free competence that rooting for them feels superfluous.

'LATIN RECORD Shops Still Thriving," a recent Associated Press headline blared. That may be true for some, but not necessarily for bodegas. Nor has Latin music been immune to the gloomy overall trend in CD sales. Call it the growing pains of a genre going mainstream.

Arjona, "Adentro" Obie Bermudez, "Lo Que Trajo el Barco" Fulano, "Individual" Marco Antonio Solis, "Trozos de Mi Alma 2" Julieta Venegas, "Limon y Sal" The Latin pop business has sure changed in the last few years. Gone are romantic crooners such as Luis Miguel and Julio Iglesias who once dominated the field. This year, the category is monopolized by singer-songwriters with an acoustic bent.

Fania Records is known as the Motown of salsa music, a label that ignited and then monopolized the salsa explosion of the 1970s in New York. But until this year, the exciting music of that era could not be appreciated with the top-quality sound of the original vinyl LPs, because the company had done a terrible job of making the digital transfer to CD format.

Chambao, "Pokito a Poko" (Sony Norte). This Spanish group, the hot exponent of flamenco chill, has perfected its hypnotic, graceful fusion of flamenco and electronic music in an album buoyed by irresistible rhythms, spiritual serenity and uplifting messages. * Quetzal, "Die Cowboy Die" (Quetzal Music). L.A.'

The lineup sounded suspiciously tepid to begin with. Artists as disparate as syrupy Puerto Rican crooner Luis Fonsi, visionary Cuban trio Orishas and former Kumbia Kings vocalist Frankie J packaged together by McDonald's at the Gibson. No wonder the amphitheater was half empty Friday for the latest edition of Lo McXimo de la Musica. You need a little more star power (or at least a defined aesthetic direction) to fill up a venue of that size.

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art, which was widely criticized in May for ending its four-decade support of the Monday Evening Concerts, will offer a new musical series beginning in November that will cover some of the same ground. The main difference is that "Art and Music: Concerts at 8," which is scheduled to premiere Nov. 9 and run once a month through June 2007, has been designed to complement LACMA's special exhibitions as well as its permanent collection.