Bardo Martinez & The Soul Investigators – Bad Education

There are a handful of labels that when I open up the mail, I’m almost guaranteed that what resides in the package is nothing less than pure heat. One of those handfuls always seems to come via the Finnish post from Helsinki’s Timmion Records and what arrived today is nothing short of dance floor perfection.  The latest 7″ release direct from the plant is another Timmion sure shot and a heavy latin soul gem from Bardo Martinez & The Soul Investigators with Ernie Hawks on flute, now thats a combination that you don’t hear every day!

“Bad Education is a soulful heater that will shake your hips and your social consciousness. Inspired by the afro-latin soul blends from the likes of Joe Bataan and Ray Barretto, this collaboration between Timmion Records and Yemayá Sol Records – brainchild of Bardo Martinez (lead singer of Chicano Batman); makes a statement.

The horn laden groove will transport the listener to a summer in New York. The memorable flute line by Ernie Hawks is flavorfully funky while the pulsating tumbao of the conga carries the vitality of a Nuyorican neighborhood in full effect.

The force of the rhythm section provides the vehicle by which Martinez lays down a fiery indictment of educational institutions, defining them as a mouthpiece to the military industrial complex.

The music and the message flow together in a very classic sense, packing a punch that gives it to the man; necessary now more than ever!”