Track Listing

1. San Francisco
2. Maintenant
3. Poder
4. C'est Pas d'L'amour
5. Americaine à Paris
6. Pêcheuse
7. Mal de Mer
8. Abeilles
9. Plus Que Moi
10. Not So Easy
11. Peinture
12. Yaad
13. Wishful Thinking

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #23006 in Music
• Brand: Dig
• Released on: 2008-04-15
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds

Album Description
Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Rupa & the April Fishes create music that defies easy categorization. Their debut album, eXtraOrdinary rendition, echoes with influences of classic French chanson, Argentinean tango, Gypsy swing, American folk, Latin cumbias, and even hints of Indian ragas. With their progressive blend of international flavors with a youthful alternative rock energy, the trend-setting band is spearheading a multicultural movement that is redefining the sound of contemporary music. Shades of Manu Chao, Lhasa, Pink Martini, Gogol Bordello and more can be heard in their appealing, polyglot sound.

San Francisco Weekly
"If Rupa were a movie she would be Amélie meets Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown meets Latcho Drom meets Do the Right Thing. She is an instant cult classic"

San Francisco Bay Guardian
"A listen to eXtraOrdinary rendition is a perfect way to spend 52 minutes away from the day's stresses and grumbles to indulge in a bit of much-needed magic realism."

Customer Reviews

global agit pop from san francisco with latin rhythms and a french accent
This is the first full length studio album from rupa and her band, the april fishes. Featuring songs in french, spanish, hindi and english arranged for guitar, cello, accordion, trumpet, upright bass, and drums, eXtraOrdinary rendition pushes boundaries and crosses borders with songs that are at the same time political and romantic. This album was originally self-released in San Francisco and has been re-mastered, re-mixed, and re-released by world music label Cumbancha. Along with improved sound, this edition features a fold-out poster and translations of all the songs along with a postcard back that can be addressed and sent directly through the mail. The album also features respected SF Bay Area jazz bassist and composer Marcus Shelby on two tracks and the artwork of beloved muralist Mona Caron who has also painted live on-stage with the fishes. Que bueno !

Swimming in a Multi-Cultural Bay
Rupa and the April Fishes' "Extraordinary Rendition" is a glorious mix of gipsy, tango, and Indian music. Rupa Marya, who grew up in France, India, and in the Bay Area, brings together a spicy polyglot of delicious music. Her debut album makes one hungry for more. Rupa and her ensemble have been compared to the Pacific Northwest lounge group Pink Martini and the gipsy punk Gogol Bordello, but they're more like Lo'Jo, the French performance art collective. When Rupa and her band performs live, the muralist Mona paints (her artwork is on the album)

"Extraordinary Rendition" opens with the sounds of San Francisco. The song "Maintenant" is an insistent tango about embracing the present moment. "Poder" is a sober Spanish song,drawn from Rupa's experience as a doctor, about a Mexican woman dying from cancer because she feared being caught. "Une Americaine a Paris" is about facing anti-American prejudice in Paris,so it's hardly a cover of George Gershwin's famous song. "La Pecheuse" is a haunting ballad with a deep,jazzy groove. "Mal de Mer" is equally haunting. "Yaad" is the strongest song,with an Indian sensibility. One hopes Rupa will delve into her Indian heritage more in subsequent songs. The closing song,"Wishful Thinking",is a ballad about desiring the forbidden.

"Extraordinary Rendition" is one of 2008's best albums. If you fish for great music... you'll be a lucky pescatarian with this!

Rupa and the April Fishes - Awesome
I think Rupa and the April Fishes are terrific. They are full of energy, the music is great, and the lyrics are meaningful. Since my French is so so, I appreciated the inclusion of the English translation that came with the album. Rupa is a great entertainer, and the band that supports her is great; what a diverse group that puts together some great music.