BACAO RHYTHM & STEEL BAND Schallplatten & CDs

Review: German funkateer Bjorn Wagner launched the Bacao Rhythm & Steel Band in 2007 following months spent learning to play steel drums during an extended stay in Trinidad and Tobago. 11 years on, Wagner and his trusty backing band return with album number two, "The Serpent's Mouth". As usual, the set sees them gleefully combine killer grooves - a mix-and-match fusion of funk, soul, hip-hop and jazz-funk - with a hint of humid tropical music and the distinctive melodies of oil barrel steel drums. There are, of course, nods to reggae and calypso (see "Real Hot") and a few eyebrow-raising cover versions, of which their rendition of Jan Hammer's "Crockett's Theme" from "Miami Vice" stands out.