Melocotón (a Spanish word meaning 'peach') is a Cleveland, Ohio based band formed in 2009 by John Galvez on guitar, Dan Kamionkowski on keys, and Andrew Rothman on drums. Bringing a broad range of personal musical tastes into the mix, the trio has created a 'heavy Latin jazz' sound that combines traditional South American bossa and samba with American jazz, rock and soul.

Their debut release, "Perjuvian", is a record of this unique blend. It was recorded at the end of 2010 at Cleveland's Elevation Recording Studio. Producer/guitarist Jacob Fader handled the controls at the sessions, and the album was mastered by renowned engineer Tommy Wiggins. In an effort to stay true to their live performance chemistry and the classic feel of 20th century jazz records, the tracks you hear here are predominantly unaltered takes, recorded to magnetic tape through analog consoles, amps and effects, and mixed down to two-track with sparing use of digital post-processing or editing.

The lead-off track, "Blue Shoes", is a John Galvez composition that typifies their sound, melding a driving funk beat with his latin guitar feel, while Dan Kamionkowski's "That's What" takes a more direct jazz tack, while playfully quoting Miles Davis and Prokofiev.

Galvez's "E10P" is an upbeat guitar swing with a rockabilly overtone, showcasing the guitarist's versatility and imaginative writing style. His double-stop melody spins a take familiar to the young and old souls, as Rothman switches from sticks to brushes to move the rhythm.

Although John's "Suzanne Samba" (named for his wife) is one of the oldest and most straight-ahead cuts on the disc, the trio roars quickly back into the land of funk with "Stoney Maloney", a collaborative composition which features Dan's work at the Wurlitzer and a retro-soul vibe from John's guitar.

On "Whatevs", Kamionkowski's bouncy reggae-like 6/8 cut, he augments his Rhodes piano with a vintage analog synthesizer, but the group returns to the Latin feel with "Platanos Fritos" (fried bananas). This cut is John's twist on the standard montuno pattern, including a tip of the hat to Henry Mancini's 1963 song 'Charade'. His "Pigs Eat Pearls" follows that traditional vibe with a somewhat dark, low-key samba.

The sole 'cover' on the album, Melocotón puts its unique coat of paint on Radiohead's 1997 rock song "Paranoid Android". The original song was melded from three different songs by different members of Radiohead, and this version remains true to the original's general form, bouncing between 4/4 and 7/8 times, and sliding between bossa, rock and reggae. The album wraps with the title track, "Perjuvian", John's rock-infused samba.