Latin/funk

Refreshingly confident and smartly playful, young multicultural urban roots group Yerba Buena is long on attitude. When "narrator" Dr. Aneub Abrey (yes, there's a hidden message there) has to interpret some lyrics for English speakers, he does it with winking good humor. Yerba Buena, who earned a Grammy nomination for their first CD, President Alien, is back with a new CD, Island Life. (The island in question, of course, is Manhattan.) The Afro-Cuban drumming calls for traditional singing, which inspires modern harmony, which segues to urban beats. Middle Eastern dance music takes a break for its cousin flamenco, then returns with a flourish. Sound clips on immigration from a famous Texan are part of the mix on a tune titled "Bla Bla Bla." Imaginative and irreverent, Yerba Buena lives by the idea that your urban area is teeming with opportunities for a change of scene and attitude. Maybe your next vacation is right around the corner.

Thu., Aug. 11, 9 p.m., $15, NXNW, 7165 Germantown Ave., 215-248-1000, www.nxnwphl.com.