"Mas Allá de La Habana" (Beyond Havana) is the title of our first recording production. It came out in the year 2002 under the Venezuelan record label Carijazz Records. At that time, the band was known as "La Timba Loca".

These are some of the reviews:

"The rhythm of timba (the last evolution of Cuban salsa) has been able to conquer its homeland audiences for years, but abroad, especially in North America and Puerto Rico, its reception hasn't quite met its expectations. Más Allá De La Havana, the debut CD by Boston-based group La Timba Loca, seems to have a solution to this dilemma. Led by Berklee College of Music summa cum laude graduate Gonzalo Grau (native of Caracas, Venezuela), La Timba Loca is successful in achieving the right combination of elements from both the Cuban timba and mainstream salsa, creating what one might consider the best bridge the urban rhythm has found with its brothers and sisters in the U.S. mainland. Through twelve tracks of original and classic compositions such as Chacharepa by Gonzalo Grau, El Tíbiri Tábara of Daniel Santos, Besito De Coco from Ismael Rivera, and Oscar D'León's mega-hit Llorarás, LTL delivers a phat sound that pays tribute to the origins of timba music with an emphasis on its punchy brass arrangements, lively montunos and urban vocal phrasings, all done in a tight salsa style. The multi-national cast of LTL players is perhaps another important factor in the group's unique sound and approach to the music. Alex Alvear and Manolo Mairena handle all the vocals in the recording with all arrangements credited to bandleader/pianist/multi-instrumentalist Gonzalo Grau."

Latin Beat Magazine, Sept, 2002 by Rudy Mangual

"With this important CD, we have the first fully authentic timba CD to be produced by a band outside of Cuba, thus the title “Más Allá de la Habana / Beyond Havana.” Venezuelen pianist, percussionist and vocalist Gonzalo Grau, who recorded this smart, aggressive, project in Boston must be given credit for producing a CD that not only fully embraces the complexity and excitement of timba, but also for successfully being able to inject the timba elixir into classic salsa standards: “El Tibirí-Tábara” (Daniel Santos) and “Lo Que Me Paso En La Guagua” (Adalberto Alzarez) to name a few.
To be able to shine a new light on familiar tunes is not an easy task: you risk failure on more than one front. But interpretation is an important factor in any form: jazz, pop, salsa, or timba. If done well, the material is revived for a new audience, and maybe readdressed to by an older one.
Why even touch the Oscar D’Leon salsa anthem “Llororas”? Listen to Grau’s handling of this masterpiece and it will all make sense. Paint a mustache on the Mona Lisa? Why not.
Highly recommended."

Descarga.com, 2002, Editor's Pick

Unfortunately, this CD is not been distributed to record stores any longer. However, if you would like to purchase it, please contact us at: laclavesecreta@gonzalograu.com, and we will happily ship it to you. ...Meanwhile, you can enjoy all the tracks of this production in our LCS PlayList...