I ONCE READ an interview with a Cuban musician in which he referred to Los Van Van's Juan Formell as Cuba's version of Lennon and McCartney. That caused me to sit up and pay attention to the many Los Van Van albums on my shelf – and my ears began to open up to music I hadn't had much exposure to. The truth is that the family tree of Cuban music spans an ocean or two and has so many branches a person could spend a lifetime swinging through them. I got what I really needed early on, when I heard a DJ on KPFA-FM explain that Formell's compositional ideas have developed as he's watched the ebb and flow of popular Cuban dance forms. Which is to say that Los Van Van are all about the dance floor: this band plays party music. But Formell's genius involves more than his ability to bring the modern moment to traditional Cuban music; it would've been enough if he had made his statement in the late '60s and stepped aside for future generations. Instead Formell and Los Van Van have managed to stay current for more than 30 years. They come to town with a battalion-size crew of musicians bearing flutes, strings, trombones, keyboards, guitar, bass, trap drums, and percussion. A lot can happen when a band has 30 years to gel – and if you've missed them before, do not miss them this time. 8 p.m., 1025 Columbus, S.F. $40. (415) 474-0365. (J.H. Tompkins)