VÄtáá Éy - Luaka Bop

AUTOGRAPHS
VÄtáá Éy
2007
ALEX SANT’ANNA
Born in Bahia, Alex
Sant’anna has been an
influential artist on the
music scene in Aracaju,
Sergipe (just north of
Pernambuco), for the
past decade. His hybrid
sound has been influenced by Jackson do
Pandeiro, Raul Seixas
and Luiz Gonzaga, and
more recently, Lenine,
Tom Zé and Zeca Baleiro. By splintering traditional Brazilian genres
like baião and samba and using them to reconstruct his own urban
style, Alex Sant’anna is leading Brazil toward a new kind of
anthropophagy. Particularly striking in his work are the juxtapositions
he makes between references to folk culture and modern life.
“Poesia de Barro” is exemplary of his post-modern ambitions: “my
poetry is earthen, but my sound is steel.” Indeed, his home is the
northeast, but his stage... is anywhere.
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A new sound
is emerging from the
mangrove-covered heart of Pernambuco. Having
watched suave upper-classman Chico Science
make his way on to the international stage, the
junior members of the Mangue scene are
graduating to their own acclaim. What’s
Happening in Pernamabuco represents some of
the most creatively salient and innovative artists to
come out of a region of Northeast Brazil whose
cultural rejuvenation would have remained
unknown to music lovers outside of the country
had it not been for the first-wave of publicity efforts
generated by self-motivated groups in the early
90’s. Now Luaka Bop is proud to have a hand in
bringing the new class to you...
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NACAO ZUMBI
In the early 1980s
Francisco de Assis
França was performing
hip-hop with local bands
in Recife when he
coined his stage name
“Chico Science.” It was
a reference to his
predilection for experimenting with the “alchemy” of funk and hip-hop
sounds which would
soon propel him and his band to international stardom. Chico
Science and Nação Zumbi (CSNZ) debuted in 1993 with their cd “De
Lama ao Caos” and stormed the world with their mangue sound. The
international music community reeled with disbelief when, on Feb. 2
of 1997, Chico was killed in a car accident in Recife. His band
stopped touring after the accident but eventually rebounded to continue leading the Recife scene. The track “Carimbó” refers to the carimbó dance music of the Northeastern Amazon region – it is the name
of the hollowed-out tree trunk drum which percussionists squat over
to produce the heavy beat.VATES E VIOLA VIOLAS
Luís Homero and Miguel
Marcondes were born
from a long line of poets –
their father was a famous
repentista (an improvisational and competitive
song genre of the
Northeastern sertão) and
their grandfather a
famous author of cordel
(a literature for the masses, sold in fairs and streetcorners all across the northeast). Not surprisingly, the brothers continue this family tradition with their band Vates e
Violas. Their long hair and dusty jeans may hint at a Woodstock aesthetic, but their sound is entirely Northeastern Brazil (they heard rock
music for the first time in their late teens!). “Instante Feliz” is a song in
the upbeat arrasta-pé rhythm which captures the popular notion of celebrating life through music, even while poverty and hardship lurk outside
the dancehall.
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OTTO
Born in the interior of
Pernambuco, Otto grew
up watching and listening to folk music in his
small town, eventually
learning to play all of the
local percussive
rhythms. Though enthusiastic about all of the
diverse musics coming
out of Brazil, Otto was
always dreaming about
other parts of the world. Eventually, he left for Europe, where he
played in the Paris subway for two years. Upon returning to the
northeast, he met up with co-conspirators Chico Science and Fred 04
and soon joined their bands. He started his solo career in 1997 and
just a year later, won various prizes for his album “Samba pro Burro”
and its hit song “Bob.” The wanderlust that had led Otto to Europe
resulted in a unique sound which mixes the beats of the northeast
with electronica to produce his irreverent yet enthusiastic style.
TINÉ
Born in the Arcoverde
area of the
Pernambucan sertão
famous for its coco
music tradition, José
Henrique Neto is a
young hipster composer, percussionist and
vocalist from Recife.
Several years ago he
took on the nickname
of Tiné, in honor of his favorite great uncle who was the last surviving
member of Lampião’s bandit gang and also a strong musical influence for José in his youth. The songs on his debut album, “Segura o
Cordão,” feature lyrics soaked in the folklore and imaginative slang of
the sertão, along with tunes in the aboio and cavalo marinho traditions that are reminiscent of moorish oud melodies. Throughout the
disk, Tiné molds his language with the same delicacy that he uses in
tapping his tambourine – this is particularly apparent in the track “A
Cobra,” in which the rhythm of the spoken words actually imply the
slick movements of a snake.
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The Graduating Class
EDDIE
Eddie is an experimental band of the mangue
movement from Olinda,
the colonial city built just
north of Recife. Formed
in the late 80s, Eddie,
along with Nação
Zumbi/Mundo
Livre/Mestre Ambrósio,
was one of the bands
that, in the early 90s,
put Recife on the music world’s radar. Years after their original success,
Eddie released their second cd in 2004, titled “Original Olinda Style.” This
recent project was envisioned as a musical evocation of the city of Olinda
– both its traditional and cosmopolitan virtues. The recording turned out
original indeed, infusing sounds from the Pixies, the Ramones and the
Dead Kennedys over raggae beats mixed with the upbeat frevo carnaval
music of Olinda. Original, too, is the band name, which doesn’t refer to a
band member or a specific nickname, as most other popular groups in the
area. Pronounced in Brazilian Portuguese, it sounds exactly like our word
for something truly cutting edge: edgy.
SIBA
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The music of Siba is the
closest that many northeasterners can get to
practicing archaelogy in
their own backyards. A
founding member of
Mestre Ambrósio, Siba
has been infusing
Northeastern traditions
with new youthful zest
since the very beginning
of his career. In fact, while the mangueboys worked to spark interest in
Pernambucan culture by injecting foreign sounds into its rich soup of
musical potency, the bandmembers of Mestre Ambrósio did the very
opposite - they attempted to dig up the old traditions of the sertão and to
make them accessible for urbanites in Recife. As a solo artist, Siba has
continued on his search toward the most rustic roots of Pernambucan
music. On his Fuloresta album, listeners are transported to another
place – and another time – in Brazil, in which the unsteady cadences
circle back to rural ciranda and maracatu circles. The “Vale do Jucá”
track is exemplary of the way that Siba turns nostalgia into a time and
place and how he brings ancestors - and ancestry - to life for
Northeastern Brazilians.
JUNIO BARRETO
Junio Barreto’s childhood home of Caruaru,
Pernambuco, infused in
him an intuitive sense of
Northeastern rhythms:
he grew up listening to
frevo, coco, maracatu,
xaxado, baião, aboio
and banda de pífanos
performances. Today, at
forty years old, he is the
new voice of mangue descent out of São Paulo. Firmly rooted in the
syncopations of samba, his music can also be described as sweet
melancholy – his rich tenor gives voice to his politically charged
lyrics. In “Amigos Bons,” the artist speaks to the extreme poverty of
the northeast which leaves so many with empty bellies: “Ontem
acordei de susto/Do ronco da minha barriga com fome.” His powerful lyrics and playful melodies have made him a favorite composer for
many Brazilian recording artists, including Gal Costa, Maria Rita,
Maria Bethânia and Ana Carolina.
WADO
Though he detests
being compared with
the manguebit scene,
Wado has a style that
has matured in the
same rich estuaries of
Northeastern culture.
Oswaldo Schlickmann
(whose stage name is
shortened to the more
hip “Wado”) resists
making music charged with social politics and instead focuses on an
exquisite “trip” through threads of funk, samba and soul. With a
sound reminiscent of Jorge Ben, Gilberto Gil and Tim Maia, Wado
makes Alagoas (a day’s drive from Recife) an important stop on any
tour of contemporary Northeastern music. Within his song “Se
Vacilar o Jacaré Abraça” is a compelling contradiction; even with its
laid-back musical groove, the lyrics call for desperate action to lay
claim to his love. If you don’t act quickly, the lyrics warn, “the ‘gator
will getcha” (or, for a more graceful English translation, “you’ll be up
the creek).”
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MOMBOJÓ
The seven band members of Mombojó are
some of the youngest
musicians working on
experimental hybrids in
their hometown of
Recife. Already incredibly tight and mature,
this young band (most
members aren’t even
twenty years old) is daring and clever and able to produce a completely unique sound. Their
sound is at once psychedelic and nostalgic and brings the jazzy and
lofty sounds of Hermeto Pascoal and Tom Jobim together with electronic samplers and loops, creating a trance-like genre all their own.
While they toy with the charming bossa melodies of the past, they
tease listeners with contemporary sound and wink playfully at
Brazilian music of the future.
CABRUÊRA
The band Cabruêra take
their name from
Northeastern slang:
“cabruêra” is a pejorative
used to refer to a gang of
mixed-race rascals from
the sertão, often used
simply to describe the
common people of the
northeast. Their sound is
anything but common:
they play hard rock punctuated with Northeastern schtick, including performances of themselves as cangaceiros, historical bandit figures that
terrorized the noble classes of the northeast. They are perhaps most
notorious for their experimental sounds, including the “ballpoint guitar”
developed by their founder Arthur Pessoa; he developed this unique timbre, reminiscent of cello and of berimbau (a traditional capoeira instrument from Bahia) by rubbing a ballpoint pen across the strings of his
acoustic guitar. Formed in Campina Grande, Paraíba (another major
center of Northeastern culture), Cabruera acknowledge mangue as their
inspiration and they are not afraid to get their hands dirty - instead of
sticking satellite dishes in the muck, they drag their hands through it to
dig up great sounds.
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CIDADÃO INSTIGADO
From the Northeastern
state of Ceará, the band
Cidadão Instigado is
often confused with its
frontman/singer/producer Fernando Catatau.
Most likely, this confusion arises from his
huge stage presence
and socio/political agenda – he is compared to
the great fanatical leader of the Canudos, Antonio Conselheiro.
Cidadão Instigado has a clear lineage back to the music that band
members listened to in their adolescence: Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrex,
Black Sabbath. But perhaps more apparent is their Brazilian heritage
– their sound reverberates with the influence of brega (cheesy)
romantic ballads by Roberto Carlos and experimental rock from the
70s (by the likes of Raul Seixas). This retro, unrefined sound is
backed with an interest for ordinary people and stories, an emphasis
on simplicity in both their musical and lyrical inventiveness. Their hit
“O Pobre dos Dentes de Ouro” demonstrates their ability to relate to
the alienation of poor northeasterners.
MUNDO LIVRE
One of the original
bands to explode onto
the Recife scene during
the mangue bit movement, Mundo Livre S/A
has been playing
together for more than
two decades and, over
the years, has proven
itself one of Brazil’s
most popular bands.
The band debuted internationally in 1993 (alongside Chico Science
and Nação Zumbi) and Fred 04, their lead singer and author of the
mangue manifesto, eventually became the international face of
mangue. Mundo Livre is equal parts off-the-wall and politically-conscious - they have even incorporated the political and artistic antics of
Malcolm Maclaren into their act (their name - Free World S/Aacknowledges their support of his anti-cold war and free-market
stance). In “Maroca” they maintain their classic samba-funk sound
with a pyschedelic edge.-
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