-=- SHGZ -=- * Shoegaze * Indie * Post-Rock * Grunge * Dream Pop * Psych-Rock * Ethereal * ARTIST..: Ava Rocha ALBUM...: Ava Patrya Yndia Yracema GENRE...: Alternative STYLE...: Musica Popular Brasileira YEAR....: 2016 LABEL...: Circus Produtces Culturais ENCODER.: LAME 3.98.4 -V0 TRACKS..: 12 BITRATE.: 238 kbps avg SOURCE..: CD QUALITY.: 44.1kHz/Stereo SIZE....: 71.00 MB URL..: http://www.avarocha.com/ - TRACKLIST 1 Boca Do CΘu 5:08 2 O Jardim 3:26 3 VocΩ Nπo Vai Passar 2:35 4 Transeunte Coraτπo 4:25 5 Auto Das Bacantes 3:11 6 HermΘtica 3:08 7 Beijo No Asfalto 2:40 8 Mar Ao Fundo 5:22 9 Uma 3:32 10 Tπo Tπo 2:35 11 Doce Θ O Amor 3:46 12 Oceanos 1:47 Total Playtime: 41:35 The tag of "post-tropicßlia" has never felt more apparent that on the latest release from Ava Rocha. Ava Patrya Yndia Yracema is the second album from the Rio-born singer and offers 12 tracks of astonishing inventiveness and originality. At times the music recalls classic tropicßlia, as on the Caetano-esque orchestrations of "O Jardim" or "HerΘtica", at other times it can be abrasive as with the direct, post-punk anti-police overtones of "Auto das Bacantes". Then there's the psych-pop of "Transeunte Coraτπo", "Beijo No Asfalto" with hints of Marcos Valle's 70s jazz or the Tom ZΘ/Jorge Ben hybrid of "Uma". What is certain on Ava Patrya Yndia Yracema is that whichever way you look at it this is an album bristling with ideas, but also one that somehow fits within the pop canon. There's a myriad of emotions on offer but it's always done with a flair for melody and soul, and with Rocha's distinctive voice guiding the whole project. It's an ambitious album and shows that Rocha has grown into one of Brazil's most interesting artists, something that was only hinted at on her debut album Diurno in 2011. The majority of songs are written by Ava Rocha and her partner Negro Leo û another artist well worth checking out û alongside contributions from Jonas Sß, Domenico Lancellotti and Marcelo Callado (of Do Amor and Caetano Veloso's CΩ band). What unites these songwriters û along with the musicians on the album û is that they are all based in Rio de Janeiro, a city that currently has an exciting experimental music scene, a scene that is harnessed to the full on this extraordinary disc. NB: Oh, and if you were wondering about Rocha's name, then yes, she is the daughter of famed Brazilian film-maker Glauber Rocha. But don't let that be the reason you listen to this album, Ava is a talent in her own right. * Although it has never coalesced into a scene (which is probably good), neo-tropicalismo has been a thing in Brazilian music for at least the past decade or so. But few have tried their hand as this genre of sorts as successfully as Ava Rocha; Ava Patrya Yndia Yracema, her second release and first as a solo artist, is one of the most acclaimed Brazilian albums of the year and a shoo-in for year's end best-of lists. Despite being hailed in the media as a revelation, Ava Rocha is 36 and spent much of her adult life engaged in the dilettantism that so many celebrity offspring are doomed to. The daughter of Glauber Rocha, the enfant terrible of Brazil's Cinema Novo movement, and Colombian-born multimedia artist Paula Gaitßn, Ava Rocha dabbled in film and theater before founding the band Ava in 2008. Their 2011 debut, Diurno, was a low-key affair reminiscent of 1970s MPB that went mostly unnoticed (I noticed it, but it did nothing for me). The group parted ways in 2012, and somewhere along the way Ava Rocha married Negro LΘo, an indie rocker with avant-garde/noise rock leanings who wrote four songs for what would become her solo debut. LΘo joined his wife in the studio, as did multi-instrumentalists Pedro Sß and Domenico Lancelotti, widely credited for bringing Caetano Veloso's sound into the 21st century in the love'em-or-hate'em albums CΩ (2005) and Zii e Zie (2009). Ava Patrya Yndia Yracema doesn't sound like anything else these guys have ever done, so it seems safe to assume that Ava Rocha is the creative force behind the album. She certainly exudes personality on the cover, peering provocatively at the listener through the one eye that's not covered by her black tresses; kiddie drawings float in the air around her, she's blowing smoke, and I seriously doubt it's tobacco. The trippy atmosphere extends to the music. Gentle tribal drumming introduces the opener "Boca do CΘu," followed by mantra-like vocals reciting poetic lines. The tempo slows down even further, strings come in, then suddenly we get a psychedelic bossa nova rave-up that's somewhere between Os Mutantes and Stereolab, before circling back to the drums and vocals that started it all. That's just the first five minutes or so, and it gets weirder. "Disrupt the state, the police, the NSA, Wonder Woman, and cause a geopolitical stir," the singer commands in "Auto das Bacantes," amid a cacophonia that brings to mind early 70s Tom ZΘ, only with reams of guitar feedback. Ava Rocha and company also have a gift for creating beauty out of chaos, as in "Mar ao Fundo," in which whistling and acoustic strumming give way to a maelstrom of percussion and feedback that is as heavy as it is entrancing. Asides from the occasional freakout, much of the album is low û to mid-tempo, filled with gentle surprises like the flamenco interludes in "O Jardim," the wordplay of "HermΘtica" (which of course requires an understanding of Portuguese to be appreciated) and a cameo by the singer's toddler daughter in "Uma." And just to show that she can be normal, Ava Rocha channels the hitmaking Gal Costa of the late 70s and early 80s in the charming "VocΩ Nπo Vai Passar," which actually became a (minor) hit. Only time will tell whether she can keep this up, but whether it's a glorious one-shot or the beginning of a fruitful career, Ava Patrya Yndia Yracema is a provocative 35 minutes or so of music and a perfect example of how to mine Brazil's past musical glories for new gems. -=- SHGZ -=- P.S. ** Thanks *** *** BCC FNT IPC SSR *** *** For Knowing Where The Music Is At *** --===-- ********************* * NuHS we miss you! * *********************