Britadeira

This seasoned Brazilian musician and producer’s first solo album seems designed to divide opinion but challenge indifference. The minimalist minute-long opener ‘Crocante’ gives way to ‘Eu Vi’, featuring Evandro Camperom’s vocals and redolent of DJ Dolores and the whole Recife sound. But then the title-track, translating as ‘jackhammer’, serves up a musical smash-and-grab raid: two minutes of brutal atonal jazz, with Brita playing alternate electric and acoustic bass lines. It’s followed by ‘Laser Beans (feat Thiago França)’, in which a stop/start guitar motif decelerates into a duologue between electric guitar and tenor sax. Inspired by film noir, ‘Pele de Espelhos (feat Rubi & F Sagawa)’, carries the alluring voice of Rubi over subliminally discordant brass, before a tenor sax reinforces the cinematic ambience. Conceived as a soundtrack suggesting outer space and mirrors, ‘Reflexo’ picks up on and develops the unsettling brassy theme. On ‘Existe Amor (feat Rubi, Alzira E & Arruda)’, Brita overlays Rubi’s vocal (recorded in 2012) with multi-tracked trombone to sketch the oppressive psychological impact of São Paulo. The brief ‘Britatonal’ is indeed atonal, a miniature piece for solo piano. Originally composed for his band Lobotomia, the final, frantic ‘Vossa Excelência (feat João Limeira)’ harks back to Brita’s punk past. Impressive and provocative it certainly is, easy listening it definitely isn’t.