Novela

Novela is Céu’s sixth album, her first in three years, and it’s mostly self-penned (the one exception being ‘Corpo e Colo’, written by Nando Reis and Kleber Lucas). It’s a contrast to her last release Um Gosto de Sol which concentrated on interpretations of tunes by artists like Alcione, João Gilberto and Rita Lee. Novela is produced by Adrian Younge, an iconic arranger and producer known for his US hip-hop work, but who has also dabbled in Brazilian music (check out his work with Azymuth and João Donato). The single, ‘Gerando na Alta’, features London-based French-Senegalese artist anaiis who spent a month-long residency in Salvador, Bahia to reconnect with her Senegalese heritage through the omnipresent Afro-Brazilian music. We hear melodies sung in both Portuguese and English laid over a bed of congas, bass and Wurlitzer, creating a hypnotic, laid-back groove. The title-track has a similar mood, but this time with drums driving an accompaniment that expands into thick string arrangements at climactic points, like the beginning of the chorus (an Adrian Younge trademark). An album with a well-developed, but perhaps slightly repetitive sonic identity, accessible for lovers of instrumental hip-hop and neo-soul alike, all with Céu’s unique take on Brazilian groove.