Tribalistas II

One uses the term ‘supergroup’ with caution, but Tribalistas unite three giants of MPB, (Música Popular Brasileira). The golden-voiced Marisa Monte is back with two of her regular collaborators: the perennial maverick Carlinhos Brown and Arnaldo Antunes, former frontman of Titãs, a rock band with a 30-year pedigree. Their first album in 2002 sold over three million copies. Their resurrection in 2017 triggered a number one in Brazil. Now available digitally, the second album's first four singles have broken Spotify Brazilian records for the MPB genre.

Miraculously for a supergroup, there appear to be no inflated egos at work. There's a palpable sense of togetherness; the three voices – Monte's alto, Brown's tenor and Antunes' baritone – working in near-perfect harmony. Generally mid-tempo and built around acoustic guitars with tasteful backing and a plethora of low-key unobtrusive special effects, the ten songs could be described loosely as pop songs – each is three to four minutes of pure class. Indeed, ‘Feliz e Saudável’ has a similar feel to a Beatles' song such as ‘Dr Robert’. Some are devilishly catchy, others are drop-dead gorgeous. Verily, a super supergroup.