The same local rhythmic emphasis can be heard on Cila Do Coco’s track, “Juntando Coco”, which melds tribal drums and call-and-response vocals with very modern electronic sounds.įernanada Porto, represented here by the track “De Costas Pro Mondo”, is a singer, composer, and musician who has studied the electro-acoustic work pioneered by Karlheniz Stockhausen and Edgar Varese. “Sereia” (“Mermaid”) emphasizes the approach used on that album, while the remixed version of “Samba Do Gringo Paulista” has a fiercer, polyrhythmic approach. He worked with major Brazilian artists such as Daniela Mercury, Hermeto Pascoal, and Marcos Suzano, and at the time he died was putting the finishing touches on Bebel Gilberto’s album Tanto Tempo. A classically trained pianist, Suba became extremely interested in Brazilian music and rhythms and found ways to combine electronics and acoustic instruments in ways that created a dreamy texture. The disc begins with Suba, the Yugoslavian-born producer who moved to Brazil in the late ’80s and helped forge the new Brazilian electronica sound.
The Rough Guide to Brazilian Electronica brings together some of the most interesting results of this musical experimentation by artists dating from the early 1990s to the present. Since then the country has ridden through a number of financial crises, but has generally modernized and seen the rise of new forms of artistic expression, particularly in music, where electronic dance music and digital studio techniques have melded comfortably with the Afro-Caribbean rhythms of the country’s musical past. The country appeared to have a bright future until the rule of President Joao Goulart led to a military coup and the imposition of censorship and other repressive policies until 1985. Bossa music developed and joined other indigenous musical forms such as choro and samba. The country’s auto industry flourished, albeit largely due to heavy protectionist policies from the government. The capital was moved from Rio de Janiero to the sleek, modern city of Brasilia. The 1950s and early 1960s saw a democratic regime in the country and the emergence of populism, nationalism, and a period of great development. The modern history of Brazil has been one of great promise and sometimes equally great frustration.