Putumayo Presents: Brazilian Lounge

Performer: Various Artists
Distributor: E1 Distribution (USA)

Notes: Audio Remixer: King Britt. Liner Note Author: Jacob Edgar. Illustrator: Nicola Heindl. Translators: Julien Massardier; Ricardo Pessanha; Jorge Maldonado. Electronica is a very global phenomenon, and serious world music enthusiasts will tell you that it isn't hard to find world/electronica hybrids coming from places ranging from Ireland and Scotland to Japan to North Africa. Electronica also has plenty of followers in Brazil, where club hounds have been combining Brazilian rhythms with jungle/drum'n'bass, trance, house, trip-hop, and many other club-friendly styles. Putumayo has described Brazilian Lounge as one of 2006's Brazilian/electronica compilations -- not electronica as in harsh, abrasive, forceful techno and rave music, but electronica in the softer chillout/downtempo sense. Much of the time, however, this 44-minute CD's electronica credentials are questionable. The use of some electronic programming doesn't automatically make your music electronica; hip-hop and new age (to use two disparate examples) are often heavily electronic, but neither is considered part of electronica. And for the most part, Brazilian Lounge is best described as a jazzy Brazilian pop disc that has some chillout and downtempo references but isn't aimed at a hardcore electronica audience. One needn't be heavily into electronica to appreciate this release. Anyone who has spent a lot of time listening to Ivan Lins, Astrud Gilberto, Ana Caram, or Ithamara Koorax will have an easy time getting into tracks by Bebel Gilberto (Joao Gilberto's daughter), Katia B, and others; Brazilian Lounge emphasizes the subtle, gentle, understated side of Brazilian pop (as opposed to, say, the more exuberant forro recordings that have come from northeastern Brazil) and does so with enjoyable results. Some of the artists on Brazilian Lounge are established veterans (most notably, Marcos Valle), while others didn't enter Brazilian pop until the '90s or 2000s (Paula Morelenbaum and Luca Mundaca, for example). Either way, fans of Brazilian pop and bossa nova will find a lot to appreciate on Brazilian Lounge. ~ Alex Henderson Wonderfully slick, urban Brazilian music fills this CD from start to finish. The works are essentially what one would expect as ambient background music in a documentary on modern Rio, but the sound indeed goes past that somewhat. The basic format for much of it is electronica meets samba or bossa, but excellently executed. There are hints of something more adventurous now and then, but in truth it's not often the aim of lounge music to be adventurous as much as it is to be simultaneously relaxed and grooving. Standout tracks on the album include a remix of Bebel Gilberto's "August Day Song" by King Britt, a short vocal performance by Seu Jorge over the top of a funky cut from BiD, and the new bossa cut of Paula Morelenbaum that harks back directly to the work of Jobim and de Moraes, but with a tight little cut of drum'n'bass added in. A highly consistent album, rarely leaving the realm of the key groove. ~ Adam Greenberg Electronica is a very global phenomenon, and serious world music enthusiasts will tell you that it isn't hard to find world/electronica hybrids coming from places ranging from Ireland and Scotland to Japan to North Africa. Electronica also has plenty of followers in Brazil, where club hounds have been combining Brazilian rhythms with jungle/drum'n'bass, trance, house, trip-hop, and many other club-friendly styles. Putumayo has described Brazilian Lounge as one of 2006's Brazilian/electronica compilations -- not electronica as in harsh, abrasive, forceful techno and rave music, but electronica in the softer chillout/downtempo sense. Much of the time, however, this 44-minute CD's electronica credentials are questionable. The use of some electronic programming doesn't automatically make your music electronica; hip-hop and new age (to use two disparate examples) are often heavily electronic, but neither is considered part of electronica. And for the most part, Brazilian Lounge is best described as a jazzy Brazilian pop disc that has some chillout and downtempo references but isn't aimed at a hardcore electronica audience. One needn't be heavily into electronica to appreciate this release. Anyone who has spent a lot of time listening to Ivan Lins, Astrud Gilberto, Ana Caram, or Ithamara Koorax will have an easy time getting into tracks by Bebel Gilberto (Joao Gilberto's daughter), Katia B, and others; Brazilian Lounge emphasizes the subtle, gentle, understated side of Brazilian pop (as opposed to, say, the more exuberant forro recordings that have come from northeastern Brazil) and does so with enjoyable results. Some of the artists on Brazilian Lounge are established veterans (most notably, Marcos Valle), while others didn't enter Brazilian pop until the '90s or 2000s (Paula Morelenbaum and Luca Mundaca, for example). Either way, fans of Brazilian pop and bossa nova will find a lot to appreciate on Brazilian Lounge. ~ Alex Henderson

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