Blog July 1, 2014
World Cup Brazil Mixtape Roundup
As you may or may not have noticed there is currently a rather important soccer tournament currently underway. And, going a bit deeper, you may also have heard talk that it is taking place in Brazil. Both of these things are true.
It's a fact that we celebrated in our latest program, "Party and Dissent: Brazil's World Cup 2014." It's also a fact that the Internet hasn't stopped celebrating for months, as mix after mix of stunning music has run through our computer speakers, landing directly in our ear drums before making its way to our hips via our brains. At first we were bemused, then concerned. Finally, in the interests of science, we decided it was best to preserve some of the finest specimens for future research. So, without further ado, we give you our World Cup Mixtape Roundup.
Tiger's Milk Records is a relatively new label that released "Peru Maravillossa," a joyful compilation that was one of our favorite albums last year. For the World Cup, they put together this effortlessly breezy mix that tacks towards the jazzier end of things. Perfect for sipping cold things in hot places.
On the more modern side, we have this tape from the brilliantly named Bootierio. Demonstrating a mastery of the mash-up, the mix combines pounding traditional rhythms and the savvy electro sounds of tecno brega with hooks drawn from American rap and r&b. Given that both rap and brega live on sampling, the results are almost vertiginously referential, but never stray far from their dance floor pleasure center. The mix begins with a rasterinha remix of Thiaginho's "Caraca, Muleke" from João Brasil. For more on rasterinha, a hot new style of baile funk, check out our in-depth introduction in "Party and Dissent."
Keeping the modern bass, but bringing things a bit deeper, we move on to this killer mixtape from, well, Tropkillaz. Trap-style 808s spin over deep-voiced grooves,the mix rolls from reggae terror to dance floor explosion. Hip as hell, but definitely a sound you don't want to meet in a dark alley. The mix features a remix of MC Bin Laden's "Faraó" by producers Omulu and Comrade. You can read more about Bin Laden, the most popular figure of the passinho do romano dance style in our Featured Artists page.
On a completely different note, we have this playlist from our dear friends at Smithsonian Folkways. An all-acoustic sampler of traditional and neo-traditional folk music, it's a brief window in the astounding musical variety of this vast nation.
DJ Dolores is a long-time presence on the alternative Brazilian scene. Starting his production career in Recife's mangue bit scene during the '90s, the past few years have seen him move into increasingly adventurous territory, working to fuse the aggressive electronics of modern dance with more traditional rhythms. That background in mangue bit and interest in combining Pernambuco traditions with modern sounds puts him in good company: We played stellar new tracks from mangue bit veterans Siba and Zé Brown in "Party and Dissent." And we shouldn't forget to mention--the man is an artist of the mix, fusing and splicing in subtle, complex ways. This mix? No exception.
While it's not fair to say that we saved the best for last, we've certainly saved the most rigorously researched. While Brazilophiles probably know the ins and outs of samba or tropicalismo, the groovy disco of the '70s and '80s tends to get far less attention. Kudos then to Wax Poetics and Allen Thayer for putting together a mix that chronicles the extensive (and ultra-funky) career of Lincoln Olivetti. It's amazing--cooler than cool and swinging like none other. Be sure to check out the track by track discussion on the Wax Poetics site.
