by Metá Metá (Mais Um Discos 018 CD and download)
There’s no easy way to describe the activities of Metá Metá. The São Paulo band refers to the sounds on its second album, MetaL MetaL, as Afro-punk. But that phrase really doesn’t go far enough. The quintet’s crucible of deconstructed samba, funk, improvised saxophones and contemporary psychedelics is explosive. Add the unfettered sax of Thiago França, a guest spot or two from drummer Tony Allen of Afro-beat legend, and vocalist Juçara Marçal’s throaty candomblé dedications, and you are in a new territory – strange, exhilarating, and quite unmapped.
This is a real achievement, given some of the exciting work that has come out of Latin America – especially Peru, Colombia, Brazil – in recent years. Metá Metá vocalist Marçal has an interest in both the indigenous and African origins of Brazilian music, something that first found expression in her band A Barca. The meeting with guitarist Kiko Dinucci was the point at which their music turned to face West Africa, the origins of the candomblé religion and its associated music. This said, MetaL MetaL is an ultra-modern album, rooted firmly in the dramatic sounds of the contemporary city and its population.
