The Savior

*click the song's names to download*

I believe that nowadays there is a weird feeling of loss about culture in general, especially music, that is the most popular of arts. Everywhere, people [who like to wonder] have been wondering if this musical apathy is the doom of the current century: nothing's new, everything's recycled and those who are really innovating and reinventing don't get the media attention that they deserve.

In Brasil that is not a bit different. In a country where the next Britney Spears imitatation or the next Ivete Sangalo song [that is never different from any previous one] are the radio-candies, the good and old Brazillian music seems to be lost. But that's very superficial.

An artist that have already featured on a list of mine grabbed me by the balls and reassured me that nothing's lost. Roberta Sá finished Fama Bis [Brazillian's Star Academy] as 2nd best; but while the 1st place is nowhere to be heard Roberta, with her sophomore [big-labelled] album, firmed herself as an important modern MPB [Brazillian Popular Music] name. A performer that sometimes writes her lyrics, Sá has a quality that goes beyond the commercial and popular; her albums are real art-pieces, filled with research and references, results of her teaming with some of the best composers and producers from contemporaneity [such as Pedro Luís - from Pedro Luís e a Parede - and Rodrigo Campello]. As a singer, she's a gem that should be much more contemplated than she is; her guttural and sweet vocals caress any song she happens to sing, with a marvelous characteristic: the words come out of her mouth filled with life and meaning, because of her clear and pure pronunciation; not a single word is cut or swallowed which gives the listener a perfect description of the lyrics, boosting imagination and fully touching your heart.

Her second album, Que Belo Estranho Dia Pra Se Ter Alegria ["what an oddly beautiful day to be happy"], surfs from traditional samba [Interessa] to Bossa Nova [Cansei De Esperar Você] and Forró [Fogo E Gasolina - with Lenine]. The openning comes in the form and sound of the impressive and involving O Pedido, a song about doing something for someone else, but the strong performance makes the song feels more like an imposition than a request. Mais Alguém, with its modern and dreamy synths, is my favorite for having its lyrics tapped to the most optimistic face of romance; in Janeiros she presents her exquisite songwritting with a poem filled with beautiful [but untranslatable] immagery. The Bossa that inspires the album's title, Que Belo Estranho Dia De Amanhã, plays with the feeling of pause when you're in love, and the oppressive but wonderful Samba De Amor E Ódio plays with the notions of love and hate, breaking shallow Manichaeisms. The album closes with the delicious and exciting Girando Na Renda, a samba de roda that invites everyone to party all night long, despite the album's end.

Sá, in the end, comes as a savior from the really cult and profound MPB. Obviously she doesn't have the media space she deserves, but it's amazing how her works impress the music critics and bring her fans among the alternative and eager-for-culture scene. And if you are one of those who wonder, both of her albums are musts.

[Song: Que Belo Estranho Dia De Amanhã - Roberta Sá]