Search - Clara Moreno :: Miss Balanco

Perfection

J. Tyler Parcher | Lago Vista, TX United States | 09/28/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Most Bossa Nova and Samba vocals are sung in Portuguese and I don't know Portuguese (its on my to-do list) but you don't have to understand a word to appreciate Clara Moreno. The music speaks to you anyway. Just let it happen.



Clara is a rising star with THE perfect Bossa Nova voice I'm always searching for. Its soft but not too soft, and there is a playful element that's part of her personality that somehow gets right into those tracks. Its almost like she's really performing right in front of you.



Clara's first CD release in the UK "Meu Samba Torto" had me hooked in five minutes. It has very lightly processed dreamy Bossa tracks on it. It was my top CD for Bossa Nova until "Miss Balanco." This release takes you in a different direction exploring traditional Brazilian sounds but with new clever arrangements and even less electronic processing. I find this music to be just as fresh and exciting and every bit as wonderful as her previous work. I understand her mother produced this one. She's brilliant too. It took me a few plays to get my ears used to this new sound and then... Clara did it.... She hooked me once again.

"

Five Big Stars for Clara!

Bruce D. Roberts | Vestal, NY | 11/02/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"THIS, friends, is the album we have been waiting for from Clara Moreno. I admit that I'm not familiar with her first three albums, but her fourth, "Morena Bossa Nova," was a decent stab at Brazilectro. Her fifth, "Meu Samba Torto," was better still; Celso Fonseca joined her for several songs on that album, and you can never go wrong with Celso.



But "Miss Balanco" is a different animal. Most of the songs were popularized by other artists, I think in the 1960s and 1970s, and indeed the liner notes declare that the music "evokes the grooving, steamy old school clubs of Lapa, Rio de Janeiro." Yet it's thoroughly modern-sounding, lively, and very jazzy, with tasteful keyboards and excellent horn arrangements. Clara's voice handles every song perfectly - wistful, sensuous, ecstatic, whatever, she's right there. She just seems right at home with this material.



Notes from Japan: Just so you know it's out there, the Japanese release of "Miss Balanco" has a totally different track sequence (and a different cover, with a much better picture of our girl Clara, IMHO; see the customer image I tacked on). The general release front-loads the majority of the uptempo tracks, then slows down and mellows out for the duration. The Japanese version starts off slow, then livens up, and thereafter maintains a nice balance. I prefer the Japanese issue, but the tracks themselves are the same, and the sequencing is really a matter of personal preference (as well as how much you want to pay; being a Japanophile can be pricey!).



Again quoting the sleeve notes, "Clara Moreno is a bold and beautiful character." No arguments here. And "Miss Balanco" is the most bold and beautiful samba/bossa/sambalanco release of 2009. I'm a big fan of contemporary Brazilian music, and "Miss Balanco" is the best thing I've heard in some time. Go, Clara!"