Search - Various Artists :: Rio Evolutions V.2

I Do Like this But...

bordersj2 | Boston | 02/14/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"...I have to admit, when you get past Claudia's tracks, you start to feel a bit like you're more so in Cuba than Brasil. This is the sequel to the Rio Evolutions "Zouk Nu Bossa" album from back in 2001-02. I think the noticeable difference from one to two is that this one is compiled by Schema's Gerardo Frisina. It was an excellent idea and it shows the depth of musical knowledge of the Schema label's artists. You have some tracks on this cd that are extremely rare. The concept is pretty straight forward - the evolution and different interpretations of Brazilian, latin and Italian styles.



It starts out with the jazzed up "Zozoi" given a remix by Sunaga T. Good energy, what you expect to hear from the Japan jazz scene. That's followed up with a Nicola Conte remake of Aldemaro Romero's "Tema de la Onda". It's a dreamy Conte jazzed up mix that'll remind you of what happens when "I Sing This Song Just For You" meets "Kind of Sunshine". Real classy work. Then it's onto a more Italian soundtrack tone with Beryl Cunningham's orgasm ridden "Lover Baby". But afterwards, you've got some pretty neat tracks by Claudia with "Gosto de ser como Sou", which oozes a throwback, underground sound. What a treat this song is... a remake of the old Brazilian Octopus song. Her voice is so incredibly strong, it's amazing how she never really hit the mainstream but that's not uncommon to a slew of other Brazilian artists that had the same fate (Ana Mazzotti, etc.). "Macumba", a track dedicated to some of the dark arts of Brasil like voodoo & idol worship, really does have an eery vibe that's accentuated by her haunting vocals and the strange male vocals in the background. The Claudia tracks are the highlights to this album by far, as the songs are only available otherwise on VERY VERY VERY difficult to find 7" vinyls. Mp Mop's "Frank & Stein" follows a classic easy jazz glide, and then you've got sweet danceable tracks by Frank Hernandez and Stefano Mainetti. What I love about the Frank Hernandez cuts are the visuals you see while listening to the music - you can imagine the music being made, or even music being made 30 years ago. "Baby Chickens" gives a live sort of Havana Nights feel to it. The end of the CD has a few remixes to the opening track along with Gerardo Frisina's own remix to "Baby Chickens".



This is a sensational piece of work. I have to stress that some of the sounds here don't honestly remind me so much of Brasil, but of latin nights in general. While a few of the opening cuts are just oozing with Brazilian flavor others are more subtle. If you're a fan of Gerardo Frisina's latest works, including the album he just released last year titled 'The Latin Kick', you'll really enjoy this. It'll give you a sense of his inspiration, and likewise if you have that album or even "Hi Note", you'll enjoy this release. It's a VERY different release than the original "Zouk Nu Bossa", almost so much so it deserves to have it's own line. But I really enjoyed this album."