Cabruera Cabruera CD

Guitars played with ballpoint pens to sound like cellos (or electronic loops), slithering basses, clavichords where you don't expect them, layers of percussion--put them all together, add some voices, and you've got Cabruera, one of the most original bands to emerge from Brazil in several years. There's a great feel of northeastern Brazil in their rough and ready forro and coco sound, but the underlying feel has far more to do with rock--hardly surprising, given that most of the band has a background in it. It gives plenty of verve to the sound, and also a penchant for experimentation that they indulge right from the explosive opening of "Loa de Chegana." By never settling into one form, they keep the listener hopping--metaphorically and literally, as the music is very danceable. What they've created, essentially, is Brazilian folk-rock for the 21st century, insidious and divine and well worth hearing. If you imagined all Brazilian music was samba or bossa nova, this will shock you--but in the very best way.

1. Pontal
2. Galopeando
3. Muganze
4. Musica Nova
5. Loa De Cheganca
6. Bagacera
7. Ciencia Nordestina
8. Nada Para O Pedro
9. Forro Esferografico
10. Certo Sertao
11. Parapoderembolar
12. Cangaco