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Sim

Vanessa da Mata shot to fame in Brazil with her sweet, poppy hit Não me Deixa So in 2002; following it up with the similar Ai, Ai, Ai in 2004. She seemed little more than the archetypal middle-class Brazilian MPB star: with her model looks and big hair, pretty enough to be mainstream, yet with lyrics smart and quirky enough to appeal to Brazil’s burgeoning educated urban twenty-somethings. There was little to suggest that she was anything more than just another Ana Carolina or Luciana Mello. At least on the surface. But Vanessa has a serious musical past. Before chart success she had recorded with Chico Cesar and written the duet, O Canto de Dona Sinhá for Caetano Veloso and Maria Bethânia. Sim is her first solo album to reveal this musical pedigree. And the result is far closer to artists like CéU or Mariana Aydar than it is to pop chart Brazil.

Songs are still catchy. Vermelho is a light, Forró-reggae, with Vanessa’s lilting contralto swimming seductively over the top. Fugiu Com A Novela is delicious MPB with a garnish of samba and a vocal line as sweet and melifluous as a Marisa Monte ballad. And Baú is a jerky, syncopated Rio funk with a floating psychedelic guitar that fades away into swirly multi-layered vocals. Ben Harper guests on Boa Sorte – a number one hit in Brazil. With Rio producer Kassin on board and Sly & Robbie on rhythm section the entire CD is infused with laid-back contemporary cool. Only the sappy lyrics let the record down.

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// ALL VANESSA DA MATA'S REVIEWS


Sim
15/04/2009






// LINKS




RELATED ARTISTS

>> Renata Rosa


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// CONTACT

Vanessa da Mata's Website




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Stefanino
04/22/2009 03:15 PM

Y love you Vanessa. y love you Ben.




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