The magic of new Brazilian stars BaianaSystem is back with their excellent second album “O Futuro Não Demora”.
When they released “Duas Cidades” in 2016, BaianaSystem established themselves as the future of Brazilian Music: an intelligent mix of Brazilian rhythms combined with socially conscious lyrics, and to top it off, an amazing ear for hooks.
They got big. They played for 80,000 people at one of the largest carnival parties in the country, collaborated with tons of artists — veterans and newcomers — and got soundtracked on huge national soap-operas.
Fast-forward three years later, and the band announced that their new album was going to be released just in time for 2019’s carnival. Needless to say, people’s expectations were high.
But instead of giving fans what they wanted, BaianaSystem threw a curveball. “O Futuro Não Demora” (The Future Doesn’t Delay) is much more subversive and meticulously produced than its predecessor, focusing on beautiful sound landscapes and often relying on some great features from names like Manu Chao, Edgar and Vandal.
“Bola de Cristal” (Crystal Ball) is probably one of the most radio-friendly tunes on the record — which is saying something.
On the track, Russo Passapusso offers a parallel between the violence of previous civilizations and our own (“there was a time when the chipped stone had the same role as the metal bullet — there is no difference between the modern man and the neanderthal man”) while still maintaining hope that things will change. It doesn’t name names, but it doesn’t even need to — the band has spoken in length about their opposition to the newly-elected president’s ideals.
There are social and political undertones in most of the songs in “O Futuro Não Demora”, but they usually take second-place to the instrumentals, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It rewards repetitive listens — by the time fans have fully digested these songs, they already know all of the lyrics. And that’s the magic of BaianaSystem.
Stream “O Futuro Não Demora” LP on Spotify.
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