Os Mutantes [Vinyl]

Os Mutantes | Format: Vinyl

Product Details

• Vinyl (December 7, 2007)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: LILITH
• ASIN: B000X12UUE
• Also Available in: Audio CD
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #232,787 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #69 in Music > World Music > Latin Music > Brazilian > Tropicália

Track Listings

1. Panis et Circenses

2. A Minha Menina

3. O Relógio

4. Adeus Maria Felô

5. Baby

6. Senhor F

7. Bat Macumba

8. Le Premier Bonheur du Jour

9. Trem Fantasma

10. Tempo No Tempo (Once Was a Time I Thought)

11. Ave Gengis Khan

Editorial Reviews

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ave Os Mutantes, February 10, 2011

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Os Mutantes (Audio CD)

It takes a huge of psychedelic rock and pop to know of (drumroll please) Os Mutantes. This short-lived Brazilian band made some of the most memorable psychedelic pop of the 1960s -- which is really saying something, given the era that they thrived in. Call it psychetropicalia.

And their self-titled debut is probably the best work they ever did, without a single dud track. "Panis et Circenses" kicks things off with a horn solo, and then with a stretch of swooning acid-pop and some angelic-sounding voices. From there on, we get a fun, perky pop song laced with more horns, keyboards and wacky sound effects.

The stuff that follows is much in the same vein, from the buzzing and swooning keyboard splendor of "Baby," the downtempo warbles of "Le Premier Bonheur du Jour," and other songs full of Brazilian spunk, sonic clutter, sixties guitar solos, piano ripples, and catchy little songs that never get old. Rooted in Brazilian tropicalia, the music has quite a few quirks and twists, but surprisingly it never becomes too weird to alienate listeners.

Os Mutantes was initially formed by Arnaldo and Sergio Baptista, who later added Rita Lee and their brother Claudio. Though the band didn't last very long, they developed a reputation for twiddling with basic Brazilian pop -- while they stayed happy and accessable, they also added in distortion, feedback, non-catchy stretches of noise, and other sound experiments. It sounds fun, doesn't it?

And actually, it is a lot of fun. The trippy bossa nova/psychedelic rock/catchy pop isn't as heavy as it sounds, but instead goes for a light, playful, deeply stoned vibe. Eerie flutes, panpipes and jungle drums get mixed in with solid guitar riffs and smooth keyboards, acoustic and electric guitar harmonize, and piano is overlaid with train whistles.

Those traditional instruments ground what could have been just another psychedelic band. And the tropicalia gives it an earthy, unique edge that most psychedelica lacks. It's gloriously catchy, and incredibly infectious. The most typical aspect of it is the vocal harmonies -- other than that, there is simply nothing to compare this to.

There hasn't really been a band like Os Mutantes since, and until someone decides to revive that underrated sound, there probably won't be again. Mad, wild, crazy, and absolute bliss from beginning to end.