Os Mutantes

Os Mutantes | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• ASIN: B00000IABK

Track Listings

1. Panis Et Circenis

2. A Minha Menina

3. O Relogio

4. Adeus Maria Fulo

5. Baby

6. Senhor F

7. Bat Macumba

8. Le Premier Bonheur Du Jour

9. Trem Fantasma

10. Tempo No Tempo

11. Ave Genghis Khan

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ave Os Mutantes, April 23, 2005

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Os Mutantes (Audio CD)

It takes a connoisseur 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.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As folhas sabem procurar pelo sol, October 9, 2002

By 

A music fan (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Os Mutantes (Audio CD)

Join the the orchestral arrangements and sound effects of "Sgt. Pepper" and "Pet Sounds"; the vocal harmonies of the Mamas & the Papas; the instrumental sharpness of "Highway 61" and "Blonde on Blonde"; the creative madness of Syd Barrett's Pink Floyd; and a bit of Brazilian traditional rhythms and you have this album, "Os Mutantes" (1968), the band's debut. You don't need to have any interest in Brazilian music to enjoy this album. This is not just a curiosity made by a bunch of weirdos from an exotic country. This is, without exaggeration, one of the best and craziest records of the psychedelic era, an album that any American or English band of that period, except maybe for Jimi Hendrix, would be proud of. It just took too long to be appreciated outside Brazil. And their next two albums "Mutantes" (1969) and "A Divina Comédia" (1970) are almost as good as this one.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mutantes, indeed!!!, August 23, 2000

By 

Sean M. Kelly (Portland, Oregon United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Os Mutantes (Audio CD)

1968 was a most amazing year in the music world. The youth uprisings in France led to similar uprisings in Germany. In the United States, the fervor against the Vietnam War was coming to a boil, and the Democratic Convention in Chicago showed the violence that divided the nation to all. The rest of the world watched and youth everywhere reacted.

The music of 1968 reflects the changes perfectly. In America, harder edged bands such as the Mc5 mixed politics with a ferocity yet unseen. In Germany, the genesis of the music Kosmische happened as Tangerine Dream, Ash Ra Tempel, Can, and Kraftwerk were about to be born. Even the Beatles entered the foray with the highly underrated "White Album." It seemed everyone had something to say.

Brazil was not immune to political and artistic revolution, either. By 1967, an artistic movement now called "Tropicalia" had emerged, spearheaded by Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso, and also involved Tom Ze, Jorge Ben, Gal Costa, and, most far out of all, a band with 2 brothers, a beautiful female lead singer, and an accomplished guitarist- Os Mutantes.

Mutantes blended the Beatles, American "garage" sensibilities, the freedom of experimentation and sampling, and the lyrics of Veloso and Ben (who guests on the lp) on their debut lp. The results are pure magic- part traditional Brazilian, part psychedelic, part experimental, part carnival, part schmaltz, all deliciously mixed. A pure slice of what "tropicalia" was all about.

By the end of 1968, government crackdowns effectively ended this movement, as Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso were forced to leave Brazil. Os Mutantes forged ahead, but without Gil or Veloso to guide them, they gradually switched gears and their lps reflected more their homage to the Beatles and American garage music than to Brazilian art music.

Mutantes' debut lp is an important one, and indispensible to those interested in modern Brazilian music, psychedelia, or to a curious onlooker, willing to try out a new album. Few albums I would rate as brilliant, but this is one of them. Find out why.