Criticism | ‘Cor’, ANAVITÓRIA’s new album, is a great way to start 2021

ANAVITÓRIA, a duo formed by Ana Caetano and Vitória Falcão, formed in 2014, taking two years to make their debut with the album of the same name in 2016 – which yielded the duo a Latin Grammy statuette and another nomination. . Known for their metaphorical writing and a sound that mixes past and present, Caetano and Falcão achieved unexpected success and, on the first day of the year, honored their fans with “Cor”, a small “offering” to remind us of the unrest year that finally came to an end, serving as the opening chapter to a necessary healing process. The fourth studio album moves away from the realistic and melancholy conceptions once forcefully manifested in its most famous songs for a romantic and very patriotic idealization that spans fourteen very well thought out tracks.

Honestly, the careers of these two great singers and songwriters have always faded from the radar of this reviewer who writes to you, but I have decided to surrender to what I can only call the best way to start a new one. time. After all, the work is an evocative and exciting blend of all Brazilian folkloric forays – that is, the sincere amalgamation of backwoods roots with the inner ballads of Minas Gerais and São Paulo – with the momentary subtlety of electronic synthesizers and the metallic spiciness of guitar and bass, painting a monumental poetic lyric, to say the least. If some verses are familiar, especially when talking about a Shakespearean novel that has left its mark and cannot be erased, this is what ensures the cohesion that binds the pieces together. Plus, the duo’s preference for steep finishes is one of the only aspects that stains the CD.

“Amarelo, azul e branco” is a production which has a lot to say, but which cannot be found. Make no mistake, the opening of the album is welcome to prepare listeners for what to expect on the rest of the journey – and even feeds some elements with musical groups like Barbatuques, in which sensory perception is transferred. to mighty drums and a self-discovery that calls for freedom and expressiveness However, the fusion of contradictions takes on frantic proportions that deserve more attention (that said, being eclipsed by the chemistry and harmonies of the two interpreters).

The best moments of “Cor” emerge when the duo don’t limit themselves to building something simplistic – as with “T’aimer, c’est trop mass”. The obviousness of the title is quickly swept under the carpet when we are presented with a conflicting and passionate explosion of samba and bossa nova that takes us back to the 1920s in the suburbs of Rio de Janeiro, while opening up the space to inflections like Tom Jobim and Maria Gadú, with distant reflexes on the more down-to-earth phase of Elis Regina (and such characterizations explain the reason for being one of the highlights of the iteration). “Try to Believe” is a lair in which vulnerability and theatricality find a common specter in a circus and a personal explosion.

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The work is a huge success by maintaining the current freshness of the multiple facets of Brazilian culture while paying a very mimetic tribute to the idols who have influenced it – whether national or international. The extraordinary interlude “(day 34)” is the gateway to a reverence for Rita Lee (who lends her voice for the opening track) in the early years of the 2000s, entitled “Still time” – in which the profusion of the new rave is reduced to the classicism of the piano and the flaws that the instrument cultivates for the popular semi-ballad guitar “I know who you are”. In “Terra”, doo-wop and soul come to life thanks to inferences that support Rihanna’s iconic discography, more precisely in the iconic “ANTI” (2016); “Lisboa”, a song that ends in beauty, saves the last adventures of Adriana Calcanhotto last year with “Só”, but it is not limited to imitating it, but to bringing it back to an original and very narcotic.

None of this would be possible without the competent production overseen by none other than Caetano alongside Tó Brandileone – a perfect partnership that unites two very similar styles in something that could dictate this year’s instrumental preferences for Brazilian music. Acoustic details, which draw elements from B-pop, electronics, and the synaesthetic melody of the guitar (as in “Carvoeiro” or “Explodir”), are responsible for preventing the tracks from giving way to a sound. monotonous and forgettable similarity. In fact, the compilation of originals is a great, timeless memory that is not gagged in an instant, but to several of them emerging in a dreamlike timeline.

2021 has started off on the right foot – and with none other than a Brazilian duo who still have a lot to tell us and, in the end, we hope they stay on this very successful path. “Color” is a celebration of love, freedom and all that life has in store – which is why we need the album more than ever.

Rating per track:

1. Yellow, blue and white (feat. Rita Lee) – 3/5
2. Loving you is too much mass – 4/5
3. Try to believe – 4.5 / 5
4. Explode – 3.5 / 5
5. Cicada – 4/5
6. Jungle – 4/5
7. (day 34) – 5/5
8. There is still time – 5/5
9. I know who you are – 4/5
10. Earth – 4.5 / 5
April 11 – 4/5
12. I’m looking for you – 4/5
13. Carvoeiro – 4.5 / 5
14. Lisboa (feat. Lenin) – 5/5

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