indy cd & vinyl

BEBEL GILBERTO—MOMENTO

Bebel Gilberto has quite a heritage to live up to, being the daughter of legendary Brazilian musicians Anton Carlos Jobim and Astrud Gilberto (whose sixties hit “Girl From Ipanema” still caresses the airwaves to this day). On Momento, her third album, she is more than equal to the task. Possessing the same hushed whisper of a voice as her mother, Gilberto continues to employ the slow, “tropical” grooves so characteristic of Brazilian music. But as with her previous two (excellent) albums, she also adds a variety of electronic “spices” which updates the sound while keeping the Brazilian feel fully intact. While the addition of electronics to such music is becoming more commonplace by the day, Gilberto’s voice, economic songwriting (most songs clock in at around 3 minutes), and varied instrumental approaches put her at the forefront. The title song opens the album, and is characteristic of much that is to follow. Sung in Brazilian (some songs do have English passages), the vocals are lush and sung just above a whisper, with a slow, laid back groove and almost imperceptible electronic touches creating a very relaxed and sensual atmosphere. “Bring Back The Love” follows with a slightly more modern feel provided by programmed keyboards and percussion flavors. “Cacada” provides a nice change of pace, driven by a strong tom-tom pattern, with the main melody carried by flute. Interestingly, the weakest track here is the most well-known, Gilberto attempts Cole Porter’s “Night and Day,” but with only partial success, as her vocals sound uncharacteristically stilted, lacking the flow achieved on her own compositions. While some may argue that Gilberto’s modernization of Brazilian music is an appropriation, such criticisms would appear to be misguided. She is no more an appropriator than is an artist like Bruce Springsteen when he foregoes an acoustic for an electric guitar when retracing (or simply covering) the folk canon. For those with open ears, the respect for tradition, without sounding completely traditional, is apparent throughout Momento.