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CD REVIEW: AFRO REGGAE
Favela Uprising
(Mr. Bongo)
Article and live photos
by Ernest Barteldes
 Formed
in the squatter towns of Rio in the late 1990s, Afro
Reggae became a cultural movement that helps young men
and women stay away from trouble (i.e. Drug trafficking)
by educating them in music, dance and theater. The most
visible part of the movement is the band, which has
recently had their first release, which compiles several
tunes from earlier Brazilian CDs, including their latest
there, Nenhum Motivo Explica a Guerra (There
is No Motive to Explain War).
The CD is a mix of
rap-inspired songs that send a message of peace and
understanding, romantic R & B inflected songs, funk and
of course, reggae. That is the style of one of the
disc's strongest moments, \ "Quero S Voc" (All I Want Is
You), a radio-friendly tune with na ve
but catchy lyrics. On Benedito, however, heavy guitars
give the backdrop of a story about a young criminal who
finds a cruel but inevitable fate. The tune features
Manu Chao, who sings in Spanish about the stupidity of
violence in big cities.
Caetano Veloso and
Gilberto Gil co-wrote Haiti in 1992 to comment on racism
in Brazil. The rap-like words were inspired by a
massacre in which police attacked inmates in a So Paulo
prison during a rebellion; 111 of them some who had
already served their sentences were ruthlessly killed,
prompting dramatic changes in police laws in the
country. Afro Reggae's take on it begins with a reggae
backbeat that changes into a more syncopated beat as the
vocalists begin to sing the line
111 defenseless inmates/are almost all
black/or almost white/ or almost black due to poverty/
and everyone knows how they treat blacks.
Another strong moment
is Coisa de Nego (Black Guy's Thing), a 70s
funk-inspired, very danceable tune whose lyrics speak of
how Afro-Brazilians and African Americans have
influenced music in Brazil. Listen also to A Parada
Outra (A Different Story), which narrates the utopia of
a young boy victimized by violence who was able to leave
misery behind to recreate his life.
Favela Uprising
is a good example of where the Afro Reggae band is now;
they are able to deliver their socially conscious
message but can also sit back and enjoy the music; they
are obviously having fun with it, and that comes across
to the listener as well.
LAST WEEK
reprinted from
The Lawrencian |
