Black$ea Não Maya x Tia Maria Produções - "Batucada do Guetto"

The late-summer/early fall push continues for Black$ea Não Maya. Inactivity, it seems, has found a proper home in the past as the crew temporarily moved in with the prolific Tia Maria Produções. Case in point: last week BNM released their third song in a month, the second of a collaborative variety. Is this a sudden creative burst? Sure. But are we living in the midst of a Coltranian feat? Hardly. These tracks are, however, intriguing in their own right.

The first was a busy track, though not marking any radical aesthetic departure. "Voçê é feia," a song bearing the "batucada" genre label, has a quick tempo and enough vocal samples to start a small church choir. Still, subtle changes are heard throughout. Immediately clear are the sounds uncommon: horns and cuíca. The next song - a joint effort with Txiga Produções - goes even further. Content-wise, this number centers around a novel beat. Moreover, categorical guesswork is eliminated here as well. With a single glance of the title - "AfroBatukada" - listeners are left to presume these are the elements of a new style. But like kuduro, batucada is not new. Likewise, both are a reference to dancing just as much as usic. The difference is in origin; Cape Verde as opposed to Angola. Granted, batucar is also a verb meaning "to whip together." Just as well a third linguistic connection is found in the Brazilian state of Amapa and the noun "batuque," which refers to a religious celebration.

Regardless, "Batucada do Guetto" is immedaitely an appropriate third entry in this developing BNM collection. In typical Lisbon fashion, three percussive elements are heard immediately. The introduction is long and noisy; the only honest way of describing the sirens and sheet of sound synth. These nearly thirty-seconds, however, are not composed in vein. The song's head is played twice: once before three false start and once after. Suddenly the ambient sounds dissipate and a third, distorted vocal, as well as a scraper, appears. In a sense, "Batucada do Guetto" is arranged like "AfroBatukada." Each crew receives a portion of the whole. Fascinatingly, though, the whole might as well be four 'brevemente' parts. The two Tia Maria sections themselves contrast each other. A robust dundun drum alongside a shortened version of the original synth are heard first. What follows is a tempo shift towards the faster end of the spectrum, with a new melody, and novel vocals including the soothing sound of Lil Jon. Like a good jazz song, the stakes have been raised.

- John Noggle