One of the leading producers and instrumentalists in Brazilian music, Alexandre Kassin has produced roughly 100 records for singers, including Marisa Monte and Bebel Gilberto, recorded with Sean O’Hagan (Stereolab, High Llamas) and made a full album based on Nintendo Game Boy sounds. He has played bass for Caetano Veloso’s live shows and conceptualized the Orchestra Imperial band.
His new album, Relax, is rooted in dreams and surrealism, yet grounded enough to reach listeners where they are. Across 11 tracks, Kassin ?irts with Latin rhythms, Brazilian pop, and straight-ahead soul, using this varied stylistic array to tell imagined tales of death, drug usage, politics and fate. There’s a dichotomy to Relax, with Kassin’s arrangements often feeling bright and danceable, yet with incredibly sullen themes. It’s a record that speaks directly to the yin and yang of everyday life, and the uncertainty that comes with simply existing.
The Good Is A Big God, by singer, composer and multi-instrumentalist Domenico Lancellotti, features contributions from Nina Miranda, Moreno Veloso, Pedro Sá and Sean O’Hagan. Son of composer Ivor Lancellotti, Domenico has collaborated with various MPB (Música Popular Brasileira) names such as Adriana Calcanho]o, Marcos Valle, Caetano Veloso and Fernanda Abreu, and also participates in several projects such as Orchestra Imperial, the +2’s (with Moreno Veloso and Kassin) and Ritmistas.
A collection of re?ective samba partially inspired by a trip taken to a Brazilian national park called The Serra dos Órgãos, The Good Is A Big God frst began to take shape when Domenico was asked to take part in an artistic collaboration in the city of London during the 2012 Summer Olympics. There, he reunited with Sean O’Hagan after previously meeting during a show that paid homage to Tropicália. Before he took o? for London, Domenico sent O’Hagan a few musical sketches he’d done on guitar, by the time the Brazilian made it to the U.K., O’Hagan had string arrangements to accompany Domenico’s music. Domenico added lyrics to some of these songs once he returned to Brazil and with help from friend and label mate Kassin, and additional assistance from O’Hagan, the record was fnished. One can hear a sense of isolation and oneness with nature when listening to The Good Is A Big God. It’s the type of art that arrives in a calming stream of thought and is a much- needed respite from the rigors of everyday life.