Let’s discuss any and all music here. Got a new artist who’s rocking your boat that you want to talk about? Post a video! Found out about that unearthed Coltrane album that has the jazz freak in you losing your mind? Lay it out for us! Have a theory about what your favorite band might do for their next album? Let’s hear it! Anything and everything music-related goes here.

This week’s discussion prompt: What are some of your favorite songs that are sung in a language you can’t understand?

Tropicália was a Brazilian artistic movement which combined various Brazilian genres as well as incorporating foreign influences. The movement was primarily musical, though it also included film, theater and poetry. Tropicália was cultural as well as political, with Brazil’s military dictatorship harassing, imprisoning and even torturing artists associated with the movement. For anyone unfamiliar I’d recommend finding out more, as the history is fascinating and the music is incredible.

There is a wealth of great music that came out of the movement, but my favorite is probably Os Mutantes. The band’s self-titled debut from 1968 is a psychedelic masterpiece, incorporating any number of genres and widely regarded as the Brazilian equivalent of Sgt. Pepper. Most of the songs are sung in Portuguese, which I do not understand at all and does not in any way hinder my enjoyment of their wildly inventive music. The follow-up albums Mutantes (1969) and A Divina Comédia ou Ando Meio Desligado (1970) are both great as well.

For more information on the Tropicália movement, Pitchfork created an excellent primer, as well as this accompanying video giving a brief overview of some of the best Tropicália albums:

As always, any and all music-related topics are welcome. Have fun, and rock out with yr guac out!