In the 1970s, Brazilian rock'n'roll followed along on several parallel paths, which only occasionally intersected. Many of the groups from the heavily commercialized, early-60s prefab jovem guarda teenybopper scene kept making albums well into the 1970s. Generally speaking, these continued along the pop cover-tunes path of their earlier work, or dipped even deeper into bland pop vocals, as with Roberto Carlos, the king of the scene. Many of the great tropicalia artists who pioneered psychedelic rock in Brazil moved on to become the superstars of the "MPB" scene, which also turned towards an increasingly-ornate pop direction; some -- like Jorge Ben -- delved into funk and soul-flavored groove music.
A handful of artists pursued (more or less) straight-ahead rock music... Many were inspired by the inroads made by the tropicalia movement, but keeping up with the times, they spun off in different directions. Ex-Mutante Rita Lee became something of a stadium rocker, and several prog bands flourished in the mid-'70s, while a few hardcore rockers and psychedelic bands also roamed the land. To be honest, I haven't heard all that many of these records... but as I check them out, I'll add my reviews to the Slipcue site.
Impacto Cinco "Lagrimas Azuis" (CBS, 1975)
Groovy, low-key psychedelic/sunshine pop and boogie-rock; some of it's clunky, some of it's sweet (like the perky, poppy "Viver Triste") and even instrumental fusion flights like "Lagrimas Azuis" are noteworthy. If this was an American band, it'd probably be no big whoop, but given the context of the mid-1970s Brazilian pop scene (which was dominated by the then-ascendant post-tropiclia MPB-ers and the drippy, post-jovem guarda "brega" pop artists), it's an interesting anomaly. This was apparently the band's last record; I don't have any info on their earlier work.
Os Incriveis - see artist discography
Inimigos Do Rei "Inimigos Do Rei" (Sony-Epic, 1989)
Inimigos Do Rei "Amanha Da Rainha" (Sony-CBS, 1990)
Inocentes - see artist discography
Instituto "Colecao Nacional" (YBrasil, 2002)
(Produced by Rica Amabis & Instituto)
A mellow, downtempo mix of electronica, rap and dub from a loose musical confederation led by Rica Amabis, with contributions by a horde of Brazilian hipsters, including Otto, Fred Zero Quatro and a slew of other, less well-known artists. The jungle/house beats don't do much for me, but I'm a grouchy old man. Worth checking out if you're in search of modern Brazilian stuff that's off the beaten track, pretty dynamic and stylistically diverse, even if it ain't quite my cup of tea.
Ira! - see artist discography
George Israel "4 Letras: 13 Parcerias Com Cazuza" (Universal, 2004)
The first solo album by George Israel of the pop band, Kid Abelha... This is a tribute to seminal '80s rocker Cazuza.
George Israel "Distorcoes Do Meu Jardim" (Universal, 2009)
Brazilian Rock - Letter "J"
Other Brazilian Styles
Main Brazil Index
