Sao Paulo is now the experimental-fusion center of Brazilian music. Bands mix music from Brazil with music from Africa. Bixiga 70 and Meta Meta have already been influenced by Fela Kuti’s Afrobeat. Now comes Nomade Orquestra which combines west African themes with North American jazz and Ethiopian jazz. The 10-piece, inventive instrumental band combines a strong brass section with guitars, drums, and bass to create tuneful big-band music that is driven by riffs and changes in direction. Rinoceronte Blues begins as Ethio-jazz, but then becomes harmonica-backed Blues. Other places, the stomping brass music transitions into rock-guitar solos or funk, while grand themes are matched with cool, late-night atmospheric tracks. From www.theguardian.com
