Far Out レコード& CD

Review: First released in 1979 during the heyday of Brazil's jazz-funk movement, Antonio Adolfo's Viralata has long been considered an era-defining release by those who know. Given that original Brazilian copies are frustratingly hard to come by, this official reissue from Far Out Recordings - who previously worked with Adolfo on his 2007 set Destiny - should be an essential purchase for all those who dig Brazilian music. A little more jazz-focused than albums by contemporaries such as Azymuth, much of "Viralata" is slick, polished and incredibly well produced, with notable samba influences amongst the unashamed tributes to leading American artists. As you'd perhaps expect, the musicianship is astonishing.

Review: Agustin Pereyra Lucena's 1980 album La Rana was recorded in Oslo and is a wonderful exhibition of his exceptional guitar interpretations of compositions by Ivan Lins, Antonio Carlos Jobim and his friend Baden Powell, all alongside his own original works including the 15-minute masterpiece 'Encuentro De Sombras.' Featuring bassist Guillermo Reuter, flautist Ruben Izarrualde and drummer Finn Sletten, La Rana blends South American rhythms with Norwegian landscapes and reflects Agustin's warmth, humility, and joyful connection to music and life and the title track is a standout that offers a unique rendition of Joao Donato's 'A Ra' from his 1973 album Quem E Quem.

Review: Not that it's any surprise to us, but London's Far Out imprint is really smashing it at the moment, putting out some Brazilian fire left, right and centre. This week, along with an excellent reissue from Baiano & Os Novos Caetanos, we have 1975's Azambuja & Cia, another unforgettable gem from the Golden Era of South American funkin'! Although there are plenty of moments worth a dance on here, this album is a much gentler, more soulful number which often spans into the livelier end of the jazz spectrum. In fact, this is the vibe right here, with fat basslines coming meandering amid mild-mannered beats and the group's inimitable vocal swagger. It's another Brazilian gem, and one worth copping as a reissue. Magnificent stuff.

Review: Legendary Brazilian jazz-funk trio Azymuth drop their latest record 'Arabuta', pointing themselves in a new cardinal direction in sound. The limited 7" brings two new mix version of their recently released 'Arabuta' to the fold, both by fellow producer and Azymuth collaborator Daniel Maunick. Part-dancefloor, part-dub, both versions bring preservative tones, fully circling the resinous Brazilwood tree after which the track is named. The Tupi Guarani word for the endangered tree fuses with deft unperturbed jazz licks, despite the sense of urgency in saving the species, underscoring Azymuth's fusion of timeless Brazilian jazz-funk and cosmic futurism. In more ways than one, this record serves as a symbol of both the value and fragility of Brazil's natural beauty.

Review: Rewind to 1975, Brazilian supergroup Azymuth hit their richest creative vein with this self-titled full-length. Just as the band remain so themselves, this is still hugely relevant and ridiculously on-point considering it's 40 years on the clock. Proof can be found on every track from the sedative harmonic charms of the opener "Linha Do Horizonte", the raw slap bass funk, velvet keys and soaring synths on "Seems Like This" and the frenetic, almost techy mentality of "Wait For My Turn". An essential addition to any collection, this would have blown minds to pieces back in 1975.

Review: Together under the starry skies of the 70s, Arnaud Rodrigues and Chico Anysio made some of the most incredible music of that decade, under the name of Baiano & Os Novos Caetanos. Their legendary debut LP from 1974, under their own name, has become a Brazilian funk addict's must-have, not to mention a Holy Grail for contemporary sampling. Until now, it's been difficult to get a hold of it on viny format, so we're super psyched that the irresistibly reliable Far Out label has decided to reissue it. With 11 tracks to marvel at, there is a slice of funk for all walks of life and, of course, there is so much grooving to done! Quite simply, this is feel-good music for feel-good people, and this duo's vibes are just about the best thing we could ask on this June morning. Cop it before it's too late - we wouldn't want you to suffer at the hands of the online sharks, now!

Review: Since emerging in their home country a decade ago, Caixa Cubo have flitted between labels (most notably Heavenly Recordings and Jazz 'N' Milk) while establishing trademark sound that expands on the jazz-funk-meets-samba-jazz template created by fellow countrymen Azymuth (like that band, they're a trio based around drums, bass and organ/electric piano). Unsurprisingly, they've now found a home on Joe Davis's Brazil-focused Far Out Recordings, a stable that has done much to champion Azymuth in the UK. Modo Avia (air mode) is typically warm, breezy and gently tropical, fusing killer grooves and infectious, off-kilter rhythms with brilliant solos, infectious riffs and far-sighted musical flourishes. It feels like the sort of set that will be talked about in hushed tones in 30 or 40 years, and we can think of no greater praise than that.

Review: The worldly wide Far Our label turns its attention to some fascinating house sounds from Ivan Mamao Conti. "Katmandu" is all bendy bass and tropical drums, steamy humidity and sensuous synths. Pablo Valentino flips it into warm and jazzy number for cosy basement clubs that harks back to the 90s, and Jazzanova then layer in plenty of the golden instrumentals and key playing that makes the music come alive. The closing remix is all Moodymann vibes with its rough kicks and claps, funk bass and lived-in aesthetic. This is classy house music from front to back.

Review: By the time he recorded "Brazilian Dorian Dream" in 1976, Brazilian composer, musician, producer and bandleader Manfedo Fest had already worked on countless bossa-nova, samba and jazz albums, both in the United States and his native Brazil. Yet the album, which Far Out has now reissued, is like nothing else he recorded before or after - and not just because it was based on "the principle of the modal diatonic scales of the Dorian mode". Musically, it's deliciously vibrant and colourful, combining elements of his native Brazilian samba and bossa-nova with Azymuth style jazz-funk, American jazz-fusion, and futuristic, then cutting edge synthesizer sounds. Above all, though, the album strikes a near perfect balance between funkiness and the sweet sunniness that defines some of the greatest Brazilian music.

Review: The well-regarded Far Out label starts a new catalogue number series for this first reissue from Brit-funk band Freeze. They are of course best known for lighting up the charts and dance floors of the 1908s with their super hit 'Southern Freeez' but also penned plenty of other gems. 'Keep In Touch' is right up there amongst them and now comes as an original and edited version on heavyweight vinyl. It is a joyful track packed with busy jazz-funk keys that cannot fail to amp up the party, especially in unison with a busy and tight bass riff and hip-swinging claps and drums. The edit shortness things up t make for an even more potent gem.

Review: Before tearing up dancefloors - and the pop charts - with 1981 single 'Southern Freeez', Brit-funk outfit Freeez self-released a couple of singles on main man John Rocca's Pink Rhythm label. These are now sought-after items, particularly debut double A-side 'Stay'/'Hot Footing It', hence this handy reissue. 'Stay', an early composition from UK jazz-funk legend Jean-Paul Maunick, is a deliciously expansive affair, with Spanish guitar solos, dazzling electric piano motifs, rubbery bass, shuffling drums and sweet female lead vocals all vying for attention in the mix. 'Hot Footing It' is a more straight-up UK jazz-funk floor-filler full of fluid jazz-bass, bustling drums and warming Rhodes riffs. Both tracks have naturally stood the test of time very well.

Review: Far Out Recordings launches its 30th anniversary celebrations with the highly anticipated release of The Ipanemas's Samba is Our Gift which lands on vinyl for the very first time. Originally dropped in 2006, the album seamlessly blends Afro-Brazilian-bossa rhythms with classic vocal samba, transporting listeners back to the vibrant Rio de Janeiro of the 1960s. Comprising drummer and vocalist Wilson Das Neves and guitarist Neco, The Ipanemas played a pivotal role in popularising bossa nova in the 1950s. Collaborating with Brazilian luminaries like Elis Regina and Antonio Carlos Jobim, they bridged jet-set bossa with the roots-y samba of the black Brazilian working class and this is a great introduction to their work if you aren't familiar.

Review: Veteran Brazilian singer-songwriter Joyce first teamed up with Mauricio Maestro for Visions Of Dawn, a 2009 album of samba, bossanova and folk which celebrated everything vital about Latin American music culture. Now they're back on Far Out with a new album of sunkissed magic that will take you right back to that feel-good place they explored on their first collaboration, taking in delicate balladry and playful whimsy steeped in soul and sentiment. It's a joyous listen from two totems of Brazilian music, produced, arranged and conducted by Claus Ogerman.

Review: A long-lost gem from drum legend Edison Machado finally sees the light of day: Edison Machado & Boa Nova, recorded in New York in 1978 but never released, reflects the work of the master muso-mountaineer at his peak, fusing North and South American jazz rhythmic traditions with groundbreaking samba innovations. Machado, a pioneer of "samba no prato" (samba on cymbals), redefined Brazilian jazz alongside Jobim and Gilberto. Forced into exile under Brazil's dictatorship, he later found new creative energy in NYC, leading an ensemble of top-tier musicians. The result? A daring, dynamic, and electrifying session, controlled but untamed. Alongside original contributions from Dom Salvador, Guilherme Vergueiro and Aloisio Aguiar, this 80-minute lost masterpiece singes our ears with its carpal flair.

Review: Opa's Back Home was first reocrded in 1975 but not released until 1996; it was the fourth and final album by the esteemed Uruguayan fusion band, whose preferred admixture was usually some melted pot of funk and samba, making for an impressive heuristic building on their intuitive recalling of their mutual upbringing in South America. Mysteriously (for reasons unknown to the band), Opa's debut was shelved and remained so until the mid-1990s. But the story goes that it was recorded after renowned label producer and owner Larry Rosen heard the band playing in a Brooklyn nightclub; with this in mind, Back Home makes for an ironic title, since the sonic turn expressed by the band is not one of homesickness, but rather that of an immersion in New York's metamorphous music scene ('Brooklynville' has an instant proto-hip-hop vibe, if not for its original urban field recording, then certainly for its bulbous broken funk twang). Now reissued on vinyl and CD via Far Out, you won't want to miss this round trip.

Review: 52 years after it was first released in 1970, Hermeto Pascoal's self-titled debut long player remains a remarkable one. It was born in the A&R studios in New York and features a heavyweight cast of collabs including Ron Carter, Hubert Laws, Joe Farrel and Googie Coppola. There are even some stars of the Brazilian jazz scene of the time making appearances such as Airto Moreira and Flora Purim, who also took care of production. From elevator jazz tunes like 'Hermeto' to laid back and sunny bliss-outs like 'Flor Do Amor' the sis another jewel in the crown of Far Out.

Review: Ricardo Bomba was not only a studio owner, engineer, pianist and composer, but so too was he an accomplished amateur skateboarder. He lay down these previously unreleased, sun soaked Brazilian tunes in 1978 after years as bandleader with the one and only Jorge Ben's live show. The master tapes were said to have been binned during a heavy studio clear out but the man himself kept a tape copy that has been remastered for this special 7". Mariana Couto provides the angelic vocals while the music all trills with joy and happiness.

Review: Emilio Santiago's debut from 1975, the self-titled LP that officially marked the dawn of a new era, is still a classic to this day, and the sort of album that is the reference point to Brazil's long dynasty of rhythmic funk music. Joe Davis' Far Out label is responsible for this timely reissue, coming through with a new photo on the cover artwork - Santiago looking fly, as he always was. In so many words, this album is for anyone looking for either an affordable copy of this classic album, or a Brazilian funk album that brings you the heart and soul of Rio De Janeiro's rich musical heritage. Unmissable.

Review: Marcos Valle's 23rd studio album, Tunel Acustico, is a sweeping blend of the Brazilian legend's six-decade career, from his iconic bossa nova beginnings to jazz-funk and LA disco. Valle, who has worked with names like Sergio Mendes and Leon Ware, pulls together past and present on this release. With two members of the renowned Brazilian jazz-funk group Azymuth on board, the rhythm section sets a lively foundation for Valle's soulful melodies. Highlights include 'Feels So Good,' a groovy 1979 collaboration with Leon Ware, freshly updated with AI stem-separation and new Portuguese lyrics, and 'Life Is What It Is,' a disco-infused track co-written with Chicago's Laudir De Oliveira. Guest lyricists such as Ceu and Moreno Veloso add a contemporary flair, while the closing track, 'Thank You Burt (For Bacharach),' pays homage to the legendary composer. With its dynamic mix of samba, soul, and timeless grooves, Tunel Acustico is another standout in Valle's storied career.

Review: Marcos Valle's illustrious career is nothing short of extraordinary. From becoming an international sensation overnight to navigating political turmoil, dodging the Vietnam draft, and shaping fitness trends, Valle's journey is as dynamic as his music. To truly grasp his impact, one must experience his diverse discography. Spanning from his 1962 debut to the present, Valle's work covers bossa nova, samba, disco, psychedelic rock, and beyond. With 22 studio albums, his music has been celebrated by legends like Frank Sinatra, Elis Regina and sampled by contemporary icons such as Jay-Z and Kanye West. Valle's twenty-third album, Tunel Acustico, marks a grand synthesis of his musical evolution. The album unifies Valle's varied styles with a natural, sincere touch. It features two tracks from his time in Los Angeles in the late seventies: 'Feels So Good,' a soulful gem created with Leon Ware, and 'Life Is What It Is,' a disco delight co-written with Laudir De Oliveira of Chicago. 'Feels So Good' was restored from an old demo with producer Daniel Maunick, who used AI to enhance the track, while Valle added Portuguese lyrics and new instrumentation. Valle's take on 'Life Is What It Is' boosts the tempo and groove for an infectious summer vibe. The album also showcases contemporary Brazilian talents like Joyce Moreno, Ceu and Moreno Veloso, alongside Valle's brother, Paulo Sergio Valle. Closing with 'Thank You Burt (For Bacharach),' a tribute to Burt Bacharach, Tunel Acustico promises to be a compelling addition to Valle's legendary career.