Leonardo Marques: Early Bird (180g) Vinyl LP

This is the first solo dispatch from Leo Marques, former member of Brazilian underground faves Diesel, Udora and Transmissor, who weaves together a concise acknowledgement of a half-century of Brazilian music in just 9 songs. Opener “The Girl From Bainema” resets the vibe with some lo-fi bossanova beats to relax/study to, before launching into a suite of soulful, vocal-led songs in classic samba, folk and jazz-psych styles. The production sounds like a modern classic thanks to an entirely analog recording setup. Check out “I’ve Been Waiting,” “Não Te Escuto,” “Ainda é Cedo” and the vaguely Flaming Lips-sounding “All The Hearts.” File this one next to modern acts like Sessa and Boogarins who are respectfully paying tribute to Brazil’s rich musical heritage but keeping it fresh; gotta dig the classic CTI / A&M style cover too. 180g pressing, available outside of Brazil for the first time, includes download card.

• 180g black vinyl pressing
  
• first time on vinyl outside of Brazil
• digital download included
  
• music label: 180g 2019

reviewed by Big Salad 12/2019